Vishal Dadlani is a talented singer, music director, and lyricist from India. He is popular for his music composing skills, but he is also a great singer with a powerful and unique voice. He works with his ‘partner in creation’ Shekhar Ravjiani and they are popularly known as Vishal-Shekhar. Besides working in the mainstream Bollywood music industry, he is also a member of a rock/electronica band called Pentagram. He has also sung songs in Tamil, Telegu, and Marathi languages.
Wiki/Biography
Vishal Dadlani was born on Thursday, 28 June 1973 (age 48 years; as of 2021) in Bandra, West Bombay, Maharashtra. He grew up in Bandra, Mumbai, where he did his schooling.
Vishal Dadlani’s childhood photo
After completing his schooling at Hill Grange High School in South Bombay he joined Jai Hind College, the University of Mumbai for two years, and afterward, he went on to complete his graduation from H.R. College of Commerce and Economics, HSNC University. He received a bachelor’s degree in commerce in 1994. Vishal developed a sense of music when he listened to the music that his parents used to listen to. From Led Zeppelin to Jagjit Singh, he tried different languages and genres of music and experimented with them. The beginning of his career took place in 1994 when he started working as a lead vocalist in a band named Pentagram. After a while, he stepped into the music industry of Hindi cinema and since then there was no turning back for him.
Family & Caste
Vishal Dadlani belongs to a Sindhi Hindu family.
Parents & Siblings
Moti Dadlani, his father was a businessman, who passed away on 8 January 2022 due to some complications in the gall bladder surgery.
Moti Dadlani
His mother’s name is Reshma Dadlani and he has a younger sister named Anjana Dadlani.
Reshma Dadlani
Wife
Vishal got married to Priyali Dadlani in 1999. The couple lived happily till 2017 but called it quits after 18 years of marriage.
Vishal Dadlani with his wife, Priyali Dadlani
Address
Peddar Road, Mumbai, Maharashtra, India.
Signature
Vishal Dadlani’s signature
Career
Pentagram (Band)
Pentagram is a rock band that was formed in 1994 and Vishal is the lead singer in the band. It consists of three more members in which Shiraz Bhattacharya plays drums, Randolph Correia is on guitars and Papal Mane is on bass. They are considered to be the forerunner in the field of independent music bands. Their debut album ‘We Are Not Listening’ was released in 1996 and renowned poet and lyricist Javed Akhtar and music artist Shankar Mahadevan were featured in his album. After its debut, the band became very popular and released more albums such as ‘Up’, ‘It’s OK, It’s All Good’ and ‘Bloodywood’. He rose to fame as a singer, composer, and lyricist after grabbing many Bollywood projects like Jhankaar Beats (2003), Bluffmaster (2005), and Salaam Namaste (2005).
Pentagram (Rock band)
Vishal-Shekhar: The Dynamic Duo
This dope Vishal-Shekhar duo was formed in 1999 and they have composed and produced and for many top-notch movies including Dus (2005), Om Shanti Om (2007), Bachna Ae Haseeno (2008), Dostana (2008), Anjaana Anjaani (2010), Ra. One (2011), Student of The Year (2012), Chennai Express (2013), Bang Bang! (2014) and many others. They are counted among the best music producers in Indian cinema and have given a new stream to Bollywood music. Music for more than 60 films has been composed by them. For their talented work in the film Jhankaar Beats, they have received the Filmfare RD Burman Award for New Music Talent.
Vishal-Shekhar (musical duo)
Big break as a singer in Bollywood
Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy was the one who gave Vishal this opportunity to initiate his career as a playback singer. He sang “Kiss of Love” for the movie Jhoom Barabar Jhoom then he sang “Dhoom Again”, which, due to some reasons, was released earlier than “Kiss of Love”. Vishal’s voice has such a versatile tone that he can sing songs of any genre, be it pop, rock, classical, or romantic, and for actors of any age group. He has recorded more than 100 tracks and most of them are super-duper hits. Few of his songs are melodious and mesmerizing and some are foot-tapping and fully loaded with energy like Dhoom Again, Kurban Hua, Dhan Te Nan, Malhari, Radha, Jee le Zara, Marjaiyann, I Feel Good, Jab Mila Tu, Tu Meri, Swag Se Swagat, Bala, Har Funn Maula, Khuda Hafiz and many more.
