The philosophy ingrained in Urdu lyrics like hum ek shahkaar hai, hum sare kayenaat ke hai (I am a great creation, I belong to the Universe) and bahut bewafa lagne laga hai, woh kya hai aur kya lagne laga hai (Very unfaithful He appears to me, But what he really is and what he appears to be) held members of the audience spellbound at a recent ghazal recital. The experience was one of fine and careless rapture for aficionados who listened with rapt attention to the mellifluous voice of a young vocalist, Janiva Roy. A Bengali by birth, she chose to keep traditional Muslim culture alive by of promoting ghazals. Only 29 years of age, Roy belongs to a rare breed of exceptional women who have endeavoured to break all barriers through music and reached out to all corners of the globe.

After the demise of the veteran Pakistani ghazal exponent, Mehdi Hassan in 2012, Roy may be deemed the first vocalist to have paid tribute to the legend in India. She performed a medley of ghazals at the behest of the International Islamic Centre at the Islamic Centre Hall and Urdu Press Club in Delhi.

Ehsaas Pyar Ka (Feelings of Love), a ghazal album of solo renditions by Roy was launched by Sushmita Sen at the JW Marriot hotel in Mumbai. The music collection was nominated by the Global Musical Award as one of the best ghazal albums of recent times. This was followed by another music album Sochte Sochte also released in Mumbai with music by Alighani and lyrics by poet Naqsh Layal Puri. Roy has performed numerous times in Dubai and visited the country on 28 occasions to do solo ticket shows and concerts. The Dubai audience bestowed on her the title, “Nightingale of Kolkata”.

But Roy is not only a vocalist but also an actress. Her latest project is a Hindi ghazal-based film called Khusboo (Fragrance) where she has sang all the songs and played the lead role opposite Piyush Chopra while her mother&’s part was enacted by Zarina Wahab. Khusboo, based on the life of a courtesan, has shades of Muzzafar Ali&’s Umrao Jaan and is slated for a commercial release in January.

Her forthcoming projects in Bengali films include Nisthabda (Silence) directed by Saikat Dutta where Roy is in the main lead as an actress and playback singer. Her next Hindi film, Ada (Style) is a story set in Lucknow about the legendary Nawabs of that city. However, her primary identity is that of a ghazal singer and Roy has performed in places like Australia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Indonesia, Bangkok, Singapore, Malaysia, Mauritius, Hong Kong, Israel and Russia.

Roy was groomed in the discipline from the age of 16 by Ustad Mashkoor Ali Khan, Chitra Basu, Om Prakash Dhindre, Sushil Rana and took Urdu lessons from the eminent poet Jamil Haidar Shad. Roy says, “My ambition in life is to become the best ghazal singer in the world.” And for realising that dream, she is leaving no stone unturned.