Freedom to Sing | Digav Aaditya Singh Rajput
Neha Singh Rathore is a folk singer. Through their songs, she challenges and satirizes inflation, corruption, destitution, and government failings.
Neha Singh Rathore of 'UP Mein Ka Ba' fame is getting trolled on social media these days. Mother is in shock. Husband Himanshu has been fired from the job. All my events have been cancelled. I am very mentally disturbed. Blood pressure remains low.
People are taunting their in-laws. They are saying that there was a lot of pride in the daughter-in-law. When I arrived at the courthouse, it had not even been six months since the police had been called to the wedding house.I don't know what he will do next.
The way they are after me, now even the worry about my livelihood has started to haunt me. They want Neha to be forced to quit singing, but I won't let that happen. If there is enough, you will have to leave Delhi. I will go back to the village. I will do farming, but I will not stop singing.
For the first time, when I sang Ka Ba in UP, I was trolled so much that I was shaken to the inside. People have abused me in such a way that I can't tell you. On social media, I had to block the family members because no sibling will be able to bear that his sister and daughter should be called a prostitute.
At that time I had a marriage. The way I was being trolled, I was scared that my marriage might break up. When he shared a photo with Himanshu, people started saying that he is marrying a buffalo. Her husband is a bull.
People even wrote that there are pimples on your face, look at your appearance. My mental state became such that I started looking at my face in the mirror. I wondered how all these pimples would be okay. Then it seemed that these are such people that even if there is a world beauty, they will find shortcomings in it.
When the mother-in-law died in Covid, people started saying that this is Kulchhani. She ate her mother-in-law before marriage. I was very stressed. Thankfully, Himanshu and my father-in-law never noticed these things. The father-in-law always said that do what you think is right.
How Neha Singh Rathore became, only I know. It's a very painful story of mine. Every fifth day, I face some problem. My parents never liked my singing. My mother wanted me to become a master's (teacher) after completing her B.Ed. or a stove.
I get married to a government employee. My father still says stop singing, don't want money, we want respect in society, but I know I am doing what I am doing right.
Born in Kaimur-Bhabhua, Bihar. My father used to work in a private job in Lucknow. She lived with her mother and brother in the village. Dad was straight, but mother differentiated between me and my brother. Grandma would also add ghee to my brother's food and refuse me. They used to say that you have to go to your in-laws' house, do you have to fight the arena here by eating ghee..? I felt very bad at that time.
After my initial studies, I moved to Kanpur from Bihar because it used to take 6 years to graduate there. I was quick to read and write from the beginning. The teacher used to say that you will become a collector. I was fond of singing since childhood. I used to go to weddings with my mother. There my mother used to sing songs in Bhojpuri, I also used to accompany her.
That was in 2017. I had graduated. My brother was running Facebook. I also used to see Facebook with his ID. One day I saw that people post inverted songs on social media and they rarely get likes.
I thought I was singing better than that. People will like my song more, but I didn't have a phone. When he spoke to his brother, he refused. After this, I started recording the song on uncle's phone. One day, I insisted on getting my Facebook account made by my uncle.
It was 2018. I went to Kolkata with my aunt. In the same way, when she was humming, bua said, if you want to sing, then sing properly. They got involved and decided that now I will post my songs on Facebook. Gradually, she started posting songs on Facebook one by one.
In the beginning, there were fewer likes. 300-400 people used to watch, but my efforts continued. One of my songs was 'Hamra Prem Ke Nisani (Nishani) Dekhi Da, Piya Toilet Banaya Da.. "People liked it very much. It gave me courage.
Now I needed a phone. I told my mother to get me a mobile, but she thought I was asking for a phone to talk to the boys. She used to say that when batiana is there, then she gets married, then talk to her husband.
Once my brother got a new phone. His old phone was kept like this, but he did not give it to me. My family always kept an eye on me. Even after all this, whenever I got a phone call, I used to upload some song on Facebook.
It was 2019. I went to the book fair at Pragati Maidan in Delhi. Himanshu was found at the book stall there. We talked to him and we shared our numbers with each other. I started talking to him on the phone.
One day he proposed, then I refused. When the mother found out that I was talking to a boy, she got my brother to break my phone. The brother abused Himanshu over the phone. Very badly said.
Himanshu called my aunt's daughter that Neha's family had broken her phone. I won't talk to Neha, but she should get a call. At least he could sing the song. Mausi's daughter explained to the brother that look, give him the phone.
I was also number one stubborn. I had decided not to leave my job no matter what happens. I'll buy a lot of phones one day. Girls want to look beautiful by doing makeup, they have many desires, but my wish was just for a phone.
In 2020, during the Bihar assembly elections, I got Rs 1.5 lakh from a media company for singing. I first bought a phone. I was so happy at the time that I couldn't tell. A few days later, I gifted apple phone to the same brother who broke my mobile.
During the election, I sang 'Bihar Mein Ka Ba', which gave me a lot of fame. In response to this song, the Bihar government also had to make a song. Everyone wanted to know who is that girl, whose song the government had to answer.
However, I was also trolled a lot. Some called me a broker and some called me an agent of RJD. I was given obscene abuses. After the trolling, Papa was very angry, he said that if you have a song, then sing a traditional song, not a political satire, but where do I listen to him? I know I'm doing the right thing.
Himanshu's only drawback is that he does not do a government job. That's why the family didn't want to get me married to him.
After this, there was a dispute in the house about Himanshu. My mother said that I should marry a government employee. The family members thought that Himanshu was trapping their daughter, making an owl.
Himanshu talked to my brother about my marriage, but the brother refused. Then our father talked to each other. Overall, there was a conflict and frustration that Himanshu and I got married.
Everything was going well after the wedding. We were both living our new lives when the screw got stuck again. A few days ago, I wrote a song about the Kanpur Dehat incident - Kaaba Season 2 in UP, the song became very viral. On February 17, the police went to my in-laws' house with a notice.
Since that day, both the parents and in-laws are upset. When the mother's health deteriorated, she had to be admitted to the hospital. She said she'd go to jail now. People will bother you more there.
People in the house are constantly calling. They say stop singing. Don't take the trouble. I am also broken. I am mentally upset. Many times the health deteriorates, I am also in the hospital, but I tell the family that everything is fine.
I am not the daughter of an MP or MLA, if I do not sing, then from where will I eat? Now my husband doesn't even have a job. All my programs that were already scheduled were canceled.
New bookings are also not coming. They want me to stop singing here, but it won't happen. Bhojpuri has given birth to me, Mati is grateful to me. I belong to a poor family, till my last breath I will fight, write and sing for the poor.
(Sources -Dainik Bhaskar, Wikipedia, Google, News Webpages, etc)
