Entertainment
Apple’s voice Sayani Gupta started with AIR at the age of five
Actress Sayani Gupta, who has been rocking the OTT platforms, besides wooing her fans on social media, be it with her dancing, singing or costume designing skills recently revealed her voice-over expertise.
The actress lent her voice to an audio show ‘Buri Nazar’ on Audible, however, it was not her first time at lending voice to characters.
She has been a pro at it right from her childhood. It’s one of her skills people aren’t aware of.
In an exclusive conversation with IANS, Sayani shared her journey as a voice-over artist.
“I have done a lot of audio work all my life. My father was part of the All India Radio. He was an announcer, music composer, singer and lyricist,” said the ‘Four More Shots!’ actor.
Sayani shared how her early childhood years were spent in the AIR studio. “AIR was a place where I was taken as a child and I spent a lot of time there. My first paid job was when I was 5 when I did a radio advertisement where I got paid Rs 500.”
‘Buri Nazar’, her latest, is the Hindi version of a much appreciated Audible Original ‘Evil Eye’ that is narrated by Sayani, Supriya Pathak and Ritvik Dhanjani.
Sayani plays the role of Pallavi, daughter of Supriya, while Ritivik is her fiance.
Talking about the storyline, Sayani said, “It’s a relatable banter between daughter and mother. I play the daughter, Pallavi, who lives in New York. Her mother is constantly coaxing her to marry. And Pallavi is fed up with her mother. Finally, Pallavi meets a guy with whom she falls in love.”
Sayani, shares she enjoys doing voice-overs. “I use to recite very long poems at live audio plays in front of audience. Audio performances have been part of my growing up years.”
The actress revealed she has done a lot of professional voice-overs. “I was the voice for Apple for 2 years. I did all their advertisements in India and South East Asia. It’s something that I enjoy thoroughly.
“I used to be able to enjoy voice modulation a lot, something that has helped me in acting in the later years. I think it’s all related and part of the bigger tree.”
Sayani has even lent her voice as a singer in ‘Kahab To’ in her film ‘Article 15’ opposite Ayushmaan Khurrana.
“As an actor, you are also continuously honing your voice, modulation skills, your control over your voice, etc. I have always believed that there is so much scope when you are working with your voice. You are working with your mind in this case. The microphone is literally your co-actor, your camera. It’s a medium that captures your every breath. It’s so powerful.
“It’s almost like you are making love to the mic. It’s really beautiful. I love it.”
In ‘Buri Nazar’ Sayani has expressed varied emotions through her voice. “It’s a long-distance mother-daughter call. There are lots of emotions, sometimes it’s light, and at times there is cacophony. There is also a supernatural element in it.”
Talking about evil eye in real life, the actress doesn’t believe in it so much. “I don’t really believe in evil eye. Sometimes I feel jinxed for small things. Like, sometimes I see myself and say that my skin is looking nice and then I will have a pimple. Sometimes after I laugh a lot I happen to cry a lot.
“I haven’t understood why people put Kajal on babies. I find that horrifying. Perfectly cute-looking babies look like monsters. People do it for Nazar. I think we Indians give it too much of importance. Sometimes my makeup artist would very sweetly put a kaala tikaa (black spot) behind my ear.”
However, the actor is cautious when it comes to her work. “If I get a project I don’t talk about it before we start shooting,” concluded Sayani.
Bollywood
Saif Ali Khan stabbing case: Actor met rickshaw driver in hospital ahead of getting discharged
Mumbai, Jan 22: A day after Saif Ali Khan was discharged, pictures of the auto-rickshaw driver Bhajan Singh Rana posing with the Bollywood star in the hospital before he left for home started to do the rounds on social media.
Rickshaw driver Bhajan Singh Rana was the one who took Saif to Lilavati hospital on January 16 after the Bollywood star was stabbed multiple times during a robbery attempt in his house in wee hours.
Before leaving the hospital for home, Saif personally called the rickshaw driver to meet him at the hospital.
In one image, the auto-rickshaw driver is sitting next to Saif on the hospital bed as they smile at the camera. Saif’s bruised hand is on Bhajan Singh Rana’s shoulder. In another photograph, the duo are standing and smiling at the lens.
The 54-year-old star, who is married to Bollywood actress Kareena Kapoor Khan, thanked the rickshaw driver and told him to feel free to ask for help whenever he needed.
Saif along with his veteran-actress mother Sharmila Tagore, expressed their gratitude towards Bhajan Singh Rana.
As per sources, Saif praised the rickshaw driver for his work and said: “Keep helping others like this. And as for the fare that day, don’t worry, it will be taken care of.”
