When Sri Lankan singer-songwriter-rapper Yohani created Manike Mage Hithe last year, little did she know that she would achieve international fame. Much has changed for the young singer since then, and now she is focusing on Bollywood. She has shifted base to Mumbai and is also learning to speak Hindi. In an exclusive interview with BT, she spoke about life in Mumbai and her future plans.

While Yohani did dream of singing for Hindi films, she didn’t think she would one day shift base to Mumbai. “I honestly didn’t think I would be able to sing for Bollywood. It all still feels like a dream. I’ve grown up listening to Hindi music and watching Bollywood films. I’m a big fan of so many artistes from India, and now I’ve got to work with a few of them. It still feels surreal,” she says.

It is not easy singing in Hindi, she admits. “Singing in a different language is quite a challenge. Learning to match the accent changes my vocal texture, so I need to get that right. But I am taking classes and working towards that,” says Yohani.

Fans, social media and critics do not take kindly to recreated songs and when we ask her for her views on this, Yohani says, “I personally don’t think about these things. If I like a song, I keep listening to it. Whether it is a remix or not does not matter to me. And I’m humbled by all the love and support that I got for Manike Mage Hithe, which is actually just my version of the existing Sinhalese song. I believe when artistes recreate music, they do not do it with any ill intentions. We do our best and put our heart and soul into the work. It is sometimes disheartening to see unkind words on social media. But we have to take it in our stride and strive to be better next time.”

Now that she has been spending a lot of time in Mumbai because of work, we ask her about the city. She says, “I like the three-wheeler rides (autorickshaw) in Mumbai, and I love how my team makes me feel at home here. The traffic is the only thing I dislike! I’d love to have my family here with me. But sadly, I don’t think they are going to move. My sister is a doctor and her work is mostly in Sri Lanka. Of course, they will come here from time to time to visit.”

Yohani has a long list of people she is a fan of in the Indian music industry. “I’m a huge fan of A R Rahman, Pritam, Arijit Singh, Sonu Nigam, Shreya Ghoshal, Sunidhi Chauhan... the list goes on. Even though I don’t fully understand Hindi, I feel their music and it is amazing. I aspire to have a body of work like them one day.”

Sri Lankan singer Yohani’s song, Manike Mage Hithe, is perhaps the most recent example of music transcending borders. Many of us don’t even know the meaning of the lyrics, yet we’ve heard it at least once on Instagram reels. The Sinhalese song has gone viral, crossing 100 million views on YouTube, and climbing many chartbuster lists. For the 28-year-old singer, the response has actually also brought along with it some pressure: To deliver a hit like this again.

“That’s a big problem for us,” she admits, “I’m not a person who’s aiming for the views as much, I usually produce the songs that I like, according to my taste. I hope you guys will like the next one. I’m not too sure.”

Manike Mage Hithe, which translates to Baby In My Heart, has found such a fanbase in India, that many celebrities have been raving about it, too. Talking to us over a video call, an excited Yohani says, “All of them have reposted and shared it... Amitabh Bachchan, Tiger Shroff, Madhuri Dixit Nene, Priyanka Chopra Jonas. It’s amazing!”

The power of social media has been further made clear to the singer, and she adds, “I think it’s really a good way to just connect with people and share your music. Not just that, but whatever you want to share, it’s just right there.”