I grew up in a south Calcutta locality. Most of my early memories are associated with school. I went to Future Foundation School and had a great time there.

As a child I was quite mischievous. I was always getting into trouble with somebody or the other because of my volatile temper. Once I remember pulling a girl’s hair rather hard when she behaved badly with one of my friends. The fight got so nasty that others had to intervene to separate us.

There was a lovely old bungalow next door to our school. The building fascinated me. I never saw anybody in the house but heard faint strains of music flow out of it. Every time I found a seat next to a window that faced the house, the lessons would fly over my head as I sat mesmerised by its mystery. One day my curiosity got the better of me and I decided to explore the property. I sneaked out of school during a free period and attempted to enter the house through the gate. It wouldn’t budge and so I decided to scale the very high boundary wall. The moment I got inside I heard the school bell ring. But I couldn’t for the life of me climb the wall again. In my desperation, I spotted a tree in a corner and began to climb it. I managed to get out of the house — unscathed but for a few ant bites. The class had started when I returned. I feigned illness and was allowed in by the teacher.

I travelled a lot as a child. One of my favourite getaways was Digha, a sea beach close to Calcutta. Collecting seashells was my favourite activity there. In fact, I had quite a collection of shells as a kid. Their colours fascinated me. I was heartbroken when I lost them all while moving house.

Music has been an inseparable part of my life. But I first realised that only when I was writing in a friend’s ‘slam book’. It was while filling in the ‘ambition’ space that I was struck by the fact that I wanted to become a singer. Since then I have dedicated myself to music. After hearing one of my performances, Pandit Ajoy Chakraborty told my father that he wanted to train me. Till date that remains the proudest moment of my life.