Jayanta, popularly known as Tapta, was born on the 1st of April 1968 in Naranseina, a small village, located near the historic town of Moirang in Manipur, North East India. Being the only son of his parents with two other elder sisters, Jayanta grew up without experiencing the harsh realities and poverty of village life. His parents, L Bijoy Singh and L Mangolnganbi Devi, never encouraged Jayanta to take up a career in music. The indifference to music by his parents, however, did not deter young Jayanta’s enthusiasm of the art.

Despite his keen interest in elementary school books, Jayanta spent most of his childhood listening to radio and singing at village festivals. During his primary school days, his uncle Gandha, who lived next door, infused Jayanta with the passion of music. Quite in an informal way, Gandha inspired him and taught him the basics of singing and of playing the tabla (Indian percussion instrument).

His uncle Gandha’s house, then, was a popular spot for likol¹ play. Every likol night was delightful ‘night to remember’ for young Jayanta as he got the chance to clutch a mike and belt out songs of his choice on the loud speakers. Naranseina village, like many other villages in Manipur, had been strongly influenced by the popular culture of India shaped by Hindi films churned out of Bollywood or Bombay industry in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The young and the old in the region were overwhelmed by the entertainment world of Hindi cinema. It affected one and all. Jayanta was no exception. Popular playback singers like Lata Mangeskar, Kishore Kumar, Mohamed Rafi, etc. inspired him a lot. On likol nights, he used to sing cover versions of Hindi movie songs like Kishore Kumar’s Chalte chalte mere ye geet yaad rakhna... (As you walk along, let my song be etched in your memory…) Though Jayanta’s parents opposed their son’s ambition of becoming a popular singer, they could not ignore the songs the budding singer rendered on memorable likol nights. This gave them a sense of what their child wanted to be when he grows up.

Through difficult times, Jayanta’s two elder sisters were the only two individuals from whom Jayanta drew emotional succour. Loukrakpam Ebechoubi and Loukrakpam Mema were the first to locate the unique fiery talents that lay hidden with their only brother. The duo also became Jayanta’s first fans. After the demise of his uncle and Guru Gandha in 1980, Jayanta lost his musical journey somewhere in a stormy abyss and all directions seemed dark. Shattered but hopeful, he regained the courage to embark on a new life. Like blessings from the lightening sky, his cousin Oinam Thoiba now emerged as the sole guide. Jayanta could not have climbed the ladder to fame, had it not been for Thoiba. Jayanta still considers Thoiba as the one and only person who understands the art of music in the whole of Naranseina village. He would never forget those outstanding lyrics of legendary Manipuri singers and their songs quoted by his Thoiba… Setpiro ima lanmigee phijet, tambiro baba nongmei kaappa ... leibaaklei ², ho leibaaklei, taaibang taaionanbi leibaaklei ... eebungomacha laaone nangbu chaakthongbi saanasi... (Mother, robe me with a soldier’s fatigue; father, teach me how to shoot ... leibaaklei, ho leibaaklei of the alternate world ...come here young man, let’s play the game of food-making).

His cousin Thoiba helped young Jayanta participate in children’s programmes at the All India Radio (AIR), Imphal. After performing at two consecutive programmes at AIR studio, he built up his confidence stronger than ever to climb the stairway to musical fame. Indeed, his passion for music drove him crazy. He no longer wanted to remain as likol night singer. At any public functions in and around Naranseina, Jayanta comfortably belted out one or two popular Hindi or Manipuri songs. His singing at local village concerts made him popular. Jayanta’s budding pride which blended with raging enthusiasm boosted his confidence. He was now ready to perform anywhere, anytime, and anyhow—whether at village courtyards or on well-crafted stages of modern concert halls.

Tapta, however, does not forget the heady days of the past. At the Moirang Multipurpose Higher Secondary School, instead of paying attention to the call of musical future, he spent most of his precious time reading and writing. He even tried his hands at writing the novel. That is why today, people believe that the tempo in most of his lyrics were set according to the experiences he had through during this phase. Right after high school, Jayanta joined the Dhanamanjuri (DM) College of Arts, Imphal, the most prestigious college in Manipur. During college days, he formed a circle of friends interested in music. An acoustic guitarist named Banka of the famed Sumang Leela³ Chakthekpi Party inspired Jayanta to become a guitarist. After listening to some background music scores of the troupe, Jayanta bought an acoustic guitar. Later, he was an attraction at most college cultural shows at DM College.

Jayanta’s musical experience while at the DM College campus meandered along like a wild river sooner than expected. The torrid flow, however, ran against his father’s wish of his son securing good academic results. His furious father no longer permitted Jayanta to continue his higher studies at any institutes located far from home. After leaving DM College due to pressures from his father, Jayanta graduated from Moirang College. End of college life gave him a new lease of life and the dawn of the great transition period. He was freed from the pressures of academic bondage as his mind could now solely dedicate to a defined world of music. It was indeed a period that can be considered inspirational. Tapta was ready to fly. He now never missed the opportunities to mingle with musicians and well-wishers who stood by him.

