Neeraj Shridhar

Some Lesser Known Facts About Neeraj Shridhar

• Neeraj Shridhar is an Indian singer, songwriter, music composer, and the founder of Bombay Vikings, an Indian pop and rock band, which combined Indian pop and classical music. In the 2000s, Neeraj Shridhar struck stardom with the remakes of old Bollywood hit songs, such as Kya Soorat Hai, Woh Chali, and Chod Do Anchal.

• Neeraj Shridhar was born in Jalandhar, Punjab. In 1992, at the age of fourteen, he moved to Stockholm in Sweden, Europe.

• Since childhood, Neeraj was passionate about music. In an interview, he revealed that he had inherited the musical skills from his parents. While talking about his childhood, he said,
  

  There’d be a lot of mehfils at home. My mother would sing and my father would play the tabla. My parents discovered the musician in me when I was just three or four years old.”

• At a very early age, he got a bongo and a guitar. Thereafter, he started spending long hours playing his guitar. Later, in 1992, his parents decided to send him away to Sweden. In an interview, he said,
  

  I started spending eight hours playing guitar. Slowly, I got cut off from the world… it was just music and me. I’d make lot of noise at home and my parents decided to pack me off to Sweden.”

• In 1994, Neeraj Shridhar formed the music group Bombay Vikings along with his fellow members and Swedish musicians Oscar Söderberg and Mats Nordenborg in Stockholm, Sweden. Neeraj became the lead vocalist and back-up guitarist. Mats Nordenborg, being a  jazz specialist, played the saxophone. Later, Mats Folke and Johan Folke joined the group who were the keyboard specialists. Thereafter, the group was joined by Morgan as a drummer, Par as a bass controller, and Staffan as the lead guitarist.

• While in Sweden, he felt terribly homesick, and he began spending his time playing in local bands at school, and later, he collaborated with professional bands. At the age of nineteen, he became a full-fledged musician who earned his living in Sweden.

• Soon, Bombay Vikings began performing live shows in Sweden and Norway. After a few years, after gaining immense popularity, most of the band members disbanded, but Neeraj chose to keep the name of the band, and he formed another band with the remaining members.

• In 1999, Neeraj released his debut music album, Kya Soorat Hai. The project was postponed for almost four years because the Indian music companies doubted the success of such a song among the Indians due to its strong English and Western influence, and hence, they demanded changes in the songs. Finally, in 1999, Sony BMG Music Entertainment agreed to produce the album in India without any changes. The album consisted of eight tracks, all of which were remakes of old Indian songs. The album was a huge success in India, and it opened the doors for western music in the country.

• In 2000, soon after the success of Kya Soorat Hai, Neeraj recorded another successful music album, Woh Chali. The popular Indian singer Lata Mangeshkar got so impressed by the remake of her song ‘Main Chali’ in the music album ‘Woh Chali’ that she invited Neeraj to perform at her birthday party.

• In 2002, Bombay Vikings released the music album ‘Hawa Mein Udati Jaaye’ in which Neeraj worked with guest singers Linnea Spores and Falguni Pathak to produce songs. In 2004, another prominent music album, Chhod Do Aanchal,’ was released by Bombay Vikings.
  

• In 2003, Neeraj started working as a Bollywood playback singer. He made his Bollywood debut with the song ‘Pyar Ke Naam Pe’ from the film ‘Rules: Pyaar Ka Superhit Formula.’

• Thereafter, Neeraj went on to taste success in Bollywood with his hit songs like Ticket To Hollywood (2007), Heyy Babyy (2007), Bhool Bhulaiyaa (2008), Race Saanson Ki (2008), Ragupati Raghav (2013), etc.