Put a face to the voice

You've heard these artists before. They've voiced your cartoons, movies and anime. Now, AI and other villains are threatening to silence them

- By Taranna Khetpal

Who gave Dobby his squeaky charm, Yoda his gravelly wisdom, or Joker his quiet menace when they spoke to Indian audiences? Vinod Kulkarnni. Who voices some of your fav anime characters when they cross the border into India? Suvela Sharma. Who is the voice behind that Santoor, Malabar Gold or Himalaya ad? Shreya Shah. Some of the most familiar voices of our time belong to artists who go unrecognised.

More people found their voice, literally, while they were stuck home in the pandemic. And better tech means a good voice can, literally, phone it in and pick up a paycheque.

So how come voice artists are still not getting their due? Take a look

Sense the discord

“People take the art of speaking well for granted; it’s the most underrated life skill,” says Darrpan Mehta, 50, one of the industry’s most sought-after artists. Think of a Mercedes ad, designed to drift you off into your dream life. Or an Amazon sale ad aimed to trigger FOMO. Now, think of both these voices coming from the same human, evoking a different emotion each time. That’s it. That’s the magic.