Hyderabad: People living in south Indian states especially the Telugu states are familiar with the voice of the lady making important announcements at railway stations in the region. There is perhaps no one who has not heard the train announcement seeking people's attention over the arrivals and departures of trains at railway stations for passengers.
The lady is none other than veteran radio broadcaster and singer Aluru Gayatri. In a special conversation with ETV Bharat, Gayatri shared her journey from radio, TV to railways and her experience as a railway announcer over the years. Hailing from Hyderabad, Gayatri said her father, Ananda Mohan, was in Delhi for a few years as an employee. He used to work in Comptroller and Auditor General Office.
Her mother Prabhavati took to classical music training. Gayatri said that inspired by her mother, she also learned music from her. She said that she wanted to become a newsreader after everyone praised her voice is good. After completing her degree, Gayatri started work at the All India Radio. The family returned from Delhi to Hyderabad in 1993 after Gaaytri's father's retirement.
Also read: Telangana tribal woman leaves coaching for govt job to follow her culinary passion
While working in AIR, Gayatri did BA in Veena and MA in Telugu. She also learned Veena, Ghazals, Carnatic and Hindustani music from Sankara Shastri. Gayatri said she has sung some albums, too. “On the recommendation of relatives, I voiced an announcement for the first time. With that, dubbing in Doordarshan serials became possible. Then I got a chance to work with Suman in ETV where I learned a lot from him. I have voiced characters in many serials like Agnigundam, Kurukshetra, Kalankita, Chadarangam, Anthapuram, Padmavyuham and Seethamma Vakitlo Sirimalle Chettu,'' she said.
The journey in the railways started when the officials of South Central Railway asked about the voice-over for the railway station announcement at the dubbing studio where Gayatri worked. “They suggested my name that I can speak Hindi. So from 2005, my voice started to be heard in railway stations not only in Andhra, Telangana, Bihar and Tamil Nadu but also in other states in Telugu, Hindi and English languages,” recalled Gayatri.
“It was crazy to hear my voice at the station while coming from Chennai,'' she said. Gayatri said she has translated scripts of more than 20 movies and serials from English to Telugu and has given voice to animated series and 200 stories of 'Chandamama' serial. She has also worked for the films of famous directors like Bapu, K Vishwanath, Dasari Narayana Rao, Rajamouli and K Raghavendra Rao and dubbed voices for heroines like Meena, Sanghavi, Bhavana, Ashwini, Sana, Kasturi and others.
“My voice is the main character in the 10 serials that are currently being telecast! While dubbing, I get immersed in the characters without knowing. I cry uncontrollably,'' Gayatri said. In 2007, Gayatri received many awards for her contribution including Nandi from Andhra Pradesh government. “All this was possible with the encouragement of my husband Santhosh Kumar,” she said. The couple has a daughter named Sai Soumya. “I took a break until she was six months old. I used to finish my work when she came home from school. Even after all these years, I can continue in my field of work happily because of that coordination,'' she said.
