How Bappi Lahiri Inspired An Entire Generation To Fall In Love With Disco Music

Singer-composer Bappi Lahiri (Alokesh Lahiri), a child prodigy, made his tabla debut at the age of four in a recital at Kolkata's Eden Gardens. Aparesh and Bansari Lahiri, his parents, were well-known vocalists in Kolkata. Actor-singer Kishore Kumar had a strong relationship with the family, as Bappi Lahiri used to call him maama (maternal uncle). A close family friend, singer Lata Mangeshkar, advised the parents to send the young Bappi Lahiri to train under Pandit Samta Prasadji.

Bappi Lahiri wrote his first song at the age of eleven and scored his first Bengali film, ‘Dadu’ (1969), before fleeing to Bombay. ‘Nanha Shikari’ (1973), his debut Hindi film, was positively praised. Meanwhile, he appeared in Kishore's ‘Badhti Ka Naam Daadi’ (1974), before receiving a phone call from Tahir Hussain, which led to the film that launched his career, ‘Zakhmee’ (1975). It was from here on that he slowly and steadily started bringing in a revolution in the Indian music industry with the disco music. The composers prior to him hardly ever thought of bringing in the disco culture to Indian music listeners, and it was only after Bappi Lahiri became a massive hit that others also started incorporating bits and pieces of disco music in their creations.

In contrast to the melodic tunes that his predecessors were mostly known for, Bappi Lahiri came up with a more synthesized disco sound. Bappi Lahiri pioneered and popularised that genre of music entirely in the 1980s and 1990s. In 1982, 'Disco Dancer' became a smash hit, in large part because of its music. There were numerous tracks like ‘Jimmy Jimmy’ and ‘I Am A Disco Dancer’, ‘Koi Yahan Aaha Nache Nache’ and many others which became massively popular from the film.

Bappi Lahiri composed ‘Namak Halal’ the same year, writing songs such as ‘Jawani Jaaneman’, ‘Raat Baki’, and ‘Pag Ghungroo’ – all having his characteristic disco tunes. ‘Sharaabi’s music, which included songs like as ‘De De Pyar De’, ‘Thodisi Jo Peeli Hain’, and ‘Inteha Ho Gayi’, earned Bappi Lahiri a Filmfare Award for Best Music in 1984, and that entire album also had his characteristic disco tunes written all over it. He was on a roll throughout the 1980s and far into the 1990s, with films such as ‘Dance Dance’, ‘Saaheb’, ‘Sailaab’, ‘Thanedaar’, and many others. 

Talking about the influence of Bappi Lahiri’s music in his own music, composer Shameer Tandon shares, “I have had the privilege to record Bappi Da’s voice under my baton over a decade ago for a Suniel Shetty film. But more recently, I had the honour of giving a break and launching his grandson Rego B under my baton, who is a complete replica of Bappi Da as a composer, singer, artist and performer. It was a prestige to have Rego B, who is going to take the flag of the Lahiri family ahead, sing a few of my compositions. One of his songs ‘Baccha Party Chalu Hai’ released under the Saregama music label along with a lavish video produced by Remo D’souza has won a lot of acclaim amongst the children. After which, Bappi Da interacted very closely with me and congratulated me for the phenomenal work I was doing by giving a break to his grandson and identifying the talent in Rego B. During multiple interactions, one of the most beautiful things I learned from Bappi Lahiri is when I was talking to him about some past works he said something beautiful, ‘What I have done in the past is past, we need to now see what I need to do in future and the learning here is what once has already achieved is not something one should tom-tom about or just live with but one should keep planning one what one wants to do in future with one's work and creativity.’ Hence Bappi Da was not one of the rest. His laurels and talk about thousands of songs all of them being super hit, but he was always craving to learn more and that’s the learning I took back when I went. What I also formerly remember about him is that every time I would play some of the songs which I recorded with Rego B his grandson, who is barely 12-13 years old he would smile and hug me and said ‘Hit hai Hit hai, Shameer superhit hai’ and that’s a memory I will always cherish.”

Adding to the same, singer and actor Deepti Sadhwani says, “Bappi da, we all used to fondly call him. When we talk about songs like ‘Yaad Aa Raha Hai’ and ‘I Am A Disco Dancer’ from ‘Disco Dancer’ back in 1982, it created a trend in the industry. He had made this genre his own, and it started being known as the Bappi da genre of music. He brought that disco trend to India. Whether it’s ‘Yaar Bina Chain Kahan Re’ or ‘Oh La La’ - it feels like had these songs been sung by anyone other than Bappi da, then they may not have been this popular. It was meant to be his brand of music and singing. He will always be missed as he created an entirely separate genre for himself. He won’t be remembered just as the man who wore a lot of gold, but he was the golden man in the truest sense. He was a man with a golden heart. It is a very sad month, and a very sad beginning of 2022 for the music industry when we have lost two of the most cherished jewels of the industry. Bappi da, you will always be missed.”

Singer Daler Mehndi, however, feels that Bappi Lahiri wasn’t just all about disco music. He says, “It’s a very sad day. Our Disco King, one of my favourite music composers, has passed away. He gave some brilliant songs even in classical music. He composed so many varied types of music, and they were all loved by everyone. All of us who love music so much, have learnt so much just by listening to him and his music. He has his name in the Guinness Book Of World Records for having given so many hit songs back-to-back. There used to be around 8 songs per movie and all of them used to be super hits. His brand of music will continue to live with us for generations to come.”

Bappi Lahiri's disco rhythms were the soundtrack to many of our lives growing. The composer-singer was responsible for some of Bollywood's most famous songs, and he also had numerous credits in Bengali films. Late last night, he died in a Mumbai hospital at the age of 69. He had been in the hospital for a month being treated for a variety of health conditions, according to the news agency PTI. Bappi da, as he was known to his colleagues and admirers, was discharged on Monday; however, his health deteriorated the next day, and he was rushed back to the hospital, where he left for his heavenly abode.