Reena Bhardwaj is a British Indian singer, songwriter and recording artist best known for her collaborations with

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 ...

and

Nitin Sawhney Nitin Sawhney , D.Mus (; born 1964) is a British musician, producer and composer. A recipient of the Ivor Novello Lifetime Achievement award in 2017, among multiple international awards throughout his career. Sawhney's work combines Asian a ...

. Versatile to genre and language, her repertoire includes a variety of Indian Traditional, Bollywood, World and Popular styles sung in various Indian languages (Hindi, Punjabi, Bengali, Tamil, Telugu) and English.

Early years and education

Reena Bhardwaj was born and raised in London. From a very young age she displayed an intrinsic flair for the Indian arts, especially music and dance. She trained in the North Indian Classical Dance form

Kathak Kathak ( hi, कथक; ur, کتھک) is one of the eight major forms of Indian classical dance. It is the classical dance from of Uttar Pradesh. The origin of Kathak is traditionally attributed to the traveling bards in ancient northern Ind ...

and started performing on stage from the age of 9. During her teens, focus shifted to singing and she began to impress audiences as she sang complex compositions effortlessly. It was her natural vocal talent that eventually drew the attention of some of the world's leading pioneers of music, both in India and the UK. An avid academic, Reena Bhardwaj chose to pursue a professional career in

Business Management Business administration, also known as business management, is the administration of a commercial enterprise. It includes all aspects of overseeing and supervising the business operations of an organization. From the point of view of managemen ...

, while continuing to develop her musical interests on the side. She won a sponsorship on the Windsor Fellowship Management program and went on to graduate with Bachelor's and master's degrees from the

London School of Economics The London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE) is a public university, public research university located in London, England and a constituent college of the federal University of London. Founded in 1895 by Fabian Society members Sidn ...

. She briefly worked in corporate marketing and communications in the City of London.

Musical career

Reena describes her musical career as a "turn of fate" which came about while pursuing her master's degree at the

, when she received an unexpected call from her most favourite Indian Composer,

AR Rahman Ar-Rahman ( ar, الرحمان, ; The Merciful) is the 55th Chapter (''Surah'') of the Qur'an, with 78 verses ('' āyāt''). The title of the surah, Ar-Rahman, appears in verse 1 and means "The Most Beneficent". The divine appellation "ar-R ...

. With Rahman, she recorded her debut song, "Yeh Rishta" for the Bollywood film soundtrack '' Meenaxi: A Tale of Three Cities'' directed by MF Hussain, which catapulted her from the world of academics to the top of the Indian Music charts. She became the first British Asian Artist to be nominated for a Zee Cine Award for Best Playback Singer and the MTV Immies Award for Best New Talent of 2004. Next she sang "Baba Kichhu Tha", a Tamil romantic duet with one of South India's most revered playback singers,

S. P. Balasubrahmanyam Sripathi Panditaradhyula Balasubrahmanyam (4 June 1946 – 25 September 2020), also referred to as SPB or SP Balu or Balu, was an Indian playback singer, television presenter, actor, music composer, dubbing artist, and film producer. He is wi ...

for the Rajinikanth and

Manisha Koirala Manisha Koirala (; born 16 August 1970) is a Nepalese actress who works in Indian films, predominantly in Hindi and Tamil films and has also worked in few Telugu, Bengali, Malayalam, Nepali and English films. Known for her work in both commerci ...

starrer '' Baba''. Reena has featured on a number of

’s

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...

and Tamil/Telugu film soundtracks including '' Mangal Pandey: The Rising'', ''

Sakkarakatti ''Sakkarakatti'' () is a 2008 Indian Tamil-language musical romantic comedy film written and directed by Kala Prabhu and produced by his father, Kalaipuli S. Dhanu. It featured debutant Shanthanu Bhagyaraj, son of veteran actor K. Bhagyaraj, in ...

'' and most recently she sang the beautiful song '' Khilli Re'' for the

Mani Ratnam Gopala Ratnam Subramaniam (born 2 June 1956), known professionally as Mani Ratnam, is an Indian film director, screenwriter, and producer who predominantly works in Tamil cinema and few Hindi, Telugu and Kannada films. Ratnam has won six ...

