2 languages
Vijay Benedict
From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Artist
Vijay Benedict is a former Indian playback singer in Bollywood film. He was born in Allahabad, in a North Indian Christian family, studied in Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh and earned a degree in business administration. Playback singers record the songs, after which the actors lip-sync them in the film.
Music and breakthrough
His breakthrough came in 1982 with the film Disco Dancer. He sang the title song I Am a Disco Dancer for the actor Mithun Chakraborty. The director was Babbar Subhash and the musical direction was by Bappi Lahiri. After that he was often used for films with the same actor, director and composer. He also worked with Laxmikant Pyarelal, Anand and Milind and Nadeem and Shravan and sang for actors such as Govinda, Jackie Shroff and Aamir Khan. He sang duets with, among others, Asha Bhosle, Alisha Chinai and Kumar Sanu. In total he sang for more than thirty-five films, between 1982 and 1992.
Influence
In 1991 his brother was murdered in Germany by a mafia gang. After that he stopped playback singing and devoted himself to his faith as a gospel singer. He has remained best known as the voice of the disco fashion in Indian film of the 1980s.
Listening
I Am a Disco Dancer · Vijay Benedict, 1982