Music for the soul

Rinky Kumar

Tochi Raina, whose Gal meethi meethi bol is rocking the charts, aims to serve the helpless through music and spirituality.

Aisha might have received a lukewarm response at the box-office but one song that is ruling the airwaves consistently is the Punjabi folk composition Gal meethi meethi bol. Though the song is seen in the movie only for 40-50 seconds, it has caught on for its foot-tapping rhythm and effortless rendition by Tochi Raina.

The singer, who had earlier crooned O pardesi from Dev. D and the male version of Iktara in Wake Up Sid! for Amit Trivedi is basking in the success of his third consecutive hit with the composer. He says, “We knew that Gal meethi meethi bol would be a hit. Amit knows which song suits my voice and offers it to me accordingly.”

Tochi explains that whenever he takes up a song, he first reads the lyrics, understands their meaning and relevance in the film and then sings. “I try to comprehend the poetry in the lyrics. Beautiful lyrics coupled with a lovely composition inspire me to sing better,” he adds.

Known as a singer, Tochi is also actively involved in Sufism and spiritualism. He practises music therapy and treats asthma patients too. He first realised the healing powers of music 15-16 years ago when he was a teacher at Delhi. He says, “A student suffering from asthma came up to me and said that he would get tired after singing for just five minutes. I was doing some research in vocal sounds at that time and took up his case as a challenge. I gave him several vocal exercises that cleared his nose, ears and throat and helped him to sing confidently.”

Soon word spread and Tochi started treating asthma patients. In fact, he has also treated his manager, whose vocal chords were affected after an operation. “My friend introduced her to me and she broke down. For a year, I helped her to imbibe a positive energy and follow spiritualism,” he smiles.

Tochi’s tryst with music and spiritualism began almost two decades ago. Born in Bihar, he had his education at Nepal where his father, a government employee, was posted. The singer narrates that he realised the significance of selfless service during his childhood. “Our quarters were located opposite a cremation ground. I would often go and watch the last rites of people just out of curiosity. And gradually it dawned upon me that man becomes so helpless toward the end of his life. It’s futile to be materialistic. We spend our entire lives earning money but when we die, we don’t have anything at all. That’s when I decided that I will try to serve the society.”

But initially Tochi was clueless how to go about it. He shifted to Patiala and tried to pursue photography but soon realised that it was not his calling. He later moved to Delhi where he met his guruji Pandit Vinod Kumar, who is the disciple of Indian classical singer Bade Ghulam Ali Khan.

“I learnt singing from Panditji and music evoked my interest in Sufism,” he says. Gradually he started following the works of reputed Sufi singers Ustad Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan of Pakistan and Ustad Altaf Hussain Saarang of Afghanistan. Tochi confesses that though he hails from a musical background, he’s the first professional singer in his family. “My grandmother and uncle played the sitar and violin respectively,” he says.

He came to Mumbai a few years ago to make a career as a playback singer. He met music director Rajat Dholakia who later introduced him to Amit Trivedi. Tochi got his first commercial break with Bulleshah in A Wednesday! in 2008. He says, "Director Neeraj Pandey and music composer Sanjay Chowdhury knew me well and were keen that I should record this song. But unfortunately I lost my mother at the same time. But Sanjay and Neeraj were patient and showed immense faith in me. I’m grateful to them for giving me my first big break.”

The director and composer were so impressed with Tochi’s rendition and presentation that they urged him to appear in the music video too.

Tochi followed it up with the chartbuster O pardesi in Dev. D. But rather than basking in the success, he went into severe depression as he was not given due credit for the song in a popular website. He explains, “Four months after the song became a hit, my friend told me that a website had given the song’s credit to singer Toshi Sabri. I was highly disturbed as it was unfair. I contacted the lawyer of the film’s production house, he sent a notice to the website and they gave me due credit overnight.”

But he admits that the damage was already done. “Toshi didn’t come ahead and clarify that he was not the singer. That year, I lost almost all the shows as he bagged all of them. I would have never done anything like that. It hurts when after striving for such a long time, someone else steals your thunder.”

The singer battled his depression through meditation. After lying low for some time, he weaved his magic again with the male version of Iktara and followed it up with Gal meethi meethi bol. Quiz him if he’ll ever work with other composers apart from Amit Trivedi and he says, “I’ve already recorded seven or eight songs with other composers. I’m open to working with everyone.”

Apart from film songs, Tochi is also working on forming his band Bandagi. He elaborates that it will provide a platform to all those artistes who have never got a due chance to show their talent. He also intends to combine Sufi and Jazz and explore a new genre thereby. “My guruji Pandit Vinod Kumar always said that Sufi and Jazz are quite similar as both of them deal with spiritual singing. He suggested that I should attempt both. After coming to Mumbai, I started learning western classical guitar from my teacher Ram Ramchandran who also reiterated the same point. So I decided to follow their advice. It will be like a compilation of Urdu, Hindi and Punjabi poetry,” he signs off.

September 10, 2010, Screen