Aishwarya Rai Aishwarya Rai Bachchan ( Rai; born 1 November 1973) is an Indian actress who is primarily known for her work in Hindi and Tamil films. The winner of the Miss World 1994 pageant, she has established herself as one of the most popular celebriti ...

and

Abhishek Bachchan Abhishek Bachchan (born 5 February 1976) is an Indian actor and film producer known for his work in Hindi films. Part of the Bachchan family, he is the son of actors Amitabh Bachchan and Jaya Bachchan and the grandson of poet Harivansh Rai Bach ...

starrer, Raavan, also by Rahman. Reena's has been a regular collaborator with British Asian Composer/Producer

, an association that began with her soulful rendition of the epic Indian poem "Heer" by

Waris Shah Waris Shah ( pa, ; ; 1722–1798) was a Punjabi Sufi poet of the Chishti order, known for his contribution to Punjabi literature. He is primarily known as the author of ''Heer Ranjha'' . Background Waris Shah was born in Jandiala Sher Khan ...

for Sawhney's 2003 album ''Human'' (V2). She went on to co-write the popular song "Mausam" for Sawhney's 2006 album ''Philtre'' (V2) alongside memorable performances on "Koyal – Songbird" and "The Search". She appears again on Sawhney's '' London Undersound'' in which she expresses her feelings about growing up in London by co-writing the track "Ek Jaan" and sings alongside Sir Paul McCartney in "My Soul". Reena has toured extensively with Sawhney and his band and has performed at some of the world's most culturally elite venues including the Glastonbury Festival,

WOMAD WOMAD ( ; World of Music, Arts and Dance) is an international arts festival. The central aim of WOMAD is to celebrate the world's many forms of music, arts and dance. History WOMAD was founded in 1980 by English rock musician Peter Gabriel, w ...

in Taormina (Sicily),

Jazz Café The Jazz Cafe is a music venue in Camden Town, London. It opened in 1990 on the former premises of a branch of Barclays Bank and has had several owners throughout its history as a music venue. In 2020 the Jazz Cafe celebrates its 30th year, h ...

The Barbican Centre The Barbican Centre is a performing arts centre in the Barbican Estate of the City of London and the largest of its kind in Europe. The centre hosts classical and contemporary music concerts, theatre performances, film screenings and art exhib ...

, The Royal Festival Hall,

The Roundhouse The Roundhouse is a performing arts and concert venue situated at the Grade II* listed former railway engine shed in Chalk Farm, London, England. The building was erected in 1846–1847 by the London & North Western Railway as a roundhous ...

for the BBC Electric Proms in 2008. One of her most notable performances was The

BBC Proms The BBC Proms or Proms, formally named the Henry Wood Promenade Concerts Presented by the BBC, is an eight-week summer season of daily orchestral classical music concerts and other events held annually, predominantly in the Royal Albert Hal ...

2007 at

The Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no governm ...

where she appeared alongside

Natacha Atlas Natacha Atlas ( ar, نتاشا أطلس}; born 20 March 1964) is an Egyptian-Belgian singer known for her fusion of Arabic and Western music, particularly hip-hop. She once termed her music "'' cha'abi moderne''" (modern popular music). Her mu ...

, &

Anoushka Shankar Anoushka Shankar (born 9 June 1981) is a British-American sitar player, producer, film composer and activist. She was the youngest and first woman to receive a British House of Commons Shield; she has had 7 Grammy Awards nominations and was the ...

. She has also lent her voice to Sawhney's film scores, including

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...

’s ''Second Generation'',

Bharat Bala Bharath Bala is an Indian film director, screenwriter and film producer based in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. Career Bharat Bala produced the acclaimed album ''Vande Mataram'' and '' Jana Gana Mana Video'' and heads BharatBala Productions based in Che ...

