Riya Biswas rehearses at home. Picture by Anup Bhattacharya

 

A quiet and composed girl, Riya Biswas, all of 12 years, has matured fast both as a singer and as a speaker. She sits with her hands folded and listens attentively to questions being asked to her. Riya’s confidence comes from the numerous stage performances and reality shows that she has been part of.

Riya’s music career started when she was in Class III. Zee Bangla Sa Re Ga Ma Pa L’il Champs was her stepping stone in 2011, where she was among the top eight finalists, but was eliminated in the semi-finals. Santanu Moitra and Monali Thakur were judges that season. Riya was also selected from the Calcutta zone in Sony Indian Idol Junior last year, but she could not qualify to perform at the show.

Riya was initiated into music by her father, Saroj Biswas, who is a singer as well as a guitarist and tabla player. Later, she trained with Runa Banerjee, who teaches music in Riya’s locality in Bally Sapuipara. Runa taught her adhunik gaan, Rabindrasangeet and Nazrulgeeti. Later, she started training from Sahil Debnath in Calcutta, who teaches her old Hindi film songs. Riya understands the need to be able to sing different types of songs in order to perform on stage. “I like Lata Mangeshkar and Asha Bhonsle’s songs a lot, but I try to sing all types of songs when I go to reality shows,” said Riya.

Having reached the top rounds of the show, Riya has been invited to other shows on Zee Bangla. In 2012, Riya was invited to play Dadagiri with Mithun Chakraborty. There she was asked to sing and she obliged with Tere Mere Beech Mein and Aaj Bikeler Dakey Tomar Chithi. Last year, she also participated in Didi No. 1 as a singer. Apart from TV shows, Riya generally follows a hectic schedule with numerous stage shows and programmes around Howrah and Calcutta. During Durga Puja and Kali Puja this year, Riya was performing at different cultural programmes organised by clubs and housing complexes in Howrah and Calcutta.

 

Being busy with music and singing for the past four or five years, Riya’s studies have taken a backseat. She is a student of Class VI at Bally Nischinda Balika Vidyapith. “Programmes and reality shows take up a lot of her time. She had missed school for many months when she went to Mumbai. And cultural programmes during the festive season also affect her study schedule,” said Saroj. She has stopped all programmes for the time being, till her exams are over by the end of November. However, practice is also important for Riya. “I wake up by 7am and practise for an hour or so before going to school. In the evening, I have to go for tuitions and drawing lessons, so I don’t get much time,” she said. Teachers in school support Riya and help her out when she misses classes. Apart from that, Riya is also the star singer in her school. “I have to perform in school cultural programmes as well. My friends and teachers always request me for a song,” she said.

Riya also has a godfather in Dr Prashanta Dutta, a paediatrician, who pays for all her expenses, including her clothes, her dolls and the fees for her music lessons. “He has heard her sing many times and loves her like his own daughter. He has decided to bear all her expenses for learning music and also fulfils her wishes,” said Saroj.

Dalia Mukherjee