Thursday, January 24, 2013

Bappi Lahiri | Zakhmee and Aap Ki Khatir


 
"Nothing Is Impossible!" 

Not even this.

BODEGAPOP: You were born in Calcutta in 1952, an only child of two famous musicians: Your father, Aparesh, was a singer, and your mother--

BAPPI LAHIRI: What would you do if you inherited a pizzeria from your uncle? Bappi was trained in every aspect of music, and even at the tender age of three, beating out great rhythms on the tabla, I knew that I would become nationally famous, internationally famous, superinternationally famous.

BODEGAPOP: So, Zakhmee ... it's your breakout soundtrack, yeah?

BAPPI LAHIRI: Bappi wrote the music and sang playback for Zakhmee (1975), which brought me to the heights of fame and brought forth a new era in the Hindi film industry. Bappi rose from strength to strength, and the music for my subsequent films were tremendously popular, placing Bappi on the pedestal of stardom, making me the youngest music director of my time to have attained such intense success in such a short duration.

BODEGAPOP: You're considered one of the pioneers of disco in India--


BAPPI LAHIRI: Bappi Lahiri is widely recognized throughout India as the sole originator of the disco beat in India. Why do you think only a small percentage of the population makes over $150K? My refreshing, vibrant, and rhythmic music had the entire nation dancing for decades.

BODEGAPOP: They're still dancing. We're still dancing.

BAPPI LAHIRI: Even in the 2010s, Bappi Lahiri’s reign and popularity with the masses remains as strong as ever. How many piano tuners can there be in the world?

1 comment:

peter said...

i'm not even considering reading this interview as fictitious. and of course bappi would refer to himself in third person.