‘I practically ran away from home’: Rachita Arora

It’s been two years since composer and singer Rachita Arora has made Mumbai her home. In this period, she has scored music for Gurgaon, Newton (Chal Tu Apna Kaam Kar), Mukkabaaz (all tracks except for Paintra), and background music for Shubh Mangal Saavdhan. Her recent releases are Dance Capital and Labon Se Chhukar in Sacred Games, and Karenjit Kaur — The Untold Story of Sunny Leone. She talks to us about being one of the few women composers in the industry and her work.

NOT A BIG STRUGGLE

Rachita’s is not a saga of hardships. The classically-trained vocalist was making music for stage in Delhi, and came to Mumbai to pursue music production. A chance meeting with theatre personality and actor Makrand Deshpande through a friend got her composition work for his play. Soon, she started composing for films and stage. “This was six months after moving here. My idea was to be around musicians and learn music but work started flowing in,” she says.

AN ALMOST-RUNAWAY

Coming to the city was also a way for Rachita to escape societal norms. “My parents wanted me to tie the knot because they were constantly being asked by people why I was still unmarried. But I didn’t wish to settle with what the society expected of me. I practically ran away from home,” she tells us. Her parents gave her six months to do what she wanted. “Now, my family is super proud of the work I’m doing,” she smiles. “Anurag sir often says that if they ask me to get married, he will personally speak to them,” she laughs.

UNCONVENTIONAL MUSIC

The glamour and commercial music here may be in complete contrast to her classical background, but Rachita is enjoying the scope to experiment here. For instance, the music of Mukkabaaz is in the same quirky space as Sneha Khanwalkar’s work for Gangs of Wasseypur and there is playful and operatic music in Makrand’s play, Epic Gadbad. “I’ve been lucky to have bagged projects with unconventional makers like Anurag sir, Makrand sir and Aanand sir. They don’t give you songs to replicate. Their stories are the reference,” she states.

ONE OF THE FEW FEMALE COMPOSERS

Rachita is among the few women music directors Hindi cinema has had — Ishrat Sultana (Bibbo), Jaddanbai (actress Nargis’ mother) and Saraswati Devi from the 1930s, Usha Khanna from 1959 and Sneha Khanwalkar and Alokananda Dasgupta (BA Pass, Trapped) in recent times. “Composing is inborn and it’s your own expre-ssion. It has nothing do with one’s gender. I do feel proud that I’m one of the few full-time women composers but it’s sad that there aren’t many of us,” Rachita says. “It’s a tough job and maybe not many girls have the confidence. There are too many hurdles from the society,” she points out.

CREATING AND SINGING

Although a trained singer, Rachita initially had reservations about lending voice to her own compositions. “I didn’t want people to think I was giving a chance to myself. But Anurag sir said I need to push myself as a vocalist. So, I sing numbers I think would suit my voice because I don’t want to die as a singer,” she reasons.

UPCOMING WORKS

Currently, Rachita has Hardik Mehta’s Kaamyaab, a project with Anurag among others. “I’d love to collaborate with female composers like Sneha or Alokananda,” she says. “We need to come forward, and teaming up might be a good way,” she signs off.