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Street singer

Sharmila Taliculam

Nitin Raikawar

He wants to be a hero?" This incredulous question came from a curious passer-by who had stopped to watch our photo session. You are not sure whether to let that go, or inform him that the man being photographed is the lyricist behind the latest chartbuster, Aati kya Khandala. Then, you let it pass; after all, you reacted in similar fashion when you first saw him...

"You are Nitin Raikawar?" you blurt, when the young man invites you through the open door. "Yes," he agrees pleasantly. You, on the other hand, are confused. You had expected a middle-aged man, someone who spoke flawless Urdu. Nitin spoke only Hindi, often laced with what one would call the Bambaiyya dialect. He has curly hair, is dark-skinned, wears jeans and looks like one of those boys who hang around street corners teasing girls. Or, maybe, one of the hangers-on the sets of a film.

Funnily enough, that's exactly what Nitin was. He had a friend who would do bit roles in films and Nitin would keep him company. "If he went for an outdoor shoot, I would tag along too." Once there, he'd "timepass", writing songs that were simple and funny. Then, he would set those songs to tune and sing them to the unit hands.

A group singing session was on one lunch break when Anil Kapoor strolled in. And he was surprised. He could not place the song they were singing. The unit hands weren't -- after all, this was a Raikawar original. Nitin was immediately summoned and asked to sing some more songs. Which he did quite happily.

A still from the Aati kya Khandala sequence

Which is how he got his first break, with Teri tirchi nazar mein hai jadoo in the Anil Kapoor starrer, Loafer. Since then, he has been a regular component of every Anil Kapoor film. His latest film with Anil was the title song of Gharwali Baharwali.

Nitin, who was born and brought up in Pune, was an entertainer right from childhood. He could make people laugh all the time and considered himself quite a pro at one-liners. After all, his idol was Johnny Lever. Though his father drove a taxi from Pune to Khandala and Lonavala (Maharashtra's weekend resorts), Nitin had no intention of doing the same. He would rather become a stage artiste like his idol.

By then, Nitin had dropped out of school. "Till the seventh standard, I had only one teacher who taught me all the subjects. But, in the eighth standard, there were different teachers for different subjects. I got scared and quit."

With time on hand and nothing much to do, Nitin decided to join a performing group as a mimicry artiste. His age worked in his favour. "I was young and that appealed to people. So I became very popular." Nitin could hold the stage for a whole hour without boring people. "I was called Johnny Lever, junior."

Then came Bombay, and admission into the list of strugglers who come here to try their luck in Bollywood. Nitin had not set his sights very high, all he hoped to become was a character actor. "Actually, I enjoyed those days thoroughly. I had a friend in the industry and I was with him all the time. I was never unhappy."

Nitin met Aamir Khan during the making of Ghulam. Both the producers and Aamir wanted a funny song in the film -- they passed the word around and Neeraj Vora, another friend, got to hear of it. So Nitin landed on the sets and sang Aati kya Khandala. The song clicked with Aamir but "it was included in the film only after Vikram and Mukesh Bhatt's seal of approval." Music directors Jatin-Lalit then polished the tune Nitin had set to the song. "Jatin-Lalit are very genuine people and gave me complete support."

His gratitude is apparent whenever Nitin talks of Anil Kapoor and the Ghulam team. Considering, though, that he did not get much credit or publicity, is he bitter? He looks at you, confused. Should he be? No, he is happy with the way things are working for him.

So with everything working in his favour, he must have at least his own roof over his head. "No. I have many friends and I live with any one of them." Still, where does he stay most of the times? His reply is hesitant, "I live in Anil Kapoor's home."

Kapoor, apparently, taught Nitin how to polish his lyrics. So he started hanging around with the star. The offers to write songs for various other films came in regularly. Few know that he has written songs for films like Prithvi, Meri Sapnon Ki Rani, Judwaa, Mustafa from Duniya Dilwalon Ki, Aar Ya Paar, Chota Chetan and private albums like Pagla Kahin Ka and Shaimak Davar's new album, Survive.

Yet, nobody knows of him. You have to explain, after which there is utter disbelief. No one had actually thought about the man who wrote the song. What does he feel at not being famous, despite his song being a major hit? "Maybe it's my fate. I am not good at public relations. Attending parties is not my cup of tea, either."

Why ever not? "I might be a stage artiste, but talking to and being nice to people doesn't come naturally to me. I can't act off-stage. And, then, you have to be presentable-looking."

His stint on the stage has helped shape his style as a writer. "However educated a person is, he tends to use simple language when he is with his friends. I like to keep my songs simple so that it appeals to the masses." So simple that a veteran like Majrooh Sultanpuri objected to Aati kya Khandala.

Nitin laughs awkwardly, "He is a senior person. We are children compared to him. He spoke about the song, it is his greatness. I wrote this song for the audience. They like it, that's enough for me."

He goes on to explain that Khandala, a known weekend getaway and picnic stop, is a place that makes people happy. He knew of the place, it was near his hometown, Pune. And there was a scene in the film where the song would fit in perfectly. As far as Nitin was concerned, it was just a happy song.

"It talks about everything people do when they go to Khandala. In the rains, all the hotels there are booked. People go to the waterfalls to click their pictures. So I guess the truth in the song appealed to people."

Today he has 15 films on hands, but he does not know whether he will be the sole lyricist or whether he will only write a couple of songs. "I think I am doing them all. But don't know if that will change."

Yet, he is happy. "Sometimes, you don't know your own potential. You don't realise that you may have a hidden talent that could lay the foundation for your future career. I always wrote and said funny things; and never realised they would one day shape my destiny."

When he calls his parents in Pune these days, they ask say, "Kya bolta tu?" and he is thrilled. This is his assurance that fame is on its way. After all, he is only 24 years old.

Photographs of Nitin Raikawar by Jewella C Miranda