playback singer
A playback singer, also known as a ghost singer, is a singer whose singing is pre-recorded for use in films. Playback singers record songs for soundtracks, and actors or actresses lip-sync the songs for cameras; the actual singer does not app ...
who has worked in Indian films in four different languages. She has worked on Tamil, Hindi, Telugu, Bengali, and Kannada film projects.
She sang as the face of
Deepika Padukone
Deepika Padukone ( or ; born 5 January 1986) is an Indian actress who works in Hindi films. She is one of the highest-paid actresses in India, and her accolades include three Filmfare Awards. She features in listings of the nation's most pop ...
in '' Raabta'' for the title track "Raabta". Her song " Ullu ka Pattha" dual with
Arijit Singh
Arijit Singh (born 25 April 1987) is an Indian singer and music composer. He sings predominantly in Bengali and Hindi, but has also performed in various other Indian languages. He is the recipient of a National Award and six Filmfare Awards ...
from the film
Jagga Jasoos
''Jagga Jasoos'' () is a 2017 Indian Hindi-language musical adventure comedy film written and directed by Anurag Basu, and produced by Siddharth Roy Kapur, Basu and Ranbir Kapoor. It stars Kapoor and Katrina Kaif, and tells the story of a teena ...
Chef
A chef is a trained professional cook and tradesman who is proficient in all aspects of food preparation, often focusing on a particular cuisine. The word "chef" is derived from the term ''chef de cuisine'' (), the director or head of a kitche ...
'', ''
Jab Harry Met Sejal
''Jab Harry Met Sejal'' () is a 2017 Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy film written and directed by Imtiaz Ali. It stars Anushka Sharma and Shah Rukh Khan in their third collaboration after ''Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi'' (2008) and ''Jab Tak Hai ...
'', and '' Ittefaq''. She also sang a Bengali song "Mithe Alo" with
Atif Aslam
Atif Aslam is a Pakistani playback singer, songwriter, composer, and actor. He has recorded many songs in both Pakistan and India, and is known for his vocal belting technique.
Aslam predominantly sings in Urdu, but has also sung in Hindi, ...
for ''
Cockpit
A cockpit or flight deck is the area, usually near the front of an aircraft or spacecraft, from which a Pilot in command, pilot controls the aircraft.
The cockpit of an aircraft contains flight instruments on an instrument panel, and the ...
''. Her song "Aao Kabhi Haveli Pe" and "Poster Lagwa Do" also became popular.
Personal life
Niktiha is half-Bengali and half-Punjabi who has been in
Chennai
Chennai (, ), formerly known as Madras ( the official name until 1996), is the capital city of Tamil Nadu, the southernmost Indian state. The largest city of the state in area and population, Chennai is located on the Coromandel Coast of th ...
while doing her graduation. Growing up she learnt
Odissi
Odissi (), also referred to as Orissi in old literature, is a major ancient Indian classical dance that originated in the Hindu temple, temples of Odisha – an eastern coastal state of India.
Career
Born into a mixed Bengali and Punjabi family in
Kolkata
Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...
. Nikhita has done her schooling from the prestigious La Martiniere for Girls, Kolkata. Nikhita relocated to Chennai in 2010 to pursue a degree in dentistry. A former student of
A. R. Rahman
Allah Rakha Rahman (; born A. S. Dileep Kumar; 6 January 1967) is an Indian music composer, record producer, singer and songwriter, popular for his works in Indian cinema; predominantly in Tamil and Hindi films, with occasional forays in int ...
's K. M. College of Music and Technology, Nikhita's first association with Rahman was during an Indo-German exchange, where she was a part of a choir which performed with the German orchestra. Rahman then individually auditioned her for a commercial project titled 'Qyuki' with
Shekhar Kapur
Shekhar Kulbhushan Kapur (born 6 December 1945) is an Indian filmmaker and actor. Born into the Anand-Sahni family, Kapur is the recipient of several accolades, including a BAFTA Award, a National Film Award, a National Board of Review Award a ...
, the duo were working on. In 2012, she cut a Bengali album titled ''Kotha'', a re-arrangement of
Nazrul Geeti
Nazrul Sangeet ( bn, নজরুল সঙ্গীত), also Nazrul Geeti ( bn, নজরুল গীতি; ), refers to the songs written and composed by Kazi Nazrul Islam, the national poet of Bangladesh. Nazrul Geeti incorporate revolut ...
