Charanjit Singh

Charanjit Singh

Charanjit Singh is an electronic musician and session player from Mumbai, India, active in Bollywood film music from the 1960s and 1970s and later known for a solo synthesiser project that links Indian classical ragas with disco and early dance music forms.

Career in Bollywood

He starts out as a session musician and plays on numerous Bollywood soundtracks before moving into composition himself. In the 1980s he also works on Bollywood recordings using imported synthesiser equipment, bringing in some of the latest keyboards available at the time.

Raga synthesis and disco-based recordings

Alongside his studio work, Singh develops a private project in the late-night hours after recording sessions. In this music, he aims to translate ragas onto synthesiser, building the pieces on a simple disco rhythm. He uses a Roland TR-808 for the beat, a Roland TB-303 for bass lines and a Roland Jupiter-8 for melodic and improvised patterns. The result is minimal, hypnotic and rooted in Indian classical melody, while also resembling later house and acid house styles.

Style and later recognition

His recordings are pressed in very small quantities and remain little known in India for many years. When the album is reissued in 2010, it brings his music to a wider audience and leads to live performances internationally, including appearances at festivals such as Field Day in London. Charanjit Singh dies in Mumbai in 2015.