Shilpa Rao

Shilpa Rao (born Apeksha Rao; 11 April 1984) is an Indian singer who primarily records songs in Hindi, Telugu and Malayalam languages. During her college days, composer Mithoon offered her to record the song "Javeda Zindagi" from ''Anwar'' (2007), marking her Hindi debut. "Abacha" from ''Konchem Ishtam Konchem Kashtam'' (2009) and "Oru Maalai Neram" from ''Naan Mahaan Alla'' (2010) were her debut songs in Telugu and Tamil respectively.

Rao rose to widespread prominence with the release of "Woh Ajnabee" from ''The Train'' (2007) and "Khuda Jaane" from ''Bachna Ae Haseeno'' (2008), the latter of which earned her a nomination for the Filmfare Award for Best Female Playback Singer. The following year, she collaborated with Ilaiyaraaja for ''Paa'' (2009), where she performed the song "Mudi Mudi Ittefaq Se" which earned her a second Filmfare nomination in the same category. In 2012, Rao teamed up with A. R. Rahman for the song "Ishq Shava" for Yash Chopra's swan song ''Jab Tak Hai Jaan'', followed by Pritam's "Malang" from ''Dhoom 3'' (2013) and Vishal–Shekhar's "Meherbaan" from ''Bang Bang!'' (2014). Rao's collaborations with Amit Trivedi were also acclaimed with songs such as "Manmarziyaan" from ''Lootera'' (2013) receiving particular praise. She was the final Indian singer to perform in ''Coke Studio Pakistan'' with the song "Paar Chanaa De" (2016) and received praise for singing the song "Aaj Jaane Ki Zid Na Karo" from the deluxe edition of the ''Ae Dil Hai Mushkil'' soundtrack (2016).

"Ghungroo" from ''War'' (2019; Hindi), "Besharam Rang" from ''Pathaan'' (2023; Hindi), "Kaavaalaa" from ''Jailer'' (2023; Tamil), "Chaleya" from ''Jawan'' (2023; Hindi) and "Chuttamalle" from ''Devara: Part 1'' (2024; Telugu) were her most commercially successful songs.

Rao is particularly known in the media for trying new styles in her songs and singing for different genres. Rao, who considers her father as her biggest inspiration in the music career, has supported charitable organisations for a number of causes. Provided by Wikipedia