Accompanied by a convoy of music enthusiasts, Jayanta wrote and composed dozens of songs in 1984. In an attempt to create unique experimental music, he recorded the album Yamaha Maning Napkanbi in the same year. But when the album hit the market, it was a shocker of sorts. The producer sold just seven copies. But he was not a man to be disheartened by the market demand. Jayanta and his companions released three consecutive albums—Coming Sunday, Eta Bindya, and Usha Hall Mamangduda one after another. All of these failed to enthuse the Manipuri ears and his kind of music still could not capture the imagination of the masses.

Confronting difficult days was a prelude to his musical zest. Call it fortune or misfortune, Jayanta met an Assamese guitarist called Ranjit at one of his rented houses. Ranjit’s extraordinary talent made Jayanta realise that he was still a Lilliputian compared to the giant of a guitarist Ranjit was. Jayanta admired Ranjit for his magical decree on making the six strings vibrate with sounds he liked to experience. Ranjit’s excellent power chord rhythm left Jayanta spellbound. Dropping his jaw, Jayanta watched Ranjit as if he was some sort of god sent idol. Ranjit’s talent made Jayanta felt extremely inferior. He immediately terminated his idea of being a guitarist. After a long sleepless night, one rainy morning, he cleaned the guitar with some mustard oil and wrapped it up nicely. He then went to Kamakhya Music Store wherefrom he bought the instrument. But the shop owner refused his request to refund the amount for the instrument despite the plea to deduct Rs 500 from the original price. After a long arbitration, Jayanta helplessly gazed at the instrument and brought it home again. The instrument rested untouched in a room corner for a long time. He almost gave up the idea of becoming a musician and started focusing on his studies. However, destiny had it otherwise. His impulse never said ‘no’ to music. He finally suppressed the inferiority complex that infested him. On a Sunday morning, he picked up the guitar again with courage to play even more seriously than the Assamese guitarist.

Every day, he struggled a lot to imitate Ranjit’s style. One day, Ranjit frankly advised Jayanta that courage and self-believe is more important than leaning from others to create something unique in art. Since that day, Jayanta discontinued begging for guitar lesson from anyone. He began to play like a free bird whenever he felt like playing something in his own way. He, however, could never forget Ranjit and called him a ‘runaway master’ whose short presence in his life was of great significance.

Tired of being the target of villagers’ merciless criticism, Jayanta thought it was the right time to react. He got in touch with some eminent Imphal musicians and invited them over for dinner/parties and fervently sought their tips on building a successful music career. Many villagers thought Jayanta was such a fool to spend his time and money on those Imphal artistes. At the end of the day, his Imphal connection too thought the same thing about Jayanta. Despite long ‘dine and wine’ sessions, those Imphal artistes paid no attention to what Jayanta wanted from them. They rather looked down upon him as an innocent bumpkin. It was just food and drink they looked for as their cars zoomed away through the corroded front gate of Jayanta’s decayed home. After everybody disappeared, he always stood desperately in the middle of the deserted spot where those city buddies partied the whole evening.

And now it was time for Jayanta to reflect upon where life was heading. He began thinking it was better to be an ordinary rose blooming in a public garden than a charming daisy growing unnoticed in the deep wood. That was why he enjoyed being with famous Imphal artistes. Certainly, his philosophy turned out to be quite different from others. His occasional acquaintances with those Imphal characters at one time turned a blessing in disguise. For the first time, a senior artiste gave him a chance to compose a song. It was for a duet song to be used as soundtrack of an unreleased Manipuri movie. During practice session, the music director asked one of the lead female vocalists whether she listened to Jayanta’s composition. In a cynical manner, she replied, “Sir, how could that nasty tune be a song!” As Jayanta’s perspective of music ran parallel to the then conventional form, most of his compositions sounded stupid to every singer. Nobody seemed to notice that something which has never been tried in Manipur was about to rise over the Manipuri music horizon. But, some people immediately recognised Jayanta’s new form. One day, a popular drummer in Manipur whispered over his ears and said that many artistes in the state were pretending to dislike his compositions while they actually liked them. Jayanta simply smiled back and said nothing.

Quite often in many of his interviews to the media, Jayanta mentions that many senior artistes always try to suppress promising newcomers in Manipuri music industry. Very true, various popular artistes in Manipur organised several secret meetings to degrade the image of the budding Jayanta while he had been preparing for The Power of Attraction. A great singer once abused Jayanta, “A lawai macha like him will not become bright by attempting to get closer with famous artistes like us.”

