Junior continues legacy of Singing for Smiles

Photo by courtesy of Simarya Ahuja

Singing for Smiles president and junior Simarya Ahuja sings “Control” by Halsey during the Halloween-themed Singing for Smiles performance.

“You should be scared of me, who is in control?” 

The quad erupted in applause and cheers on Oct. 27 as junior Simarya Ahuja, the president of Saratoga’s Singing for Smiles Club with around 10 to 12 members, ended her heartfelt performance of “Control” by Halsey with a belted high note.

Growing up, Ahuja was raised in a musically inclined household, constantly listening to music written or sung by her family members. Ahuja’s mother, father and grandmother are all talented singers, and much of her extended family is involved in the music industry in India. 

Her great uncle, Uttam Singh, is a renowned music director in India who composed many songs for famous Bollywood movies  like  “Dil To Pagal Hai” and “Dushman.” He has won the Filmfare Award for Best Music and the Zee Cine Award for Best Music Director. Ahuja’s aunt, Preeti Uttam, recorded a famous Hindi children’s song in the 1980s called “Lakdi Ki Kathi,” garnering 241 million views and 1.1 million likes on YouTube.

Ahuja said her first singing experience occurred when she was around age 2 or 3. During her childhood, she would sing Bollywood songs, Hindi nursery rhymes and English nursery rhymes, although her favorite songs were from Disney’s animated films. 

Most of her singing is self-taught, accelerated by weekly school-provided music lessons in elementary school. In addition, during her education at Lawson Middle School in Cupertino, she placed in the top 10 in “Lawson Idol,” the school’s annual singing competition.

Ahuja is inspired by her favorite pop singers such as Tate McRae, Joshua Bassett and Johnny Orlando. She especially looks up to McRae, a 19-year-old pop singer who started posting YouTube videos of herself singing at a young age before eventually gaining worldwide fame. 

“I love the fact that she’s such a good person and she doesn’t cause drama. She’s just sort of living her life, being a normal human,” Ahuja said. “I’ve definitely learned a lot from her musically and as a person.”

In Ahuja’s freshman year, she joined Singing for Smiles, a club where “students sing to spread happiness and smiles,” Ahuja said. She acted as the club’s secretary in sophomore year before being promoted to president  this year. 

“One thing I love about being on stage is that the audience is having a good time,” Ahuja said. “The audience’s reaction is amazing and something I like watching — that’s why I joined [the club] in the first place.”

Other club officers include sophomore vice president Annabelle Miin and senior secretary and treasurer Maithili Kulkarni. 

“I really like to sing because it lets me express my feelings and share it with the audience,” Miin said, “It’s hard to see people’s reactions, but I hope to make people happy through my singing.”

Each monthly Singing for Smiles show is performed in the quad and based on a specific theme, normally chosen to correlate with a season or holiday. Each performance consists of roughly four to eight sign-ups, spanning one or two days depending on availability.

To prepare, performers choose and practice their own songs that are related to the chosen theme. Before the performance, the technology commission, led by senior Darren Guo, helps set up the sound system. 

“We don’t set aside designated meetings for rehearsals because not everyone may be able to come to those meetings,” Ahuja said. “All of our in-person performances have been successful.”

On Nov. 30, the club held a Disney-themed performance, and is currently preparing for a holiday-themed performance in December. For the winter performances, the officers are debating between a typical lunchtime performance in the quad, an informal sing-along with the community based instruction students or filmed holiday sing-alongs to send to senior centers. 

“Singing really helped my confidence and gave me a safe space to express myself,” Ahuja said. “That’s one of my main goals this year as the president of Singing for Smiles — to give people that safe space.”