Meet the multi-faceted C Aishvarrya Suresh who has impressed one and all – audience, judges and her fellow contestants – in the cutting-edge singing show Rockstar aired on Zee Tamil. Mind you, she’s no ordinary contestant, this girl has participated in top-notch concerts including the London Olympics 2012 and the United Basketball Alliance, was a part of some fabulous theatre productions and even been a recording artiste in some films. Read on as this gorgeous girl spills the beans on her eventful yet magical journey.

Aishvarrya, you are a model, actor, singer – you started at a very early age – how has the journey been?

Well, I have been a working artiste my entire adult life and yet I can say that I haven’t worked a day in my life (that is if work implies drudgery). It’s truly a blessing that I get to do all that I adore for a living. But that being said – I have always been a girl with soaring ambitions and what I believe is that all that I have learnt in my career thus far is preparation for my big fat fast approaching destination.

Your resume is brilliant – you’ve been a part of topnotch concerts including the London Olympics 2012 and United Basket Ball Alliance, you’ve done theatre and been a recording artiste – according to you which was the most exciting and can you share any anecdote – funny or otherwise about anything that is memorable

Thank you :)I have had the fortune of being a part of some extremely illustrious projects which have been both honours and challenges. I think out of them all, the one project where I really had to push myself to take a leap of faith was that of my first Musical theatre production – Chicago.

Not only had I never acted before, I happened to be a full blown introvert who had a fear of public speaking. Between playing the lead, singing live Broadway songs while dancing, performing to the tunes of Illayraja’s son – Yuvan Shankar Raja and having to cough up multi page monologues. I think that theatre stage has been the place where I really surprised myself.

I remember during our first show, I was being flipped upside down by the dancers and my dress got tangled with one of their cuffs upon dismount and I had a big dance sequence coming up while I had to untangle myself and continue singing. I could hear the audience gasp when that happened and while I continued my performance, I later heard that the audience thought that my song was pre-recorded as they didn’t think that that could be pulled off so flawlessly – well it wasn’t and I went ahead and took that as a compliment 🙂

Another defining moment was the surprise telecast of my Halftime show performance at the UBA by 8 time Emmy award winning producer Stephan Graham for 47 million people to view on Ten Sports. I was informed merely minutes before the performance that it was about to be aired and I really had to pull my socks up as it is almost impossible to perform on arena speakers with no monitors. It was definitely an adrenaline raising incident.

You are an exceptional singer – how did your journey as a singer begin?

I might actually be able to confidently say that I had one of the best debuts in musical history in our country. It happened when I set foot on the beautiful cove shaped stage overlooking the majestic Olympic tracks in London, 2012. For that performance, I was singled out and given a spotlight mention as a singer with a special voice in Spain’s leading newspaper El Mundo. That experience lit a fire in me and led me to train tirelessly in Western Classical music for six years to become the musician I am now. Music is truly my soul’s most fulfilling passion.

Have you sung for films too?

I have yes, many times. I have recorded for some of the leading music directors down south. The thing with my voice is that while it is widely appreciated, it is also recognized as rather unique. So I get to say that every song I have sung in the movies have been different and one of a kind each. Whether it was me singing Vairamuthu’s lyrics in a ‘Glitch’ song with Kamal Hassan himself for his movie Thoongavanam or lending my voice to the theme song of the latest blockbuster Nenjam Maraparillai or writing and singing the theme song in English for Sony Music’s – Gorilla – each of my songs have been rather special.

Tell us about your show Rockstar? What made you take part in it?

Rockstar is a first of its kind reality TV show on Zee Tamil, where professional playback singers are pitted against each other. The tag line of ‘Star to Rockstar’ is rather self-explanatory. I just loved the concept as soon as I was approached. I have always been inclined to taking up challenges and this has definitely been one of the most fun ones I’ve done in a while. My fellow contestants are not only brilliant musicians but are also some of the nicest people I have met.

Any memorable incident that stands out? How is it interacting with the show’s illustrious judges?

The judges of these show are all legends in their own right. It has been nothing short of an honour performing for them and hearing their constructive feedback. Their little tips and tricks are going to up my singing game significantly.

There is one particular comment that I got at the end of one of my performances which was that of Mr. Srinivas saying that I had what it took for me to become an “International Rockstar”. My aim and sights as a musician have always been that of becoming exactly that and the fact that a veteran like him was able to see that in me was not only encouraging but also reassuring given how we have all had to keep ourselves motivated for the last year-and-a-half.

I believe AR Rahman had come to the show, how was it performing in front of the maestro.

Oh, Mr. Rahman brings magic when he sets foot in a place. I remember vividly the energy of the set changing completely when he walked into the set on the red carpet. We were all conscious of every note we were hitting, and it almost felt like we were appearing for a viva exam. (Laughs) He was in great spirits, sharing anecdotes of every song we performed. It wasn’t my first time meeting him and what I am amazed by is the fact that his humility hasn’t even been touched by the hundreds of feathers on his cap, in all these years.

Lastly, what are your aims and aspirations for the future?

Oh well, I just want to be the biggest international singing star this country has produced. …Told you I have big dreams. Our country is full of music and arts and it is so surprising to know that we have so few musicians representing us on a global scale. Music in India is synonymous with film music. There is no concept of ‘music stars’ like there is around the world. A song is better known by the actor who has acted in the song than by its singers. Kind of feels like they’ve taken the term play’back’ music too seriously and pushed all the singers to the background. A singer’s worth is measured by the number of songs they have sung in movies – whom they have sung for before being judged for their talent itself. So much so that no Indian independent singer has won a Grammy from a country that comprises of 18% of the world’s population. It is my dream to change that someday.