Though most of his music compositions were studio-ready, Jayanta was worried about the fate of these new tracks. He started to formulate a way to escape the grand embarrassment if his new music compositions failed to stir the market. He did not want his name to be written on the credit page when the audio tracks were released. To avoid another embarrassment of making the music composer and singer anonymous, he toyed with the idea of finding a catchy title of the album and creating a pseudonym for the composer. He set himself a condition: the title and the pseudonym should reflect something ‘our own’, culturally rooted in tradition with an element of mystery.

One rainy night, after a hard day’s work, he began searching for a suitable name. Lamei Thanbee, Kabui Keioiba, Tilaikhumbe were words that cropped up in his mind during that sleepless night. Jayanta finally closed on Tapta, a folk-mythical character. A simple reason why he chose Tapta as sobriquet was this Manipuri folktale character which quite resembles him in many respects. Just as Jayanta wanted to remain unknown, hiding his real self from the public, Tapta in the Manipuri folktale remained a mysterious creature. A concealed figure, quite confusing to every listener of the tale whether Tapta was a marauding cattle thief, an animal, or a goblin.

In April 1996, without revealing who is behind Tapta, The Power of Attraction hit all music stores in Manipur. After the first week of its release, almost every household in Manipur valley bought the audio cassette of the album. All monster eyed Imphal artistes—who cruelly starred at Jayanta between 1984 and 1995—now saw lightening flashes. And The Power of Attraction spread like a wildfire in every nook and corner of the valley. Tapta has finally pushed the boundaries of musical convention to areas never seen before. The album’s musical genre became a pivotal point of discussion among youth in the state. For over six continued months, no new releases of other artistes in Manipur could parallel Tapta’s The Power of Attraction. All music stores in Paona Bazaar and Thangal Bazaar made brisk business selling The Power of Attraction. Village kiosks, city malls, car stereos, restaurants, and everywhere switched on to the tunes of Tapta. But Tapta got not a single penny despite the massive sale as the album was solely owned by its producer SK Meitei. Jayanta sold the rights for a meagre Rs 10,000.

Tapta’s new music inspired all sections of people—rock fans, folk lovers, hip-hoppers, and pop shakers. Everyone seemed to like the new sound. And critics had a difficult time trying to define the new music. Tapta’s music primarily mixed rock and roll rhythm with contemporary Hindustani beats. Though Jayanta never ever had any formal training in music, he was inspired to a great extent by the sounds of Scorpions, Eagles, Pink Floyd, Uriah Heep, and Europe. And his list includes some Manipuri and Hindi singers like Haomom Naba, Sanaton Shrama, Lalambung Imo, Asem Bimola, Kishore Kumar, Lata Mangeskar, Gulam Ali, and Suresh Wadkar. Jayanta is the first artiste who introduces rap tracks to Manipuri music. He was inspired by Apache Indian at one point of time. And Jayanta admits that he enamoured by the performances of Pakistani sufi legend Nushrat Fateh Ali Khan.

Jayanta to this day agrees that his music is just the rearrangement of all forms of music collected from every corner in a unique form of luscious cocktail wine. His musical focus on Manipuri folk gave way to an interest in the delicate tune of khulang eesei (harvest song), laibao eesei (deity song) subtly performed with acoustic guitar. Putting an end to certain controversies over the use of different music genres without a proper understanding of their theoretical approach, Jayanta says that his knowledge of world music is quite naïve. “I am not expert in examining the colours of rainbow, but I profoundly sense the beauty of it”, says he. Recalling those days when people laughed at him for being a dreamy, indolent, and indifferent to the busy world, he says a feeling of comfort engulfs him now. Thank the stars! He burnt the midnight oil to pen those poetic lyrics. And the making of Tapta was not as easy as people think it to be. He practiced guitar for about 20 hours a day and took him exactly three months of struggle to compose Bad Boy of The Power of Attraction 2.

The situation and the atmosphere of the crowd changed all of sudden when Tapta belted out one of the fans’ favourite song Hairamdana midway the concert. Mesmerised with the voice and the sound, everyone was left spellbound. Notable musicians that accompanied Tapta at YAC concert were—Momocha of erstwhile Cannibals⁴ fame on drums and ex-member of Phoenix ⁵ Pravin on lead guitar. Though only a dozen of The Power of Attraction songs were popular till the historic concert, Tapta belted out Indira and Julie from yet-to-be-released The Power of Attraction 2.

