Born on June 17, 1976, Sona Mohapatra's homeland is Cuttack, Odisha. Being a fauji kid, Sona has lived in Cochin, Pune, Hyderabad, Nigeria and Africa and did her schooling as per her father's transfer. She pursued B.Tech. from the College of Engineering and Technology. Yes, singer Sona Mohapatra is an Instrumentation and Electronics Engineer, and later followed it up with an MBA in marketing and system

A childhood picture of Mona (Madhumita Mohapatra), Sona (Mohapatra), Tina (Pratichee Mohapatra). The Mohapatra sisters share a close-knit bond. Pratichee, the youngest of the three siblings, is also a singer. She is remembered fondly as part of Viva, the first girl band India ever had. Sona had shared this picture and shared memory about Pratichee

Sona Mohapatra's father Dilip Mohapatra is an Indian Navy officer and her mother Nayantara Mohapatra, a homemaker. In picture: Sona (the little kid) in her mother's arms, while Madhumita in her father's arms. Sona had written alongside, "My elder by a year sister Madhumita was & always will be my best friend. Today, the 10th of April is the day she was born to Nayantara & Dilip Mohapatra. I came a year later. A couple of years went by & then came Tina [sic]"

She added further, "Mona Didi stopped getting called that in a strange phase of 'cooleth' disease took over & that is one of my deepest regrets. Today, I decided to go back to calling her that - Mona Didi." Isn't that cute?

Sona Mohapatra, since childhood, was fond of music and singing. As can be seen in the picture, Sona with her sister is performing live at a cultural event

However, the singing career started much later. After obtaining an MBA degree from Symbiosis Centre for Management and HRD, Pune, Sona Mohapatra worked as the brand manager in popular company Marico, where she handled brands like Parachute and Mediker amongst others

Reminiscing her early days in Mumbai, Sona Mohapatra shared this picture of hers along with her story, from her younger days

Sona Mohapatra's one of the first projects in the music industry started with lending voice for jingles. She gained popularity with her jingle Paas Aao Na for the Close-Up ad. She ended up singing the jingle in 30 different languages. Can you beat that?

"When I released Pass Aao Na, I never expected it to become such a rage. I am so glad that it became a part of a television commercial because that way it reached out to a lot more people across the world than it ordinarily would have. I never thought that I would end up singing it in 30 different languages," said Sona, in an interview with mid-day in 2010.

Did you know Amitabh Bachchan-starrer Family's popular Lohri song was sung by Sona Mohapatra? She made her debut in Bollywood in 2006 with Family, however, it was 2010's Delhi Belly's song Bedardi Raja that gave a boost to her career

Whether it is melodious song Jiya Laage Na from Talaash, her rendition of the Punjabi folk song Ambarsariyaan, her Odiya folk song Rangabati or Naina from Khoobsurat, Sona Mohapatra made her space as a singer and independent stage performer over the past 14 years

On the personal front, Sona Mohapatra is married to music composed Ram Sampath. "Meeting Ram was surely a turning point in my life. We both complement each other in our skill sets at work and I believe great partnerships propel careers. I do feel blessed for the kind of compositions that he has created for me. It's custom-made in a sense and brings out my best for sure," said Sona during one of her candid conversations with mid-day

On January 16, 2020, Sona and Ram celebrated 15 years of togetherness. "Ups, Downs with Learnings & Love. Nothing conventional about this partnership of equals. No rules apply. Unconditional & Uplifting till Eternity. @ramsampathofficial Happy Anniversary," she captioned this adorable picture.

The husband-wife have collaborated numerous times. "Both Ram and I are proud of our rich folk heritage. While Ram introduced me to world genres like Fado, Flamenco and Latin music, I introduced him to the folk music of India. Since then, it has been a fabulous journey of discovery," said Mohapatra

Sona Mohapatra feels she is one of those feminists who has a most amazing male partner at home (music director Ram Sampath). "I love him, I adore him. I am not ashamed of admitting that I am nothing without his constant support and encouragement. I am a believer in equal participation in every change happening in our life. The combination of male and female gaze in everything creates a balanced world. Our very mythology tells us about the equal participation of men and women. I am a big believer of Shiv-shakti, so when the Shiva and Parvati are in balance, the universe is in balance. There you go, I am talking equality"

More power to you, woman! Happy birthday, Sona!