Sheila Chandra

Sheila Savithri Elizabeth Chandra (born 14 March 1965) is an English writer and retired pop singer and actress of Indian descent. She began her career as an actress in the late 1970s before launching a music career in the early 1980s. Her career ended prematurely in 2009 as a result of burning mouth syndrome.

Early life Sheila Chandra was born in Waterloo, London, England.

Career Beginnings as an actress Chandra first came to public attention as an actress, playing Sudhamani Patel in the BBC school drama Grange Hill from 1979 to 1981.

Indian–Western pop fusion period As a teenager, Chandra formed the band Monsoon with Steve Coe (who became the band's producer) and bassist Martin Smith.

Later projects

In 1990, Chandra interrupted her sabbatical to record a single, "Raining", with the folk-synth band Ancient Beatbox, which also appeared on its self-titled album.

In 1993, Chandra sang with Peter Gabriel onstage at the WOMAD festival in San Francisco.

In 2000, she contributed two tracks, one a cover version of Tim Buckley's "Song to the Siren" and the other a remix of her solo track "Ever So Lonely/Eyes/Ocean" by Stephen Haig, to the album Gifted on Real World Records.

In 2001, she released a collaborative album with the Ganges Orchestra titled This Sentence is True (The Previous Sentence is False) based on her two experimental EPs with that group.

2002 saw the release of a remix of her original hit single "Ever So Lonely" (written by Steve Coe), retitled "So Lonely", by the DJ Jakatta. It charted at No. 8 in the UK. In 2002 she performed a song titled "Breath of Life" (retitled "The Grace of Valar" in its 2006 release) with Howard Shore for The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers soundtrack.

In 2007, she recorded two songs for Simon Emmerson's project The Imagined Village, which set out to reinterpret traditional British songs using a wide range of contemporary British musicians. She also appeared with the Imagined Village on a concert tour of Britain in 2007.

Writing and retirement from music In 2009, Chandra began experiencing symptoms of what was eventually diagnosed as burning mouth syndrome, as a result of which she is unable to sing, speak, laugh or cry without suffering intense pain. She has thus been rendered effectively mute. As a result of her illness Chandra retired from music. She turned her attention to writing self-help books, the first of which, Banish Clutter Forever – How the Toothbrush Principle Will Change Your Life, was published in 2010. She has continued to mentor young artists including the graffiti artist Stik.

Discography Albums

With Monsoon Third Eye (1982) (retitled Monsoon featuring Sheila Chandra in 1995)

With the Ganges Orchestra This Sentence is True (The Previous Sentence is False) (2001) EEP1 & EEP2 (2012) Pure Drones, Vol. I (2013) Pure Drones, Vol. II (2013) Pure Drones, Vol. III (2013)

Solo Source: Out on My Own (1984) Quiet (1984) The Struggle (1985) Nada Brahma (1985) Roots and Wings (1990) Silk (compilation, 1991) Weaving My Ancestors' Voices (1992) The Zen Kiss (1994) ABoneCroneDrone (1996) Moonsung: A Real World Retrospective (compilation, 1999) The Indipop Retrospective (compilation, 2003) Archive (compilation, 2013)

Singles

With Monsoon "Ever So Lonely" (1982) "Shakti (The Meaning of Within)" (1982) "Tomorrow Never Knows" (1982) "Wings of the Dawn (Prem Kavita)" (1982) "Ever So Lonely" (Remix by Ben Chapman) (1990) "So Lonely" ("Ever So Lonely" remixes by Jakatta) (2002)

Other

Solo "Raining (My Eyes Are Filled with Clouds)" with Ancient Beatbox (1990) "Breath of Life" in The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) "Arwen's Fate" in The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers (2002) "Welcome Sailor" and "'Ouses, 'Ouses, 'Ouses" from The Imagined Village (2007)