Rags to Riches: Train Urchin Girl Rises to Sing in Mumbai Films

One has heard of the famous fairy tale of Cinderella. Cinderella was a poor girl but magically she rose from rags to riches with the help of a fairy. Well here is a similar story in a slightly different scenario of a young 16 year old singer called Durga. This girl who hails from Andhra Pradesh made a living by singing songs on the Mumbai local trains. She sang on both the suburban sections of the Central and Western rail. She supported her family of 2 sisters by earning meager amounts of money by singing on the locals.

While travelling by local train Mumbai film music composer Sneh Khanwalkar, heard the young girl singing. She was struck by the rustic quality of the voice of Durga and promptly auditioned her for a song for the film “Gangs of Wasseypur” where she sang ‘Dil Chi Cha Ledar’. The song was an instant hit and set the sales charts afire. The rest is history as Durga has become a national icon. The 16 year old is now launching her debut album under the guidance of Bollywood film maker Anand Surapur on which she is working for the past 2 years. Surely there can be no tale more exciting than that of Durga who sang songs on the Mumbai local trains for a living and now is rising as a popular singer on the national circuit. The girl was singing on Mumbai locals since she was 9 till god smiled on her and turned her life from rags to riches. This is a true tale, that has an element of romance and the girl deserves our support.