He jokingly added: “If you ever need help in life, remember me.”
When Bhajan Singh Rana was asked how he reached the hospital, as all the media personnel were present, he told Media: “I entered the hospital wearing a mask.”
The auto rickshaw driver said that he had first got a call from Saif’s personal assistant.
He said that he “ just prayed” that the actor gets well.
“I took a few selfies with him. I took a few photos with him.”
The driver recalled the night, when Saif was stabbed and said that the actor asked him to drive slowly as it was a “little painful.”
Bollywood
Feroz Abbas calls performing ‘Pyar Kiya To Darna Kya’ at Taj Mahal ‘a tribute’
Mumbai, Jan 22: Feroz Abbas Khan is currently busy with ‘Mughal-e-Azam: The Musical’. As part of the musical, the iconic love song “Pyar Kiya Toh Darna Kya” from the movie “Mughal-e-Azam” was staged at the Taj Mahal on 14th Jan 2025 this year.
“Mughal-e-Azam: The Musical” will take place till 23rd February, 2025. It will mark the end of the Delhi run for this epic masterpiece. Before performing in Delhi, the musical is expected to be performed in Mumbai at NMACC till 26th January 2025.
Talking about the emotional experience, Feroz Abbas Khan revealed, “We wanted to celebrate the enduring legacy of love by performing ‘Pyar Kiya To Darna Kya’ in front of the Taj Mahal. Incidentally, Shakeel Badayuni who wrote this definitive love anthem also praised the Taj for being a monument to love in another famous song. In a way, our performance was a tribute to Shakeel saab, to Naushad ji who tuned both the songs, to the Taj and to love that transcends all barriers.”
He further added, “While distilling K Asif’s timeless epic into a stage production, we did not anticipate the momentous journey it would go on to undertake across the globe. The fact that we are now all set to stage our 300th performance in Delhi has an enormous personal significance for all of us.”
Meanwhile, producer Deepesh Salgia was quoted saying, “Shapoorji Pallonji has been associated with the magnificence of ‘Mughal-e-Azam’ for over 75 years in its cinematic as well as musical form. Be it the luxurious production canvas or the marketing campaign, we have always worked towards setting new benchmarks. In the same spirit, the performance at the Taj is our tribute to the concluding season of the musical in Delhi.”
The musical features more than 550 exquisite costumes, breathtaking sets, live singing, and stunning Kathak choreography.
Directed by Feroz Abbas Khan, ‘Mughal-E-Azam: The Musical’ has been produced by Deepesh Salgia, under the assistance of Shapoorji Pallonji.
Bollywood
Saif Ali Khan case: Mumbai Police find clues from crime scene
Mumbai, Jan 22: The Mumbai Police have recovered a piece of cloth from actor Safi Ali Khan’s apartment which belongs to accused Shariful Islam Shehzad Mohammad, the Bangladeshi national arrested in the attack case.
Sources said the Bandra police recovered cloth from Khan’s house, which the accused used to cover his face. The cloth fell from his face in Saif’s son Jahangir’s room during the scuffle.
The cloth can be seen in the CCTV footage when Shehzad is climbing up the stairs before committing the crime. The police have sent the cloth and hair samples for DNA testing to the forensic department.
Earlier, the officials said that Shehzad had entered the actor’s building, Satguru Sharan, in the Bandra area by scaling its compound wall and found the security guards sleeping.
Sources said that both the security guards in the building were sleeping when the attacker entered it by crossing over the boundary wall.
The sources further said that as Shehzad found both the security guards sleeping, he entered the building from the main entrance where no CCTV camera exists. The accused removed his shoes and kept them in his bag to avoid making any noise. He also switched off his phone.
The police on Tuesday recreated the crime scene with the accused at the building. Police took the accused wherever he went after fleeing from Saif Ali Khan’s house. Shehzad was taken to the garden near the Satguru Sharan building and then to the National College Bus Stop where he was said to have stopped and stayed for a while after committing the crime. During the probe, the police took Shehzad to the Bandra Railway Station from where he had fled. Police are trying to find out how he reached the station.
The police were trying to record the chain of events starting from Shehzad’s entry to the building to his fleeing before being arrested.
Saif Ali Khan was stabbed six times by Shehzad inside his apartment in the early hours of January 16. The actor underwent emergency surgery at the Lilavati Hospital and was discharged on Tuesday. Three days after the attack, the police arrested the accused from neighbouring Thane city.
A court in Mumbai on Sunday remanded the accused in five-day police custody.
Shehzad, a native of Jhalokathi district in Bangladesh was residing in Mumbai for over five months. He had been working odd jobs and was associated with a housekeeping agency, the police have said.
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