Kishore Kumar Genre: Pop/World/Reggae, Film/Bollywood, India Hometown: India
He was a man who could sing and dance, act and mimic, write and compose, make
you laugh and cry all at one time. He lived life defying all norms. Yes Kishore
Kumar could do all this and much more. He was a multifaceted, eccentric and
sensitive human being. Kishore Kumar was born as Abhas Kumar Ganguly on August 4, 1929, in Khandwa,
Madhya Pradesh. He nurtured dreams of becoming a singer and following the
footsteps of his idol K.L. Saigal. He used to diligently save his pocket money
to buy Saigal’s records. Kishore started visiting his by then famous star
brother Ashok Kumar in Mumbai frequently in the hope that he would introduce him
to K.L. Saigal. But all his efforts to meet his idol were in vain.
Kishore’s real ambition was to become a successful playback singer. But life was
a real struggle for him. Once when Kishore was waiting at a bus stop Ashok
Kumar’s star friends made a remark like, ‘How can you even dream of becoming a
singer. Your voice is no good.’ It was not until 1948 that he got his first
opportunity to sing ‘Marne ki duayen kyon mangu’ for Dev Anand in Ziddi (old)
under the baton of Khemchand Prakash. It was Prakash who shaped the singing
career of Kishore.
