Shreya Ghoshal
photo: behindwoods · cc by-sa 3.0 ↗Shreya Ghoshal grew up with a Hindustani classical training and won a televised talent contest as a teenager, which led Sanjay Leela Bhansali to cast her as the voice of Paro in Devdas (2002). Across the following two decades she became the dominant female playback voice of Hindi cinema and a fixture in Tamil, Telugu, Bengali and other film industries, prized for a clear, ornament-rich tone equally at home in classical-leaning compositions and glossy modern pop. Her run of National Film Awards and chart hits made her the defining Indian playback singer of the 2000s and 2010s.
Ghoshal has repeatedly named Lata Mangeshkar as her foremost idol and guru, and her earliest recording as a child was a cover of a song made famous by Lata; she traces her pure, precise, classically grounded tone and restrained emotional delivery to Lata's template for the female playback voice.
listen forPut Lata's 'Ajeeb Dastan Hai Yeh' next to Ghoshal's 'Silsila Ye Chaahat Ka' and hear the same crystalline upper register and the way each singer floats a long, unhurried melodic line with feather-light control rather than force.
Ghoshal has cited Asha Bhosle as an inspiration for versatility, and Asha's model is audible in Ghoshal's willingness to leap from a classical thumri to a playful, rhythm-driven dance number; where Lata offered purity, Asha offered range and mischief.
listen forThrow on Asha's springy 'Chura Liya Hai Tumne' before Ghoshal's 'Barso Re' and listen for the light, bouncing rhythmic phrasing and the flirtatious catch in the voice that both singers use to ride a groove.
Ghoshal has named Geeta Dutt among the classic playback singers she admires for versatility and expressive colour, and her softer, breathier romantic numbers carry an echo of Geeta's intimate, conversational way of shading a lyric.
listen forPlay Geeta's aching 'Waqt Ne Kiya Kya Haseen Sitam' and then Ghoshal's 'Yeh Ishq Hai' and notice the hushed, close-mic tenderness and the small downward sighs that make each melody sound whispered rather than performed.