Early Life
Anuradha Sriram was born on July 9, 1970, in Chennai, Tamil Nadu, India, to playback singer Renuka Devi and Meenakshi Sundaram Mohan. She received her early education at St. Francis Anglo-Indian Girls School in Coimbatore and later at Padma Seshadri Bala Bhavan in Chennai. Anuradha pursued her passion for music, earning a B.A and M.A in music from Queen Mary’s College in Madras University. She furthered her studies with a fellowship in Ethnomusicology and Composition from Wesleyan University, Connecticut, US.
Career
Anuradha’s career spans across various genres and languages. She began performing on radio and television at the age of 12. Her debut in the Tamil film industry was as a child artist in the 1980 film “Kaali.” She was introduced as a playback singer by A R Rahman in the 1995 film “Bombay,” where she sang “Malarodu Malaringu.” Since then, she has lent her voice to over 3500 songs in Tamil, Telugu, Sinhala, Malayalam, Kannada, Bengali, and Hindi films.
Anuradha specializes in Carnatic music and has performed in over 1,000 concerts worldwide. She has collaborated with her husband, Sriram Parasuram, on Classical Music Jugalbandhi concerts and the TV program “Elaame Sangeetham Thaan.” Anuradha has also composed music for the film “Five Star” and the television series “Sivamayam” produced by Radaan for Sun TV.
Awards and Recognition
Anuradha Sriram has received numerous awards for her contributions to music, including:
- Dr. J. Jayalalitha Cine Award (1996)
- Ajanta Award for the best female playback singer (1996)
- Screen Videocon award for Best Pop Album (1998)
- Karnataka State Film Awards for best playback singer (1999)
- Vocational Excellence Award by the Rotary Club of Coimbatore Midtown (2002)
- International Tamil Film Awards (2003)
- West Bengal State award for best playback singer (2004)
- Filmfare award for the best playback singer (2004) for the song “O Podu” from the film “Gemini”
- Honorary Doctorate by Sathyabama University (2012)
Personal Life
Anuradha Sriram is married to singer Sriram Parasuram, whom she met at Wesleyan University. They have two sons named Jayant and Lokesh. Her brother, Murugan, is also a playback singer.
Anuradha Sriram’s multifaceted talent and dedication to music have earned her widespread acclaim and recognition in the Indian music industry.