Dhurba KC is among those artists who have very few songs to his credit but the songs that he has sung so far have become ‘evergreen hits’. No wonder, he has been regarded very highly in the musical circles.
He was born on Mangsir 1, 2003 BS in Kathmandu to Yagya Bahadur KC and Padam Kumari KC and is the eldest in his family. He has nine other siblings. When he was still a kid and when he used to hear his father playing the harmonium, he also used to go up to him and try playing it himself. With time, he too became proficient in playing the harmonium. During that time whenever his father used to sing bhajans he used to try his hand at playing the tabala and usually took up the mantle when his father was not around.
He started singing at Radio Nepal in a children’s program from 2010 BS. Though he was still a young lad, the way he used to sing songs many hearts. During that period he received Rs. 10 from Radio Nepal! He was so much into singing that he could not do without it. With time, he stated getting Rs 12! By now, he had already become a favorite artist. Later, he became a full fledged RJ as well. He used to do voice overs and is also credited as being the first person in creating jingles. Because of his amazing voice, he became a well-known figure in no time. He used to compose his own music, pen down songs and later sing those numbers.
There was a time in his life, when he used to get invitations from the palace. He used to sing for the then King Mahendra. King Mahendra was so much impressed by his vocal capabilities that he often used to present him with some award or the other. It won’t be an exaggeration to say that it was none other than King Mahendra himself who encouraged him to continue singing.
In a Modern Singing competition organized by Radio Nepal, he was able to bag the first position. He was just 22 years old then. He was delighted and overjoyed when he was awarded with a gold medal by King Mahendra! At the Gau Farkha Abhiyan, a music competition was held in which he came first. He was doing excellently well for a young man like him in music but all of a sudden he decided to lie low. In 2030 BS, he went to Mumbai to try his luck there. Looking back at his history, he sang songs in Nepal from 2013 BS until 2026 BS. And the popularity he gained then is still reverberating in the corridors of the Nepali Music Industry.
Dhurba KC is a very down-to-earth person. He did his MA from Patan College Dhurba KC married Subedhar Gajurel Khatri’s daughter Bhawani in 2022 BS. Later, they had a daughter, Rupa. After the birth of Rupa, Bhawani expired. The sudden death of his wife came as a total shock. It was only after meeting Kalpana that he started living life again. Later they got married. Kalpana was the daughter of one of the maharaja’s of India. Kalpana gave birth to two daughters — Namrata and Pratibha. Again, yet another tragedy struck his life. After the death of Kalpana, his life again became miserable but this time…he consoled himself for the sake of his daughters.
In 2027 BS, his mother also expired and it was after this that he took sanyas from music. After the demise of his mother he didn’t feel like living in Nepal. Therefore, he decided to migrate and went to live in Delhi, India where he started a small business but it didn’t do well. After this, he started working for an employer and till date is working there. But at times, he does perform in Mumbai, Culcutta and even in Delhi.
He sang songs in Nepal for 13 long years and during the time he had sung only 25 numbers. He is even considered as dhurbatara of modern singing in Nepal.
by
Narendra Raj Prasai
Nepali to English
Translated by
Dipti Sherchan
