Padmini Kolhapure On Entering In A Business Partnership With Son Priyaank Sharma: ‘He Has An Emotional Side To Him And That’s His Most Powerful Tool’-EXCLUSIVE
Veteran actress Padmini Kolhapure talks about starting a record label, Dhamaka Records, with son Priyaank Sharma, Priyaank carrying the family’s musical legacy forward and more
Earlier this month, veteran actress Padmini Kolhapure collaborated with her son for a business venture as they launched their own music label, Dhamaka Records, along with their business partner Paras Mehta. Their inaugural track, Hum Hindustani, released around the Independence Day and featured a mix of 15 legendary artists from the previous and current generation, including Lata Mangeshkar, Amitabh Bachchan, Padmini, Anil Agarwal, Sonu Nigam, Kailash Kher, Alka Yagnik, Shabbir Kumar, Shraddha Kapoor, Sonakshi Sinha, Shruti Hassan, Tara Sutaria, Ankit Tiwari, Siddhanth Kapoor and Jannat Zubair.
With the label, Priyaank is carrying the musical legacy of his mother’s side of the family forward. Mention that to Padmini and she swells with pride. “It’s a very proud moment and it feels great. It’s not like I pushed him into it. It just came to him and he discussed with us that he wanted to take his grandfather’s musical legacy forward and we felt it was great. We hadn’t planned Hum Hindustani to be our launch track but it just happened and things started unfolding,” she informs.
In a conversation with SpotboyE.com, Priyaank had mentioned that one of the motivations behind launching the label for him was to convince his mother to sing. Tell that to Padmini and she bursts out laughing. So, was it easy for Priyaank to convince her? “It was easy actually because everyone was singing and he said that mom you have to be in it and I also agreed.”
Ask the veteran about her role in the label and she informs, “I am the pillar of foundation of Dhamaka Records and everything is run by me. Priyaank discusses everything with me including getting these icons like Lata ji and Amit ji on board. We didn’t expect Hum Hindustani to be the success that it became. It’s such a positive song and we couldn’t have thought of a better song to start our venture with. It resonates with what is really going on with us and emotionally makes your world turn around.”
Padmini shares that the success of the song was evident from the industry’s reactions. “After this track came out, a lot of people asked me why weren’t they included in it and that’s such a great feeling. It shows that people have appreciated the song. It’s like a big film that has been made and you feel like why weren’t you a part of it,” she gushes.
Ask her how is Priyaank different as a business partner than as a son and she replies, “He is not like a hard-core, ruthless and uncouth kind of a business man. He has that emotional side to him and that’s his most powerful tool. He is very compassionate, understanding and adjusting, and also musically-inclined. He has been like that since day one, so he was probably made for it. He is so passionate about music and is always roaring and raring to go.”
So, can we expect a solo single or an album from her in the future under this label? “I haven’t given it a thought yet,” she replies.
Not just her son Priyaank but Padmini’s niece and nephew, Shraddha Kapoor and Siddhanth Kapoor, are also taking their family’s musical legacy forward in their own way. How does it feel to see their next generation doing so well in taking the family’s name forward? “It’s great as it’s a family of actors and singers and I am talking about generations down. My father, grandfather, aunts and uncles are all musically connected. Rudra veena is an instrument that my grandfather played and Tejaswini is taking forward my dad’s charitable institution that’s mainly for classical singers and music, thus honouring his legacy. So, it’s lovely to see all this,” she smiles.
Image source: Communique PR, Instagram/priyaankksharma/padminikolhapure
Image source: Communique PR, Instagram/priyaankksharma/padminikolhapure