Suneeta Rao is an Indian pop singer, playback singer, dancer and stage actress, popular for her songs sung in the 1980s and 1990s. Her most famous song is ''Paree Hoon Main'' from the album ''Dhuan'' (1991).

Early life and career

Suneeta Rao was born in Germany in a Telugu speaking family. Her father Dr DK Rao hailed from Krishna district Andhra Pradesh while her mother Komala Sista Rao hailed from West Godavari. She has two siblings Sister Aarti Rao and brother Narsimha Rao. She completed her schooling in

Mumbai Mumbai ( ; ), also known as Bombay ( ; its official name until 1995), is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra. Mumbai is the financial capital and the most populous city proper of India with an estimated population of 12 ...

and higher studies at

St. Xavier's College, Mumbai St. Xavier's College is a private, Catholic Church, Catholic, institution of higher education run by the Bombay Province of the Society of Jesus in Mumbai, Maharashtra, India. It was founded by the Jesuits on 2 January 1869. The college is ...

. During and after college, she acted in many plays such as ''Evita'' and musicals such as ''They're Playing Our Song'' and ''Greased Lightning''.

Singing and stage career

Rao started her career with the song ''Suneeta Senorita'' in 1989. She became popular with the song "Paree Hoon main". She released a Hindi pop album entitled ''Dhuan'' in 1991 with

Gramophone Company India Saregama India Ltd is an Indian music record label and content company headquartered in Kolkata, West Bengal. It is the oldest music label in India, established in 1901 as the Indian branch of the British Gramophone Company. It later became a ...

, which sold over 75,000 copies, with music by Lesle Lewis. The song and video of "Paree" from the album made Suneeta Rao a household name, leading the press to affectionately crown her the "Paree of the Masses". Her first and only association with

A. R. Rahman Allah Rakha Rahman (; born A. S. Dileep Kumar; 6 January 1967), also known by the initialism ARR, is an Indian music composer, record producer, singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and philanthropist known for his works in Indian cinem ...

was "Adi Paru Mangatha", from the 1994 Tamil film '' May Madham''. She released a Hindi pop album entitled ''Talaash'' in 1999 with

, with music by

Ranjit Barot Ranjit Barot is an Indian film score composer, music director and arranger, drummer, and singer based in Mumbai, India. He is a long-time associate of A. R. Rahman. John McLaughlin has described him as one of the "leading edges" in drumming. ...

. Two videos that hit the screen were for the songs "Dehka Dehka" and "Kesariya", two folksy upbeat tracks that reinstated Rao at the top of the charts. She then released a new single and music video entitled "Chhoti Chhoti Baatein" as part of the Magnasound album ''A Reason To Smile'' on the occasion of 50 years of Indian Independence. She also featured in a group song in the album called "Wajah Muskurane Ki". Besides going platinum, all the above albums were at the top of the Hindi music charts. Her album ''Ab Ke Baras'' has lilting, sensuous, joyous music that blends traditional folk music with modern production values. Her career includes songs from films like ''Ghulam-e-Mustafa'', ''Dulhan Hum Le Jayenge'' and ''Kahin Pyar Na Ho Jaye''. Suneeta Rao also has shows in Pakistan and Africa in the offing, as well as several other projects for television, theatre and films. She performed for

NDTV New Delhi Television Ltd is an Indian news media company focusing on broadcast and digital news publication. It was founded in 1984 by economist Prannoy Roy and journalist Radhika Roy. NDTV began as a production house for news segments, ...

in 2008. Rao wrote and recorded an anthem song for global warming. This was for a campaign initiated by the ICAI and GYAAN called "Planet alert". The song launched the campaign in a radiothon that was aired from 5 June 2009 on BIG 92.7 FM! The song was produced by Dhruv Ghanekar, and sung by Rao. Rao launched her new album ''Waqt'' on 15 July 2008 at the Hard Rock Cafe. These Raag-based contemporary songs were composed by Rao, with music arranged by Nexus, DJ Gaurav Issar and Dudul Saikia. The CDs were available in stores under the Crescendo Music label. The first video was of the song "Sun Zara", a song for the Girl Child, supported by the UNFPA, to address the issue of sex-selection. The video was directed by Rachel Reuben, shot by Jason West, and stars Suneeta Rao and leading actress Suchitra Pillai. Suneeta Rao gave 12 performances in the NDTV Imagine reality show ''Dhoom Macha De'' and received the runner up award for the "Dhoom final stopper". In 2005, she acted in an Off-Broadway play in New York called ''Sidd''.

Personal life

Rao is married to Jason West, a

cinematographer The cinematographer or director of photography (sometimes shortened to DP or DOP) is the person responsible for the recording of a film, television production, music video or other live-action piece. The cinematographer is the chief of the camera ...

based in Mumbai. She is actively involved and is the spokesperson of an initiative called Laadli, organized by an NGO called Population First, started by her uncle, Bobby Sista, whose main agenda is "Saving the Girl Child", population control and other social movements in India.

Discography

* ''Senorita'' (1989) * ''Dhuan'' (1991) * ''Talaash'' (1996) * ''Choti Choti Batein'' - Single (1997) * ''Ab Ke Baras'' (2000) * ''Mujhe Pyar Ho Gaya'' - Single (2001) * ''Waqt'' (2008) * ''Vaada Karo'' - Single (2018) * ''Dekha Tujhe To Dil Remake'' (2020)

Film and television songs

Hindi

Telugu

Tamil

References

External links

Official site
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rao, Suneeta 21st-century Indian singers 21st-century Indian women singers Bollywood playback singers Indian women playback singers Indian women pop singers Indian stage actresses Living people Singers from Mumbai St. Xavier's College, Mumbai alumni Women musicians from Maharashtra Year of birth missing (living people)