Vishal Dadlani recording a track
International Collaborations
Vishal has worked with not only Indian music artists but also with many international artists like Akon, Diplo, The Vamps, and Imogen Heap.
Vishal-Shekhar with ‘The Vamps’
Vishal with Imogen Heap
Controversies
Caution: No more remixes
In 2019, he raised his voice against the culture of remixing songs in Bollywood. While talking about his song ‘Saaki’ from Bollywood film Musafir (2004), Dadlani said that he would sue anyone who would try to remix Vishal-Shekhar songs anymore. The song ‘Saaki’ was recreated by Tanishk Bagchi for the Bollywood film Batla House (2019). In an interview, Dadlani talked about this and said,
This is not about one song, one person, one company or one remix. This is about a screwed-up system that allows the exploitation of what should be a composer’s legacy without any regard for the original composers themselves.”
Vishal’s warning against remixes
Mocking the Jain monk
In 2016, Vishal tweeted a disrespectful tweet while showing anger and making fun of Jain monk Muni Tarun Sagar. He was severely criticized by his followers and others who were against it and wanted him to apologize for his mistake. He tweeted,
If you voted for these people, YOU are responsible for this absurd nonsense! No #AchcheDin, just #NoKachcheDin.”
Vishal’s tweet mocking Jain monk Tarun Sagar
Punjab and Haryana High Court fined him for the Tweet. Later on, he decided to meet the monk and apologize for the big mistake he made.
Letting go of the grudges against Honey Singh
The misunderstanding that took place during the music production of the movie ‘Chennai Express’ has been resolved after 7 years on the stage of Indian Idol season 12. This delusion happened when the rapper Honey Singh pitched the idea of the track “Lungi Dance” a little late and the argument between the composer and the rapper heated up, although, the song turned out to be the massive hit of the year. Honey Singh came to promote his song “Saiyan Ji” with Nushrat Bharucha, where Vishal and Honey hugged each other, both performed with the contestants, and enjoyed the show.
Vishal Dadlani and Yo Yo Honey Singh patch up
Awards & Achievements
- Filmfare R.D. Burman Award (2004)
- IIFA Award for Best Song Recording (2012).
- Zee Cine Awards for Best Track of The Year (2012, 2013).
- Mirchi Music Awards for Listener’s Choice Song of the Year (2013).
- Mirchi Music Awards for Listener’s Choice Album of the Year (2013).
- Mirchi Music Awards for Critics’ Choice Song of The Year (2015)
Favorites
- Singer(s): Raghu Dixit, Shaan, and Nikhil D’souza
Net Worth
Vishal’s net worth is 8 million dollars (as of 2022).
Facts/Trivia
- Vishal is a celebrity supporter of AAP (Aam Aadmi Party) and actively promotes it. He has even made a song for AAP (Aam Aadmi Party).
[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=po_X-FRKFk0[/embed]
- Vishal and Shekhar went on a 3 months trip and after 3 days Vishal randomly decided to write a song. They turned a 3 months trip into 3 days and returned then he said, “Music is a vacation, bro.”
- In 2020, Vishal revealed that there used to be a time when he would smoke more than 40 cigarettes in one day.
- Adventure sports and traveling are two of his hobbies.
Vishal Dadlani after doing paragliding
- He has been one of the judges on the popular singing show Indian Idol for 3 seasons (2018-2020).
Vishal Dadlani, Neha Kakkar and Anu Malik as the judges of Indian Idol