Bappi Lahiri is exactly as you imagine him to be: fun, approachable, and lively. As we walked into Barbeque Nation in Rajajinagar, which he had inaugurated, there was a swarm of television crew requesting him to sing. Always ready to oblige, Bappi Lahiri crooned, ‘I am a disco dancer’, ‘Jimmy Jimmy’ and ‘Ooh Laa Laa, Ooh Laa Laa’ to loud claps and cheers.
The inimitable Bappi Lahiri, with his trademark dark glasses and bling of gold necklaces and rings, showed no signs of exhaustion, even as he sipped coffee while speaking to the press. He greeted everyone with a smile, and asked any question — even if they were about his favourite colour, food and actress — he answered them all patiently.
“I have a song, Disco Barbeque, which has 20 lakh views on youtube,” Bappi Lahiri says as soon as the interview begins. When asked about the Bollywood disco era, he is quick to point out. “I brought disco to Mumbai. It started with Surakksha , in which Mithun Chakraborty acted. The rest is history. Then followed ‘I am a disco dancer’, ‘Ramba ho’, ‘Yaar bina chain kahan’, ‘De de pyaar de’.” He quickly mentions about singing a Kannada song for Love in Mandya , before speaking about some of his international collaborations. “I recorded a song with Snoop Dogg. It has also been finalised that I will be singing with Akon.”
He gets most excited when he speaks about his short film, Slum Stars that won the best short film award at the International Film and Entertainment Festival in Australia last year. “I recorded a song ‘We Love India’ with slum kids of Dharavi.”
Bappi was born to Aparesh and Bansari Lahiri, from whom he inherited his musical talent. While reminiscing over his childhood days, he breaks into a smile and says: “I began playing the tabla when I was three or four years old. My album Taal Tarang , where I have played the tabla and sang with international artiste Julia Price, has been a big hit.” He enjoys talking about his achievements and awards, without a trace of arrogance. “Recently, in seven months, I have received seven awards. I have no more place to keep awards in my house!”
He insists he has a varied musical style. “For Amitabh Bachchan I have a different style. For Jitendra, a different style and even for Aamir Khan it is different. I have composed music for a film Geraftaar , in 1985, which had Amitabh Bachchan, Kamal Hassan and Rajnikanth, and so I mixed different styles,” he says while there is a line of fans waiting to speak and click selfies with him. You are well loved, I observe, to which he replies: “I believe in God, in human beings. That’s why I am Bappi Lahiri!”
