Goodly Rath, who is making waves in Ollywood, is a music director par excellence and has made a career in fusing pop, folk, rock styles and much more. His repertoire of work in Odia movies and albums is a testament to his talent. Despite 10 back-to-back hits in the industry in the last few years and many awards in his kitty, Rath is like the man next door.
A resident of Bhubaneswar, Rath always knew he wanted to get into the music industry, considering his family background. While his maternal grandfather Khetraban Kar was a reputed tabla player, his mother holds a gold medal in singing. His four elder brothers also formed a band, The Brothers, when he was a kid. One of his brothers, Kabuli Rath, is a musician with AR Rahman. “Music was the reason I never pursued education after my graduation,” he says. “Actually, being in this industry is a lot of fun mixed with a lot of discipline, if you really want to be as good as your heroes.” Although he secured good marks in Class X, Rath did not get a science seat in any of the colleges in Bhubaneswar. He then joined Nimapara College, 21 kms from his hometown in Puri. Few months later, Rath took a transfer to BJB College, Bhubaneswar. “Even the few days I spent in Nimapara College were fun. Sometimes when I would miss my bus to Nimapara, I would hike a ride with the trucks — I enjoyed these open air drives,” he recalls.
The music director admits to being a brat in BJB College. “I have done all kinds of badmashi (hooliganism), starting from deflating professors’ scooter tyres and bunking classes to watch movies, flirting with girls and even passing comments about lady teachers,” he admits.
After Class XII, Rath went ahead to complete his graduation from the same college but in the commerce stream. “I didn’t secure good marks. No rewards for guessing why,” he laughs. Besides studying, he used to regularly freelance with professional musicians from Ollywood for corporate shows and cultural programmes. “I have done plenty of shows along with musician friends for corporate houses during my college days. I used to bunk classes for rehearsals and on several occasions, even invited my college buddies to come down to the studios. Guitars and violins were like prize possessions for them and they loved watching us compose a tune,” he says.
There were times when Rath’s friends accompanied him to the stage even if they did not know to play the guitar. “Playing a guitar or a keyboard was considered cool then. They wanted to be noticed by girls along with me on stage. I allowed them to stand on the stage holding a guitar,” he says. The music director also admits he was a favourite among girls of his college for his musical skills.
Recollecting his crazy college experiences, Rath recounts a time when he had disconnected the phone line in the principal’s office in BJB College. “There was a lecturer of mine who was also my dad’s friend. Whenever I did any mischief in class, for which I was very popular, he would call my dad from the landline in my principal’s office to complain. When I came to know of this, I climbed to the roof of my college, cut the telephone line and tried it to a mango tree. The phone remained dead for many days. Till date, nobody knows that I was behind this mysterious incident,” he reveals.
— diana@newindianexpress.com
