As one hears the name Baba Sehgal, songs like Thanda Thanda Pani and Aaja Meri Gaadi Mein Baith Ja, begin to run in their memory. However, 20 years later, there are various other songs (in multiple languages) that have been added to the ‘Baba Sehgal list’, latest one being the title song of Pawan Kalyan starrer Gabbar Singh. “It’s been around 5 years that I have been associated with the south Indian film industry and it feels great,” shares Sehgal, who has been crowned with the title of ‘The King of Rap’. In the city to conduct a workshop at Rachnoutsav Events Academy, Baba Sehgal has a quick chat with City Express.
20 years ago ...
“My story has been quite filmy,” recalls Sehgal as he narrates his tale about moving from Lucknow in his quest to become a singer. It was once Sehgal reached Mumbai and approached a few music producers, that he realised how difficult the entire process was. “That’s when I decided to do something for myself,” he says. This is how his first song Thanda Thanda Pani, a remake of Ice Ice Baby, happened, which created ripples in the Indian music industry. “The song became a huge hit and I recorded some other songs with it to complete an album,” shares the singer. Since then he has had 22 albums to his credit.
Tollywood connect
After establishing himself as a rapper and pop singer, Sehgal realised that the pop industry in India has almost reached a dead end. “It was around 2002 that I moved to the US for 4-5 years. I travelled around the country, performed various shows and made my way back to India,” says Sehgal, who then sang a song for a Chiranjeevi’s film. Even though that song did become a huge hit, Sehgal got his big break in Tollywood around five years ago. “I met Devi Sri Prasad at a party and he offered me a song in a Telugu film. I agreed, but wasn’t sure if it would actually materialise. However, it did, and there has been no looking back since then.”
Sehgal has now branched out to Tamil and Kannada cinema as well, and has sung songs for films like 'Gabbar Singh' and 'Dammu', to name a few. Ask him about his experience down south, and Sehgal smiles, “I have made some really good friends here in South India and have tremendous respect for the people in this industry.”
four facets of hip hop
Having been in the entertainment industry for 20 years, Sehgal has started his own academy (Baba Sehgal Academy) in various cities in India, with the latest one to be opened in the city. “I wanted to teach the budding singers different facets of hip hop — rapping, Dj-ing, graffiti and B-boying. That is why I opened this academy and the one in Hyderabad should get started in September,” he shares.
Hyderabad is home
Having been connected with Tollywood for five years now, Sehgal visits the city quite often. “I spend around 15 days in Hyderabad. The head office for my academy will also be located here. I might even start living here soon,” adds Sehgal with a smile, before signing off.