Legendary music composer Bappi Lahiri died on Wednesday morning at the age of 69 at a facility in Mumbai. He was born in Jalpaiguri, West Bengal, on November 27, 1952. The entire industry is in grief following this tragic loss.
Bappi Da, as he was popularly known, is credited with introducing pop music to Hindi music lovers. His songs, particularly in the 1980s and 1990s, were super hits among fans. His latest song was Bhankas from the movie Baaghi-3, which was released two years ago.
Many are unaware that Kishore Kumar, the legendary playback singer, was Bappi Da’s maternal uncle. Kishore introduced Bappi Lahiri to the world of music. At a very young age, Bappi Da started learning music. While he was only three years old, he undertook lessons to learn tabla. He left Kolkata at the age of 19 and relocated to Mumbai.
The first lesson of music for Bappi Da started at his very own home. Aparesh Lahiri, his father, was a Bengali vocalist, while his mother was a flute Lahiri performer. Before making a reputation for himself in the music industry in Mumbai, Bappi Da sang in Bengali movies.
In 1973, at the age of 21, he got his first break as a composer when he was given the opportunity to score music for the film Nanha Shikari. After that, there was no looking back for the legend that he was going to be. Bappi Da rose to prominence in 1975 with the film Zakhmi. He crooned a song in this film alongside Kishore Kumar and legendary vocalist Mohammad Rafi.
Bappi Lahiri explored the music world over several years and gave it a new lease of life. The Indian music industry will never forget the iconic musician’s contribution, which spanned from being hailed as the Disco king to becoming the trailblazer of pop music culture in India.
