Music director Bappi Lahiri, who popularised “disco sound passed away in a Mumbai hospital last week. He was 69. The composer-singer had been under treatment for several weeks. “He was suffering from OSA (obstructive sleep apnea) and recurrent chest infection…He succumbed to his illness at about 11. 45 pm,” Dr Deepak Namjoshi of Mumbai's CritiCare Asia Hospitals said in a statement.
In the 1980s, a disco track became mandatory in Hindi films after the tsunami-like success of Qurbani’s ‘Aap jaisa koi’ (singer: Nazia Hasan, composer: Biddu). For the young and the restless, beat acquired more prominence. And the electronic synthesizer became the busiest instrument. No Bollywood composer understood, captured and expressed the new musical ecosystem like Bappi.
His dalliance with disco started with ‘Hari Om Hari’ (Pyara Dushman, inspired by Neil Sedaka/Eruption’s 'One Way Ticket') and ‘Rambha ho ho ho’ ('Armaan'). Director B Subhash’s 'Disco Dancer' became his high noon. From the title track to ‘Jimmy Jimmy’, every track in 'Disco Dancer' was dancey and delicious. If ‘Awara hoon’ was Hindi cinema’s major cultural export in the 1950s, ‘Jimmy Jimmy’ remains a musical ambassador even in Vladimir Putin’s Russia today.
PM Modi pays tributes
Prime Minister Narendra Modi paid tributes to Bappi Lahiri, saying his music was all-encompassing and it beautifully expressed diverse emotions. “Shri Bappi Lahiri Ji's music was all encompassing, beautifully expressing diverse emotions. People across generations could relate to his works. His lively nature will be missed by everyone. Saddened by his demise. Condolences to his family and admirers. Om Shanti," he tweeted.
