Hyderabad: December 16 will be a day to remember for millions of fans of the legendary playback singer Mukesh. A special weekend event is being held in the city to commemorate the birth centenary of the Bollywood legend.
The event comes courtesy of a die-hard fan, Samson Mukesh, a vocalist, who, for the last four decades, has been rendering popular numbers of the late singer, across platforms. In an interaction here, Samson recalled that he first met Mukesh at the then popular Ritz Hotel, Adarshnagar, in 1974 when he was around 24 and working for a bank.
Over the years, Samson has shared the stage with playback singers like Sonu Nigam, Sudesh Bhosle and Amit Kumar and the film actor Govinda, including in shows abroad.
Samson was drawn to classical music when he was aged around 16 years. He was an ardent fan of Pt. Jasraj and Ustad Ghulam Ali. He later shifted to light classical music and started singing movie numbers after he was ‘captured’ by the lilting and mellifluous voice of Mukesh.
During stage shows, the audience would ask him to sing some numbers of Mukesh, given his ability to sing like his role model. In fact, Samson is hailed as the ‘Mukesh of south India’. He has organised and performed in over 2,000 Mukesh shows in India and abroad.
Recalling an anecdote, which eventually led him to take a career call and become a singer, he said, “Mukesh was performing at Ravindra Bharthi in 1972 and the tickets were sold out. I asked a customer of our bank, who was also the organiser of the event, for a seat. He made arrangements for an additional chair. I was so captured by the singer’s voice that at that very moment I resolved to be a singer like him.”
He added, “I have earned the appreciation of fans and crowds wherever I performed on stage. As we all know, almost all songs of Mukesh have had some of the finest lyrics the film industry has ever had.”
Turning emotional, Samson said “I can say for sure that during my musical journey, Hyderabad has always been the best platform. It encourages talent. All the communities gave me a special place in their hearts.”
“I remember asking Mukesh once about his personal favourite from among the 2000 plus songs he sang. With a twinkle in his eyes, he said, ‘Admi hoon aadmi se pyar karta hoon,''