, songs written by renowned poet
Kazi Nazrul Islam
Kazi Nazrul Islam ( bn, কাজী নজরুল ইসলাম, ; 24 May 1899 – 29 August 1976) was a Bengali poet, Bengali literature, writer, Bangladeshi music, musician, and is the national poet of Bangladesh. Nazrul is regarded as one ...
.
After having worked on her personal studio album and sung as a part of songs in regional films, Nikhita got a breakthrough by performing the song "Ladio" from
Shankar Shankar may refer to:
People
* Shankar (name), including a list of people with the name
* Sankar (writer) (Mani Shankar Mukherjee), Bengali writer
* L. Shankar, Indian violinist
*S. Shankar, Indian film director commonly credited as Shankar
* San ...
A. R. Rahman
Allah Rakha Rahman (; born A. S. Dileep Kumar; 6 January 1967) is an Indian music composer, record producer, singer and songwriter, popular for his works in Indian cinema; predominantly in Tamil and Hindi films, with occasional forays in int ...
, she managed to record the song within four hours after translating it into Hindi. She then also subsequently recorded the Telugu and Hindi versions of the song, earning critical acclaim for her work. Other projects she worked for in 2015 include Rahman's ''
O Kadhal Kanmani
''O Kadhal Kanmani'' (), also known as ''OK Kanmani'', is a 2015 Indian Tamil-language romantic comedy film written, directed and produced by Mani Ratnam. The film stars Dulquer Salmaan and Nithya Menen, portraying a young couple in a live-in r ...
'' and Anirudh's '' Thanga Magan''.
Apart from singing in the movies, she has put together a band and has also performed at Kerala and Kolkata. Gandhi's five-member band includes Sajith Sathya, Jerard Felix, Godfrey Immanuel and Joshua Gopal.
She has been adjudged as the best female playback singer of the year by Zee Cine Awards 2018 for the title track of Raabta.
She was nominated for best playback singer (female) category in the
63rd Filmfare Awards
The 63rd Filmfare Awards ceremony, presented by the Filmfare Magazine, honored the best Hindi language Indian films of 2017. The ceremony was held on 20 January 2018 and hosted by Shah Rukh Khan, Karan Johar, Ayushmann Khurrana and Parineeti ...
for her song "Ghar" from
Jab Harry Met Sejal
''Jab Harry Met Sejal'' () is a 2017 Indian Hindi-language romantic comedy film written and directed by Imtiaz Ali. It stars Anushka Sharma and Shah Rukh Khan in their third collaboration after ''Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi'' (2008) and ''Jab Tak Hai ...
.
She was also nominated for best playback singer (female) in the 3rd Filmfare Awards East for her Bengali song "Tomra Ekhono Ki" from ''
Meghnad Badh Rahasya
Meghnad Badh Rahasya (''English:The Mystery of the Murder of Meghnad'') is a 2017 Indian Bengali-language suspense thriller film directed by Anik Dutta with Debojyoti Mishra as music director. It was the third movie of Dutta which was released ...
''.
In November 2018 she did playback for the hit song Qaafirana from the film
Kedarnath
Kedarnath is a town and Nagar Panchayat in Rudraprayag district of Uttarakhand, India, known primarily for the Kedarnath Temple. It is approximately 86 kilometres from Rudraprayag, the district headquarter. Kedarnath is the most remote of the ...
. In April 2019, she won the Nestle Kitkat Sony Mix Audience Music Award for the best duet for Qaafirana from Kedarnath along with
Arijit Singh
Arijit Singh (born 25 April 1987) is an Indian singer and music composer. He sings predominantly in Bengali and Hindi, but has also performed in various other Indian languages. He is the recipient of a National Award and six Filmfare Awards ...
.
In April 2019, she released her single Ek Do Teen on
Zee Music Company
Zee Music Co. (ZMC) is an Indian music company, a subsidiary of Zee Entertainment Enterprises Ltd. It carries its business activities mainly from New Delhi. The company has captured a major chunk of market share in Bollywood music in a short ...
that has been composed by Raees & Zain - Sam, she later followed it up with Madari from the film The Extraordinary Journey of The Fakir along with
Vishal Dadlani
Vishal Dadlani (born 28 June 1973) is an Indian singer, songwriter and music composer. He is one half of the duo Vishal–Shekhar, Front Man and vocalist of one of India's leading rock bands called Pentagram.
As a singer he has sung various h ...
in June 2019 and followed it up with Main Deewana Tera from Arjun Patiala