Celina Jaitly: I was very passionate about music but I never had the opportunity to train

Celina Jaitley.

Actress, activist, humanitarian, Celina Jaitly, first took to the mic a few years ago for a song for the LGBTQIA+ community. Recently, she put up her rendition of Falak Shabir’s Ijazat on social media and was surprised at the response online. In this interview with Moneycontrol, Jaitly speaks about her passion for music, her work, her life in Austria and more. Edited excerpts:

This hasn’t been the first time you have taken to the mic. Tell us about it.

I sang for the first time a few years ago at a United Nations’ Free And Equal Rights Campaign for LGBTQIA+ equality, before section 377 was repealed. I sang Lata (Mangeshkar) ji’s ‘Uthey Sabke Kadam’ cover recreated by Neeraj Shridhar of Bombay Vikings. At that point no big singer wanted to associate their voice with an anthem for LGBTQIA+ equality. I stepped in to give the track not only my voice as a singer but my voice as an impact maker so that the message that the song implied would be heard by millions. It was my first single as a recording artist, and it received over two million views online and it became one of the United Nations' most watched videos ever.

Ijazat is your latest cover on Instagram. What inspired you to sing it?

Following my parents’ death, I was in deep shock. My late mother (Dr Meeta Jaitly) always wanted me to sing. This song happened because I dreamt of her asking me to sing a Punjabi song. Falak Shabir’s Ijazat was the kind of music mom loved, hence, I reached out to my friend and musician Anshuman Sharma, and he created this cover. I put it up on Instagram as a tribute to my mother on my birthday (November 24) and was amazed at the response and the heart-warming messages by my industry colleagues who also re-shared.

Have you ever really wanted to be a singer?

I have been very passionate about music since I was a toddler, but I've never  had the opportunity to train in music. I wanted to learn Hindustani classical desperately but that could not happen due to my father’s military service. My father was an Infantry officer in the army hence we moved practically every one to one-and-a-half years. Classical training in the back and beyond of India’s small military bases was not a possibility. So I tried to make the best of what I had through singing in church and mandir choirs. My father was a Hindu and my mother a Christian, hence my music was heavily impacted by their different religions in the most positive ways. In my few years in Lucknow I had a very good music teacher in school, who helped me groom my singing skills. She always said that I had a unique and expressive voice, and was saddened that I couldn’t train in classical music.

Celina Jaitley with her family.

What about your family, your three boys - how did they react to your latest cover? 

All my boys are into music, and we often jam together. My husband set up a cosy little recording cubicle in our home in Austria. It faces the Alpine snow-clad mountains. I've been using that space a lot to deal with my lows after my parents and baby Shamsher’s passing. The older twins are my technology experts and often set up all the technical equipment for me. They are always the first to hear any track I am working on. They often suggest music I should do covers on.

Last year, you won your first Filmfare (Middle East) for your comeback film, Ram Kamal Mukherjee’s Seasons Greetings, a tribute to filmmaker Rituparno Ghosh. Any other projects in the pipeline?

Now I am working on being the best version of myself and hoping that when it translates to my films and music, people get to see the real me. I do not want to do quantity work which I can if I want. I would like to do quality work that brings out the best in me and also something that makes me feel good about myself. I am grateful to be in a space to say no, which I do a lot more than saying yes to projects.

Celina Jaitley.

Earlier this year, you called out the Pakistani journalist who spread rumours, about your relationships with Feroz Khan and Fardeen Khan. Many actresses are maligned and defamed but not many speak up, you did.

When I was a little girl, I once got into trouble at school for doing something that I did not do. I remember my father asking me why did I not speak up for myself. Then he told me something that stuck with me for life: Speak up… Even if your voice shakes!

I have nothing to be afraid of when I have not done anything wrong. I am not the type of person who can be bullied into silence. There are instances in life when silence is golden and then there are instances in life when you cannot stand back and hope for the best. You have to act and not depend on someone to come and rescue you. You have to be your own saviour.