As summer’s ferocious heat descends, wilting spirits and sapping energy, the task of staying chipper and proactive seems Herculean. Yet in the heart of South Bengaluru, Anita Rangaswamy, a seasoned voice-over artist and music composer, effuses an unwavering enthusiasm as she discusses her most recent creative endeavor, the music video for ‘Swalpa Swalpa.’ Her sparkling vivacity infects the conversation immediately—Anita is evidently in her element talking about her passion, and it shows.
“Talking is my profession and forte, and earns me my bread and butter,” Anita states with infectious exuberance. The voice that has breathed life into numerous FM Radio adverts for two decades has something new to share—‘Swalpa Swalpa,’ her independent music video, which has recently captured the attention of more than 1.2 lakh viewers on YouTube.
Her latest tune follows the success of ‘A Tribute song for Dr. Puneeth Rajkumar’ and ‘Amma, an Ode to all Mothers.’ The former paying homage to the Kannada film industry’s legend with eminent artists like Shankar Mahadevan lending their voices, and the latter celebrating motherhood with cameos from Kannada actors and their mothers.
The inception of Anita’s YouTube channel coincided with the release of the chirpy, lilting track, ‘Swalpa Swalpa,’ for which she not only penned the lyrics but also composed the music. Behind the scenes, the song was brought to finality by the deft hands of musician Hriday Goswami, renowned for his work on critically acclaimed films such as ‘Tobi’ and ‘Ondu Motteya Kathe.’
The visual storytelling component of the song was crafted by Panidhar Revannur, a director with roots in wildlife filmmaking. The video features the talents of prominent Kannada television actor Abhinav Vishwanathan, known for his roles in ‘Nannarasi Radhe’ and ‘Tripura Sundari,’ and Harita Shah, a model and actor with her own credits in the industry. The vocals that breathe life into Anita’s composition belong to Rajat Hegde—a familiar voice in Kannada cinema and a Voice of India semi-finalist under the mentorship of Arman Mallik.
Anita—a student of English literature with a chapter of her career dedicated to copywriting before venturing into the world of radio—describes ‘Swalpa Swalpa’ as a creation born from love. “It’s a fresh and romantic song,” she comments, praising Rajat Hegde for his performance that encapsulates the spirit of the piece.
Anita underlines that the song’s appeal, which extends well beyond its harmonic allure and visual flair, partly owes to its title. ‘Swalpa Swalpa,’ when translated into English, means ‘a little, a little’—a phrase that often becomes one of the first Kannada expressions learned by non-native speakers settling in Bangalore.
Her talents are not confined to the recording studio; Anita has also demonstrated her lyrical aptitude in ‘Newton’s 3rd Law’ for The Australia World Pictures and the Kannada movie ‘Tortoise,’ directed by Suraj Shetty. When crafting music, Anita prefers to embrace lyric-writing and composition in tandem—a process she likens to a romantic dance with words.
Looking ahead, Anita is preparing to introduce ‘Swalpa Swalpa’ to a broader audience by releasing a Hindi version slated for release at the end of May. True to her flair for language and melody, the transition to Hindi will not be a mere translation but a “transcreation,” striving to retain the core essence of the original song. In her own words, the upcoming release will be a search for Hindi vocabulary that resonates as sweetly as the Kannada original.
With her singular commitment to crafting melodies that capture the heart and soul of her listeners, Anita Rangaswamy stands as a testament to the enduring power of music and storytelling—even as the summer heat rages on.