With a career in music spanning around 35 years, Sunidhi Chauhan is one of those few singers who has given some of the biggest chartbusters including Sheila Ki Jawani, Beedi, Show Me The Thumka, Kamli, Mere Haath Mein, Ae Watan and Kyon, among others. In a conversation at a studio in Andheri, Sunidhi spoke about her first recording experience, well-choreographed concerts and her hot new avatar. Excerpts...

You’ve been performing since you were four and you first sang for Bollywood at 11. At what point did you decide this is what you want to do all your life?
For me, singing used to be a hobby, which turned into a passion after I sang my first song. I didn’t realise the gravity of it till I sang Ladki Deewani (Shastra,1996). That was at the age of 11 and before that I was just singing shaukiya and doing shows. I did get popular and I knew I liked doing this, but was it a career? When you are a child, you don’t even know what a career is. But there are people around you who speak to you in a different manner. People would ask me if I want a career in music and I would wonder yeh kya hota hai. After that when I sang my first film song, I realised that this was something that I wouldn’t leave for the world!

Tell us about the new Sunidhi. In recent times, there seems to be a change in your persona, including the way you dress on stage
Once you get comfortable with your body and are fit, things change. You can be comfortable in any size of course, but as a professional singer, as an artiste, when I am on stage, I just want to give my best. That would include what I wear, how I look and how I interact with the audience. The clothes I wear are also my personality, nahi toh main pehenti hi nahi. It’s not that kisi ne mujhe bola hai ki ab tum chote kapde pehno. It’s not about the length of the costume, it’s the fact that I’m comfortable and able to dance better. If I wear a ghagra, how will I perform like this? You need a certain look to perform certain songs. Luckily, I have a vast range of songs, romantic to jazz songs, from Beedi and Sheila Ki Jawani to Bhoot Hoon Main and Disco Deewane. So why won’t I explore different looks? In fact, people are liking the new me (smiles).

Have you taken dance lessons, which help you in your stage performances?
Dancing was always a passion, but I didn’t get a chance to learn it. After my son Tegh was born, the pandemic hit. That’s when I got a chance to spend time with myself and there was enough time to do more. So, I thought why not start learning to dance. Instead of just moving around and jumping on stage, we started incorporating some dance sequences and all of that worked out really well. I started adding more and more choreography into my shows. With the dance, my look and clothes also changed. Everything started moving in a direction that I had not really planned, but I kept going with the flow and I am happy with the way things panned out.