The whistling sensation

There are singers, and there are performers. Then, there are prodigies that completely change the trend for an entire generation of upcoming musicians. Abanti Sithi, who has Kolkata and Bangladesh spellbound with her talent, is just that. Her innate ability to whistle and create percussion with plastic cups has turned her into a one-woman orchestra of lustrous melody. 

“I had no idea that my performance at the event would go viral,” said Abanti. Soon after her first performance in Sa Re Ga Ma Pa aired, it took social media by storm. “When Mac bhai (Maqsoodul Haque), Prince Mahmud, Partha Barua and many other famous musicians started congratulating me over Facebook, I was elated!”

 When Abanti Sithi was young, she used to sit by her music teacher, Shushanta Deb Kanu as he taught her elder sister. “Even though I was very young, I used to point out mistakes that my sister made,” laughs Abanti. “At one point, my mentor saw the talent in me and that is when I started learning the basics.”

 However, her musical journey officially began in 2012 when she was amongst the top 10 in that year's iteration of Close Up 1. “By then, I was pretty good at whistling, but could never really put it to good use,” said Abanti. “I randomly whistled one day, and everyone in the show really loved it.” That is when Abanti became endeared as the 'Whistle Queen' amongst the musical fraternity.

Always eager to learn, Abanti started watching 'cup videos' on YouTube and quickly adopted the art. Her videos quickly became viral, earning millions of views across Facebook and YouTube. “I've never really appreciated the 'viral' culture much. I feel like people like that come and go, and no one really remembers them.” The young musician is adamant on constantly evolving as an artiste.

 The roaring success of the young trailblazer is a wake-up-call for musicians in the country to step up their game. She created an impact because she is an innovator and perhaps most importantly, a learner. It is apparent that the audience is tired of the same old clichéd music tropes that music industries tend to milk once they see even an ounce of success.

  For Abanti, the results of Sa Re Ga Ma Pa do not matter. “As long as I am here, I want to learn. This experience has been a valuable one for me.” That, however, will not prevent the country from hoping that she comes back as champion.