Global Beatles Day 2022: How these Mumbaikars fell in love with the iconic English band

The world celebrates The Beatles every year on June 25 which is known as Global Beatles Day. Photo: AFP

The Beatles may have been active for 10 years only, between 1960 and 1970, but 50 years on their influence still reigns around the world. The four-member band included John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr. From 'Ob-La-Di, Ob-La-Da', 'Hey Jude', to ‘Hear Comes the Sun' and ‘While My Guitar Gently Weeps', they have produced some all-time favourites.

Their magnetic sway hit India too, inspiring musicians and music lovers here. The band themselves paid a famous visit to Rishikesh in India between February and April 1968, which translated into The Beatles album they released that year. Even before their Indian sojourn, George Harrison, singer-songwriter and lead guitarist of the band had befriended sitar maestro Pandit Ravi Shankar to learn the instrument in 1966. All of these stories are told and retold by fans to everybody who had ears and would care to listen.

About those who may dislike the band or think their music is overrated, Subhash Kamath, adman and city-based musician of the band ‘Wanted Yesterday' and ardent fan of their music, says, "Forgive them for they know not what they are doing". It sums up the unconditional love he and many others in the city have for the band.

Kamath, who became a ‘Beatlemaniac' somewhere in high school around 1979, explains, "My father introduced us to English music, which started with a movie about the band ABBA. So, when I borrowed a cassette with classics from my neighbour, it had five ABBA songs but I didn't know that there were Beatles songs like ‘Love Me Do', ‘I Want to Hold Your Hand', because the cassette didn't have the names written down."

Subhash Kamath, a city-based adman and musician of the band ‘Wanted Yesterday'. Photo: Subhash Kamath

Marvelling at their harmony, the adman says he loved how their voices would interact with each other. "I think The Beatles are one of the most underrated for their harmony in songs such as ‘If I Fell', it is absolutely brilliant," he explains. Being able to recognise their sound and reading about The Beatles was only just the start for him, as he was yet to discover albums such as the ‘Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band' (1967) and ‘Abbey Road' (1969), which have his favourite tracks.

Over the years, he amassed several cassettes and CDs but he says what he loved most about the band was how they progressed musically after 1965 where they grew from the three-chord songs to melodic compositions. He attributes it to their time in India and George Harrison's learnings from Pandit Ravi Shankar. While picking a favourite is difficult, he says ‘Hey Jude', ‘Let It Be', ‘I Love Something' and ‘While My Guitar Gently Weeps', still blow his mind. Kamath even recommends watching the documentary ‘How The Beatles Changed The World' (2017) on the streaming platforms.

For city-based musician Melwyn Almeida, another Beatles fan in the city, it was not only the music but also their style that he adopted over time. A fan of the band since 1976, he was introduced to their music by his friend, who had the luxury of access to The Beatles records because of his brother. "My friend Christopher would listen to these songs, learn them, and then come to my house and sing them. I used to pick up these songs quickly and then play the lead parts, which he would sing and harmonise to. It came easily because of my church choir background."

Rea Burman, former Mumbaikar and one of The Beatles fans in India. Photo: Rea Burman

While it is hard for Almeida to pick his favourite Beatle, McCartney and Harrison are his top two. The fan, who is in his 60s says, "I feel so much like Paul McCartney as he would take so much trouble to learn and write down songs, and also new guitar chords. There was a time they had heard of a guitar chord which a certain guitarist from the other side of town knew. It did not stop him from taking a bus, and going down to that side of town meeting that guitarist just to learn that guitar chord because of his childlike desire to learn music." It did not stop at listening to the music and playing it for him as he also aped their dressing style. "I used to try dressing like them with their famous drainpipe trousers, cutting my hair down with the famous Beatles fringe," he adds.

While Kamath and Almeida's journey started much early on, for Rea Burman, another Beatles fan it started a little over 19 years ago. The former Mumbaikar says she knew about their songs much before she was introduced to the band. "As children, we used to sing these songs during singing class but I didn't know whose songs they were. it was only when I was 12 and listening to these vinyl records with my grand-uncle, that we had a moment in which he realised I liked The Beatles too, and ever since then listening to music has become a bonding experience for us," says the 31-year-old, who says her family has always been inclined musically. "A few years ago, when all of us met for my grandparents' 50th anniversary, the family listened to these records too." The band's timeless music travels smoothly across generations.

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