New Delhi: Showbiz has made several and broken many, musician Keshav Lal falls in the latter category, who despite being talented and hardworking has been spending life on footpath. Yes! Here's a saddening and the most heart wrenching story of 74-year-old musician who plays harmonium on roads along with his wife and is still struggling make the ends meet.
Keshav Lal who has worked with filmmaker like V Shantaram and music composer duo - Kalyanji-Anandji has been living a miserable life for last 30 years. So much so that Keshav and his wife Soni Bai were living on foothpath and looking for a roof over their head. Born in Sri Lanka, Keshav Lal's parents used to work for military forces' entertainment. Keshav's family reached Mumbai during the second world war and got settled in the city of dreams.
Always inclined towards music, Keshav Lal used to roam around in Mumbai, searching for work. On one such day, Keshav was spotted by V Shantaram, who asked him to play harmonium in his next film. Keshav Lal apart from working in Vaijayantimala, Pradeep Kumar and Jeevan starrer 'Nagin', showcased his talent in many other films.
While talking to a leading website, Keshav said, "That film destroyed my life. I used to earn money and spend it all to watch the film. They asked me to work in the studios, but back then my family was the priority. This (music business) is only for the rich not for people like me for whom family and its well-being is the priority."
After not getting much in Mumbai, Keshav at the age of 40 shifted to Pune along with his wife Soni Bai. Even Pune didn't prove to be beneficial for Keshav, as the couple had to spend their life on footpath, until now. Recently, Keshav Lal was spotted playing harmonium outside a media house in Pune, when a person offered him a job to play at an event.
The event at Dinanath Mangeshkar Hall became the lifeline of Keshav Lal and his wife. Some guests at the event managed to get him a one room flat under slum rehabilitation scheme and some Ganesh mandals have also managed to raise Rs 1 Lakh for the elderly couple. Despite all this, Keshav Lal has not left playing harmonium, he's still said to be playing the instrument along with his wife Sona Bai on the roads of Pune. He accepts whatever he's given by the spectators.
That's the irony of life, or say Bollywood!
