Sona Mohapatra
Sona Mohapatra is an Indian singer, music composer, songwriter, and producer. She has done remixes of songs by David Bowie (“Let’s Dance”) and INXS (“Afterglow”). She studied mechanical engineering (BTech) at the College of Engineering and Technology, Bhubaneswar, and earned an MBA in marketing and systems from Symbiosis Centre for Management & HRD, Pune. She began her career in advertising, recording famous jingles like Tata Salt’s “Kal Ka Bharat Hai” and Unilever’s Close Up campaign, which featured her song “Paas Aao Na” in multiple languages and countries.
In 2007 she released her debut album, Sona, on Sony Records, exploring rock, blues, flamenco, Hindustani, Baul, and Romani music. She issued the singles “Diljale” and “Paas Aao Na” in 2009 and sang “Bedardi Raja” in the film Delhi Belly, where she also had a cameo. She later sang theme songs for the TV show Satyamev Jayate, including “Mujhe Kya Bechega Rupaiya” and “Ghar Yaad Aata Hai Mujhe.”
Mohapatra gained mainstream prominence through Aamir Khan’s talk show Satyamev Jayate, where she often appeared as a lead singer and performer and served as executive producer for the show’s musical projects. Her performances drew millions of views online. The song “Mujhe Kya Bechega Rupaiya,” composed by Ram Sampath, celebrated women’s freedom and has more than 26 million views on YouTube.
She is married to Ram Sampath, a Bollywood music composer and director, whom she met in 2002 and married in 2005. They run OmGrown Music in Mumbai, with their own studios. In October 2018 she accused Kailash Kher and Anu Malik of sexual misconduct. In 2019 she received a death threat after criticizing Salman Khan. She released a documentary about her life, Shut Up Sona, which won several awards at film festivals.
This page was last edited on 2 February 2026, at 17:42 (CET).