Louis Banks
Indian jazz pioneer and composer of 'Mile Sur Mera Tumhara'.
Louis Banks, born Dambar Bahadur Budaprithi on 11 February 1941, works as a film composer, record producer, keyboardist, and singer in India. He is widely called the 'Godfather of Indian jazz'.
His parents, Saraswati and Pushkal Budaprithi (also known as George Banks), were Nepali. He was born in Calcutta and grew up in Darjeeling. His father, a trumpeter from Nepal, moved to Calcutta in the early 1940s to join a European band and changed his name to George Banks. Louis's early music training came from his father and a neighbour, Mrs. Myers. Some sources have claimed that his great-grandfather, Bakhat Bahadur Budapirti, wrote the Nepalese national anthem *Shreeman Gambhira Nepali*, which served as the official anthem from 1962 to 2006, but this relationship is unverified in standard biographical sources.
He attended St. Roberts School in Darjeeling. At thirteen, he began playing guitar and trumpet, showing a strong interest in western music. His father then changed his name to Louis Banks as a tribute to Louis Armstrong, which gave the young musician confidence. He took piano lessons from his father and played in his band. Later, at St. Joseph's College in Darjeeling, he continued studying piano.
After college, Banks taught at St. Joseph's School. His father then asked him to move to Kathmandu, where he worked as a musician. Already skilled in jazz as a pianist and on other instruments, he experimented with his music. In the late 1960s, he performed for three years at the Soaltee Hotel in Kathmandu. During that time, he turned down an offer from R. D. Burman to work in Mumbai. He then received offers from Calcutta and moved there in 1971. There he met singer Pam Craine and saxophonist Braz Gonsalves, forming The Louis Banks Brotherhood. The band played at the Hindustan Hotel, which led to an invitation to perform at the Blue Fox Restaurant, a popular nightclub for live western music. This opened up work composing advertisement jingles and stage musicals.
In 1977, he met R. D. Burman, a regular at the Blue Fox, who invited him to join his troupe in Mumbai. Burman welcomed him. In Mumbai, Banks encountered various world music genres and flourished in the city's rich music scene. He built a reputation and popularised live jazz at Mumbai nightclubs.
- Born
- 11 February 1941
- Field
- Film composer, record producer, keyboardist, singer
- Nationality
- Indian
- Known for
- Godfather of Indian jazz; composer of 'Mile Sur Mera Tumhara'; Grammy-nominated album 'Miles from India'
Lore & Background
Louis Banks was born to Nepali parents Saraswati and Pushkal Budaprithi (George Banks), a musician, in Calcutta and grew up in Darjeeling. His early music education came from his father and neighbor Mrs. Myers. His father, a Nepalese trumpeter, changed his name to Louis Banks in tribute to Louis Armstrong when Banks was thirteen and started playing guitar and trumpet. Banks studied at St. Roberts School and St. Joseph's College in Darjeeling, continuing piano studies. After college, he taught at St. Joseph's School, then moved to Kathmandu at his father's request, working as a musician. In the late 1960s, he performed at the Soaltee Hotel in Kathmandu for three years, rejecting an offer from R. D. Burman. He moved to Calcutta in 1971, formed The Louis Banks Brotherhood with singer Pam Craine and saxophonist Braz Gonsalves. The claim that his great-grandfather wrote the Nepalese national anthem is disputed and not confirmed in standard biographical sources.
Reader's Guide
Louis Banks's significance lies in his role as a foundational figure in Indian jazz, earning the title 'Godfather of Indian jazz'. He popularized live jazz in Mumbai nightclubs and formed the Indo-Jazz Ensemble in 1979, fusing Indian classical scales with jazz rhythms and Indian instruments like ghatam and thavil. His composition of 'Mile Sur Mera Tumhara' in 1988 for Doordarshan became a widely recognized unofficial Indian anthem. Banks's 2008 collaboration 'Miles from India' was nominated for a Grammy Award in the Best Contemporary Jazz Album category, and he was the featured keyboardist on John McLaughlin's Grammy-nominated album 'Floating Point'. His work with groups like Sangam and Rhythm Asia, and his contributions to film scores, including the Malayalam film 'Vembanad', underscore his versatility. Banks's legacy is that of a cross-cultural innovator who bridged Indian and Western musical traditions, influencing generations of musicians.
Did You Know?
- His great grandfather, Bakhat Bahadur Budapirti, composed the Nepalese national anthem 'Shreeman Gambhira Nepali', official from 1962 to 2006.
- Banks rejected an offer from R. D. Burman to work in Mumbai while performing in Kathmandu in the late 1960s.
- He composed the tune for 'Mile Sur Mera Tumhara', a short film on national integration for Doordarshan, often called the unofficial Indian anthem.
- His 2008 album 'Miles from India', a tribute to Miles Davis, was nominated for a Grammy Award in the Best Contemporary Jazz Album category.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Louis Banks?
Louis Banks is an Indian keyboardist, singer, film composer, and record producer born on 11 February 1941 in Calcutta. He is widely regarded as a pioneer who brought Western jazz techniques into the Indian musical landscape.
What is Louis Banks's real name and where did he grow up?
His birth name is Dambar Bahadur Budaprithi, and he was raised in Darjeeling by Nepali parents. His father, a trumpeter who had moved to Calcutta to join a European band, went by the name George Banks.
Why is Louis Banks called the 'Godfather of Indian jazz'?
He earned that title by being one of the first musicians to systematically blend jazz harmony and improvisation with Indian melodic traditions, effectively seeding the fusion genre in the country. Decades of composing, producing, and performing solidified his reputation as a foundational figure.
What is Louis Banks's most famous composition?
He wrote 'Mile Sur Mera Tumhara,' a beloved track from the 1999 film Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam that became one of the most iconic songs in modern Indian cinema. The melody's jazz-inflected phrasing helped introduce fusion sensibilities to a massive mainstream audience.
Has Louis Banks received any major international awards or nominations?
Yes, his album 'Miles from India' earned him a Grammy nomination, a rare distinction for an Indian jazz-fusion artist. That nod from the Recording Academy underscored his influence on the global fusion scene.
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