Production's ''Hari Om'', and the 1929 Silent Indian Classic,

A Throw of Dice ''A Throw of Dice'' (''Prapancha Pash'') is a 1929 silent film by German-born director Franz Osten, based on an episode from the Indian epic ''Mahabharata''. Plot summary The movie is about two kings vying for the love of a hermit's daughter, t ...

by Franz Osten, which premiered with the

London Symphony Orchestra The London Symphony Orchestra (LSO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London. Founded in 1904, the LSO is the oldest of London's symphony orchestras. The LSO was created by a group of players who left Henry Wood's Queen's Hall Orc ...

and subsequently performed with national orchestras in the Netherlands, Italy, New Zealand, US and Canada. She has collaborated with the UK's biggest dance duo Basement Jaxx, Basement Jaxx, renowned percussion king

Trilok Gurtu Trilok Gurtu (born 30 October 1951) is an Indian percussionist and composer whose work has blended the music of India with jazz fusion and world music. He has worked with Terje Rypdal, Gary Moore, John McLaughlin, Jan Garbarek, Joe Zawinul, ...

Talvin Singh Talvin Singh OBE (born 1970) is an English musician, producer, and composer. A tabla player, he is known for creating an innovative fusion of Indian classical music and drum and bass. Singh is generally considered involved with an electronica s ...

and award-winning British Songwriter Guy Chambers. Her songs feature on various compilation CDs ( Ministry of Sound’s, ''Angel Beach''; Pathaan's ''Indian Sunset'') and Sony Legacy's 2009 Compilation CD ''The Best of AR Rahman''.

Discography

“Baba Kichchu", Music: A R Rahman, Film: '' Baba'' (2002)
“Tak Dheen" Music: A R Rahman, ''

Bombay Dreams ''Bombay Dreams'' is a Bollywood-themed musical, with music by A. R. Rahman, lyrics by Don Black and the book by Meera Syal and Thomas Meehan, originally produced by Andrew Lloyd Webber. The London production opened in 2002 and ran for tw ...

'' (2003)
“Heer", Nitin Sawhney, ''Human'' (2003)
“Falling" Aqualung &

, ''Human'' (2003)
“ Yeh Rishta", Music: A R Rahman, Film: '' Meenaxi: A Tale of Three Cities'' (2004)
“Mausam", co-written with

, ''Philtre'' (2005)
“Koyal (Songbird)",

, ''Philtre'' (2005)
“The Search",

, ''Philtre'' (2005)
“Dead Man",

, ''Philtre'' (2005)
“Sandesa",

& The

, Film: Franz_Osten’s ''

'' (2005)
“Everybody", Basement Jaxx, ''Crazy Itch Radio'' (2005)
“Main Vari Vari", Music: A R Rahman, Film: '' Mangal Pandey: The Rising'' (2006)
“Naan Epodhu", Music: A R Rahman, Film: ''

'' (2008)
“My Soul",

Paul McCartney Sir James Paul McCartney (born 18 June 1942) is an English singer, songwriter and musician who gained worldwide fame with the Beatles, for whom he played bass guitar and shared primary songwriting and lead vocal duties with John Lennon. One ...

, '' London Undersound'' (2008)
“Ek Jaan", co-written with

, '' London Undersound''(2008)
” Khilli Re", Music: A R Rahman, Film: '' Raavan'' (2010)
“Puli Gharshana", Music: A R Rahman, Film: '' Komaram Puli'' (2010)
Other film soundtracks and compilations in which Reena features: ''The Best of A R Rahman'', Sony Legacy (2009)
''Aaoji: Classic Sufi Hits',' Sony Music (2009)
''Life Goes On'' Music: Soumik Dutta, Storm Glass Productions (2009)
''In the Mind of Nitin Sawhney'', District 6 (2007)
''Angel Beach'', Ministry of Sound (2005)
''American Daylight'', Amaan Ali Khan (2005)
Frank Osten's ''

'',

& The

(2005)
''Hari Om'' Film Score: Nitin Sawhney,

Productions (2004)
''Second Generation'', Film Score: Nitin Sawhney,

(2003)
''Indian Sunset'' DJ Pathaan (2003)

References

Reena Bhardwaj OFFICIAL website
A Throw of Dice OFFICIAL website
Nitin Sawhney OFFICIAL website
AR Rahman OFFICIAL website
Reena Bhardwaj – Internet Movie Database
History Talking Database
BBC Electric Proms
BBC Proms
BBC Proms Review
Reena Bhardwaj on amazon.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bhardwaj, Reena Living people Bollywood playback singers Tamil playback singers British pop singers Year of birth missing (living people) Singers from London