Ranjit Gazmer
Ranjit Gazmer, also credited as Ranjit Gajmer, is an Indian musician and music director known for his contribution to the music industry of Nepali cinema. He had a long association with Indian music director R.D. Burman. He has composed for most of the films directed by Tulsi Ghimire, a film director in Nepal.
Early life
Ranjit Gazmer is from a gold merchant Gorkha family of Darjeeling, West Bengal.Gazmer was a student of Amber Gurung at his Art Academy of Music in Darjeeling. His contemporaries were Gopal Yonzon, Karma Yonzon, Sharan Pradhan, Aruna Lama and Jitendra Bardewa, all of whom went on to be musicians. He was a part of a musical group called 'Sangam Club' and was also a drummer for 'The Hillians', the first-ever western band formed in Darjeeling. In 1966, he moved to Birgunj, Nepal with his friends, which included Anuradha Koirala, managing an English-medium private school. In 1967, Gazmer moved to Kathmandu with his friends and became a studio musician at Radio Nepal. Later, he moved to Mumbai to pursue his music career there with R.D. Burman.
Career
Initial works
Gazmer joined George Banks, father of Louis Banks and was performing in his Band. When the Royal Nepal Academy was opened by King Mahendra, Ramsaran Darnal, who worked in the Academy called up Gazmer and gave him a job.Manohari Singh, a close aid of the Burmans, invited Gazmer to join him in Mumbai. Gazmer arrived in Mumbai on 25 December 1971. Singh then introduced him to R.D. Burman. After initial introduction where he played a tune composed by himself, he was asked to be present in a recording at Film Centre, Tardeo. When Gazmer reached there, he was surprised and happy to see that the tune which he had played in front of Burman when being introduced was being recorded. The song was 'Kanchi Re Kanchi Re', which had been inspired from Gazmer's composition 'Kancha Re Kancha'. After the recording, Burman told him, "This is your song. And from today, you shall be called 'Kancha'". Since then, he was a sitting member of Burman's team as a percussionist until Burman's death in 1994.