Kuljit Bhamra

Kuljit Bhamra is a British composer, record producer, musician and tabla player. He is best known as one of the record producers who pioneered the British Bhangra sound and for his many collaborations with musicians from different genres and continents. Kuljit taught himself to play the tabla aged six and not through the traditional route of learning from a guru. He accompanied his mother Mohinder Kaur Bhamra, a successful musician in her own right, at weddings and public functions.  

Kuljit trained as a civil engineer but decided he would prefer to earn a living as a musician. After producing an album for Premi, a Southall-based singer, Kuljit went on to produce many albums for British and Indian artists. In 1986, he founded Keda Records, an independent record label committed to producing high quality cassette tapes (we don’t use cassette tapes for listening to music very often now!). Kuljit has since collaborated with many influential and prominent musicians from many different musical traditions, and has played for numerous musicals and theatre shows. These include Andrew Lloyd Webber’s ‘Bombay Dreams’ and ‘Ramayana’.  

Kuljit is influential and committed to de-mystifying Indian music and making it accessible for non-traditional audiences. He has also created a system for notating tabla. You can find his videos on Youtube at Keda Music Ltd. Kuljit is also a Sound and Music Honorary Patron and a tutor on our annual Summer School for young composers!  

https://keda.co.uk/