Indeed, the ‘YAC Live’ was a great turning point as it heralded the coming of new LIVE sound. Tapta concerts would soon hit the city and other towns in Manipur. In 1997, Tapta released The Power of Attraction 2 which had already popular tracks like Bad Boy, Julie, Black Law, 31st December, and Indira. After the successful YAC concert and till 2004, Tapta toured all over Manipur valley and Cachhar in neighbouring state, Assam. Riding high on the success of The Power of Attraction 2 in the market, Tapta released 19 albums, including a title-less chronology of Volume 3, 4, 5... up to Volume 11. On the sidelines of these Volumes, he also released another chain of five Series themed on romantic lyrics—Basanta Kainarabi Gulab (Series I), Sambru (Series II), Maaga Nanga (Series III), Yoom (Series IV), and Khudop (Series V). His most famous songs Bandh from Volume 3, Thawaigi Thawai in Volume 4 and Nungshiba in Volume 7 were acclaimed in every concert.

From new sound to new voice and to what, people wondered. To their amazement, all the fans of Tapta discovered the actual content and power of his highly unconventional lyrics. All the lyrics mirrored almost everything happening in contemporary Manipur as vivid as no conventional poets could imagine. Tapta’s head on collision with the reality that was Manipur made his lyrics even more dynamic. The release of Group Volume by Tapta also brought to light his urge to rope in talents that would not contradict his music. All Group Volume tracks are primarily duet numbers featuring fresh as well as eminent female singers like Roshibina, Premila(China Doll), Suchitra, Mandakini, Yaiphabi, Chan Chan, etc. And his PRUCK series contain totally a different taste. The first three PRUCK are titled as Abok 1, Abok 2, and Abok 3; and Kadomdano and Wanted of Tapta stand for PRUCK 4 and 5. The music remained primarily Tapta but the lyrics drastically departed from his earlier tracks. In these series one can find loud and audible elements of political sensibilities or what some in Manipur easily called patriotic sentiments. But with the release of 1958, the social, economic and political consciousness in Tatpa rose like the eagle heading for the sky.

His popular song Nongthang from Volume 8 built melodically with its veiled reference to an exiled rebel woman who is being oppressed by the armed forces. Tapta’s work in the PRUCK series and 1958 became increasingly prominent in portraying the region’s collective social and political consciousness. His Kabo Valley in Abok 1 woefully laments the lost of Manipur’s former territory to Burma as a result of geo-political machinations. In very much the same vein, Luching Purel narrates how Manipur lost Kabo Valley first, Zhuko Valley next and the possibility of creating a Greater Nagaland including all the northern hill districts. Eigee Abok, Revolution, Neithatpikhraba, Umaibi, Thabaton, and Meira from Abok series are some remarkable political songs that signify struggle for human rights and political turmoil.

In spite of commendable contributions, Tapta draws flak from some quarters. There have been reports of some senior artistes trying to derail his bogies of success. More often than not, they call Tapta’s lyrics senseless and his voice harsh. There are some people who are not sensible enough to sense Tapta. They do not understand Tapta’s rebellious scream is reflection of the ruthless realities. All said (sang) and done, Tapta’s world is confined to his own. No matter how long Tapta would take to resurface again, he will surely be alive and kicking in every fan’s mind. Despite his unfortunate vocal chord problem, the temporal silence of Tapta does not mean the end of his musical journey.

Tapta normally sings 15 to 20 songs in a concert. But it increased to double-fold when SALAI Bros first requested him for a concert with ‘30 Songs of Tapta’. This concert was held at Bhaigyachandra Open Air Theatre (BOAT). Subsequently, many organisers began requesting him for more than 30 songs in concerts. In 2003, for the first time ever in the history of Tapta, LASING organised ‘50 Songs of Tapta’ at BOAT. This concert resulted in the audience turning crazy, volunteers getting high-headed, and security forces rushing in to control the ever swelling wild crowd. There was an abrupt end to the event when Tapta sang the 47th song. After this particular episode, all his live concerts comprised not less than 50 songs. His non-stop concert schedules coupled with music composition at midnight subsequently resulted in his vocal chord disorder. Right from 1999, doctors had been advising him to take care of his health. After a period of not knowing what was wrong with his throat, he was diagnosed with vocal chord disorder in 2004. He began skipping concerts and assignments. After consulting doctors in Manipur, he found no sign of improvement at all. On the 28th April 2007, he was admitted to Christian Medical College (CMC), Vellore for a laser surgery.

Since 2006 Tapta has been lining up young artistes who were ready for experimental music. His assignments include giving them new lyrics and the tunes for practice during their free hours. On 26th November 2006, Tapta conducted a selection test where 169 singers from all over Manipur participated. Of them, 18 were selected for the next Group Volumes. In order to encourage the spirit of those who were not selected, he organised an open song competition sponsored by KIMACS (Kanglei Indigenous Martial Art and Cultural Society) at historical Kangla Fort. And the journey continues. The sea is calm before the storm. So is Tapta. Who knows, he will rock and set the Manipuri experimental music on fire again! Always expect the unexpected from Tapta. And be prepared!