Articles
Sister Act
Just before the Graaf sisters, Hannah and Magdalena, were due to perform in Bombay for the Pepsi MTV World Cup Concert, In Touch reporter Samit Malkani caught up with them at Hotel Orchid, Juhu. The purpose of this meeting-to make the Graafs a familiar name to the average Indian.
Samit Malkani: First of all, tell us a little about yourselves.
Magdalena: We were born and brought up in Gothamburg and Stockholm, Sweden.
Hannah: We've been singing since we were 5 years old. We started modelling in ads and magazines about 4 years ago.
Samit Malkani: The two of you were successful models. why did you switch to music?
Hannah: Well, modelling was a part-time sort of a job. Something we did because we got a chance to.
Magdalena: And we had always wanted to sing, so...
Samit Malkani: So how did the album happen?
Magdalena: Well, we said in an interview that we wanted to sing. 10 minutes later, we had producers calling us up to sign contracts.
Hannah: We waited for 6 months because we wanted the music to come from our hearts, and not as a commercial thing.
Magdalena: Producers told us that they had slogged with ABBA over their albums, but they were crazy about ours immediately.
Hannah: Yeah, they were, like, "WOW!"
Samit Malkani: Do you have any formal training in music?
Magdalena: We sang in choirs from 5 years of age. We had lessons once a week for our voices.
Hannah: Those lessons were most important. Now we can perform 10 songs a night easily.
Samit Malkani: How would you describe your album?
Hannah: It's a happy love album. We make music to keep people happy. Each song is different.
Magdalena: It is a dancy, romantic album.
Samit Malkani: Which musicians have inspired you?
Magdalena: ABBA was our main inspiration. There are also some very good Swedish bands around.
Hannah: But we have tried to maintain our own identity.
Samit Malkani: You have done a cover version of a Beegees sone, "Heartbreaker". Did you like the Beegees?
Hannah: We did that because it is so romantic. It makes me feel like crying whenever I listen to it.
Samit Malkani: Two singles, "You've Got (What I Want)" and "Give It Up" have been raging hits. Which are your favourite songs?
Magdalena: "Hold You". I really like that.
Hannah: "Hold You" and "I Wish". They are really romantic.
Samit Malkani: You two are highly involved in social service for children worldwide. You have a centre in Nagpur. What inspired you to build such a centre?
Hannah: Well, our mother was a social worker for 25 years. We travelled with her to Africa, Phillippines and India. We wanted to do something as well.
Magdalena: We wanted to adopt children. We wanted to give the deprived ones a chance.
Hannah: One crown from every sale of our album goes to charity. It makes you feel good.
Magdalena: It is food for the soul.
Samit Malkani: What do you see as the differences between modelling and singing?
Magdalena: Everything changes. The fans, the press conferences, the work...it is all different.
Hannah: You're not yourself in modelling. It is an image. You put on a dress and make-up, you're no longer you. Music comes straight from the heart, it's totally you.
Samit Malkani: You two are young. Do you still study, or plan to?
Magdalena: We've done our senior college, as you would call it. We got tired of studying and then modelling came along.
Hannah: Back home, everybody wants to become a model. We did. But that was part-time. I was in a computer firm, Magdalena in an advertising agency.
Magdalena: If we get a chance, we would love to.
Samit Malkani: How are you enjoying your stay here in Bombay? Do you plan to tour here again?
Magdalena: That depends on you (laughs). But we are finding it quite exciting. We'll be back.
Hannah: Of course we'll come back. We have to give our fans something. We can't just come, hold a press conference saying, "India is great, I love India, blah, blah, blah." We have to perform.
Magdalena: The Nagpur centre is opening in February. We'll be back then.