Before Mohammed Rafi there can only be a Zero and after him there can be only Two. That should succinctly describe the legendary singer of four decades whose rise to stardom was phenomenal. Indeed, Rafi was bigger than many of the stars who lip-synched to his golden voice. For a man who came from a very humble and conservative background, it was his hard work, naturally blessed talent and godly nature that made him stride like Colossus in an industry known for its crassly commercial values. Before the writers embarked upon this historic sojourn of encapsulating this simple man’s life history and career—stuff folklores are made of—they were well aware of the magnitude of the task. Thirty-five years after his death, Rafi’s popularity keeps multiplying and each day one gets to hear and rediscover some new anecdote about his prowess as a singer and nobility as a human being. Years of painstaking research and experience went into the compilation of this book apart from the 7000 plus songs he sang and hundreds of shows he performed at home and abroad. The authors have tried to put most of them together and piece together a spell-binding account of a professional pilgrimage that cannot be said to be complete by any stretch of imagination given the events—and the new ones that keep unfolding—that go into the making of this extraordinary folk-story like narrative. The biographers feel humbled and rewarding to chronicle a personality rightly acknowledged as among the “Best 50 Indians” ever born. More so, this being the first attempt that delves into the stupendous life and times of a titan in such comprehensive depth.
A fountainhead of creative writing, Raju Korti is a dedicated, resourceful and innovative media professional who has been in the industry for over 33 years. Always keen to take up challenging roles that called for a high degree of professional merit, he began his long career with The Hindu, followed by a stint with The Indian Express, Free Press Journal and Daily News and Analysis (DNA) newspapers. He has to his credit many in-depth stories, thought-provoking articles and has covered hundreds of momentous events. For a year he also worked as a resource person for the Department of Science and Technology and as consultant with the Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai (MCGM). A postgraduate in Management, Science, Law and Media, he relinquished his core area of expertise to chart out a career in journalism. His versatility and articulation make him a popular visiting faculty to teach graduate and postgraduate students. His blogs cover a wide range of issues and are extremely popular. Writer, journalist and media consultant, Dhirendra Jain had his grounding in film journalism from Raipur in Chhattisgarh. After relocating to Mumbai, his experience and commitment saw him handle more than 40 major assignments relating to public relations (PR) and promotion. Author of over 500 commentaries/articles, he has to his credit Sunehre Pal, a biography of music director Ravindra Jain. His book won an award from the prestigious Maharashtra State Hindi Sahitya Akademi, Mumbai. His wide experience in film journalism and PR makes him privy to countless incidents and anecdotes. An avid Rafi fan, in his circle he is known as a good raconteur.
