Kitni hasin hein raat, dulhan bani hein raat, machal hue jazbat, baat zara hone do… mujhe pyar karo… pyar manga hein tumhi se, na inkar karo…
Iconic songs like these were creating ripples in the seventies when a boy named Alokesh Lahiri arrived in Mumbai from Kolkata. Son of Bengal's legendary classical musician Aparesh Lahiri, Alokesh, popularly known as Bappi Lahiri, went on to compose songs for almost every legend—Mohammed Rafi, Kishore Kumar, Lata Mangeshkar to Yesudas.
Trained in Hindustani classical music, Bappi Lahiri was a wonderful percussionist. Father Aparesh and mother Bansuri wanted him to continue as a Hindustani classical musician. But the young boy had something else on his mind—the name and fame of his maternal uncle Kishore Kumar and legendary musician S.D. Burman.
He landed in Mumbai in 1973 and in the same year he was able to compose music for both Rafi and Kumar. Bollywood considered him a prodigy, much like many other Bengali since the fifties—from Hemant Kumar to Kishore himself. Bappi stunned the icons of Bollywood film music with his compositions. It was the beginning and there was no looking back. Within a decade, he became one of the most highly paid music composers, even surpassing R.D. Burman.
On Wednesday morning, when reports of his death reached Kolkata, the city which was already in mourning was shattered. Bengal was still struggling to cope with the death of Lata Mangeskar, who immortalised many Bengali songs, followed by the death of Sandhya Mukherjee, the most popular Bengali female voice, on Tuesday. After Hemant Kumar and Salil Chowdhury, Bappi had composed the most number of Bengali songs for Lata. One of them—'Bolchi tomar kane kane, amar tuni' (Whispering in your ears that you are mine)—was as mesmerising as Lata’s Bollywood’s golden era music. The music stole the heart of many as Lata sang in a flamboyant voice, rarely seen even in her Hindi songs. Bappi equally loved the voice of Lata’s sister Asha Bhosle.
Born in Jalpaiguri of north Bengal, he studied in Kolkata in the fifties and sixties. At the age of six he began taking “Talim” of Hindustani classical music from his father. As a musician, he was experimental to the core. None would believe that the man who introduced beat rhythm in Bollywood film was a trained classical musician. From Amitabh Bachchan’s super-hits from films like Namak Halal and then Mithun Chakraborty’s 'Disco Dancer' and 'Dance Dance', a variety of compositions made him one of the most popular musicians of all time.
He considered gold his lucky metal, and the success of Bappi da (as he was commonly known in Bengal as) matched his style—umpteen number of gold chains, bracelets and rings, ornate jackets and sunglasses.
Bappi announced temporary retirement from music in the nineties and went to the US to study western music, where he composed music for a few Hollywood films, too, and met Michael Jackson. Speaking about the meeting, Bappi once told this correspondent: “You know when I met him, he reminded me that he loved my song Jimmy Jimmi Jimmy…Aja aja aja… of Disco Dancer. I could not believe my eyes.” When he returned to India a few years later, there was a big change in Bollywood. But he continued to give hits like 'Tune mari entryaan'.
A staunch Modi supporter, Bappi joined the BJP. In 2014 he contested from Sreerampore Hooghly district which is pulpit for Hindu deities. When asked why he jumped into politics, he had said: “Bengal’s political establishments in the recent past destroyed its rich culture. I think BJP would try to halt that destruction.” However, he bid farewell to politics after tasting defeat in the elections.
Bappi was a god-fearing man. And Kishore Kumar had a place next to god in Bappi's heart. He was emotional when he spoke of Kishore's last song in Bengali. “You know what Kishore mama told me after singing his last song? Bappi you will feel my absence when I will be no more. I am really feeling it,” he had said.
Now as Bappi departs, he leaves behind a vibrant legacy of music that brings joy and touches hearts. And we are reminded of one of his most popular compositions—'Kabhi Alvida Na Kehana'—sung by Kishore.
