Bhuvnesh Singh

Bhuvnesh Singh Katoch was born on 15th Nov 1977 in a small village called Mehla in Chamba, Himachal Pradesh. He liked singing while he was a child and used to actively participate in school competitions. Further his interest in music got converted into his profession. He comes from a family which had singers and musicians which in a way inspired him throughout his life. His mother used to sing and his father was a folk dancer. His grandfather was also a great dancer locally and he inspired him to follow art. Further, Katoch claims that his guru is AN Sharma, a retired lecturer in Himachal Pradesh who was also a singer. Initially, Katoch was very interested in sports and yoga, so he did a diploma in yoga and learned martial arts. He finally became a physical education teacher and also represented Chamba at state at a national level in martial arts. But he couldn’t help remove music from himself. Although he doesn’t pursue music as the sole profession but performs regularly when he gets a chance. He has performed in various cultural government and non-government programmes, weddings, celebrations, festivals, melas, etc. Katoch can sing Pahadi, Punjabi and Hindi songs but his specialty lies in pahari songs of Chamba. He says that Pahadi song has the sweetness that can’t be seen in any other form of music. The songs on various folk tales of romance, cultural lives of people, the beauty of Himalayas, rivers and trees and various seasons are evocative and encapsulates all aspects of life. The music appreciates human life and nature, and this is what intrigues him about pahari music. He is very proud of the music of Himachal Pradesh and its varied culture. He claims that the songs of Chamba are original and have been the source of inspiration of songwriters and musicians in other areas of Kangra and Kullu. Apart from singing, he also tried his hands on writing songs. He wishes to write songs with social messages like health awareness, cleanliness, afforestation, etc. It brings him immense pleasure to spread awareness through music. Five years back, he created a group of 2-3 people with the motive of making people realize the importance of Pahari folk music.

• Chamba
• Himachal Pradesh