Since the news of a biopic being made on the life of Amar Singh Chamkila came out, people who are aware of the legend of this man have been excited to see this film and the fact that the class director Imtiaz Ali is directing this has added fuel to the already flaming fire. Those who have seen the film would know that the character has a journey from being a nobody to being the biggest rockstar Punjab has seen. In his journey, he has many accomplices who have helped him on the way. One such character was the character of Sonia played by Nisha Bano. The character is his first singing partner. Let us read on to trace her journey.
Singer Sonia from Chamkila: Who is She?
The character is based on the real-life character of Surinder Sonia who was a popular singer and performing artist. Amar Singh Chamkila and Surinder Sonia formed quite the pairing in Chamkila’s initial phase before he moved on to working with Amarjot Singh. Surinder Sonia also worked extensively with other singers
Surinder Sonia was also instrumental in launching Amar Singh Chamkila after being disgruntled with her former collaborator Surinder Shinda. Shinda had taken the singer Gulshan Komal to Canada for a tour prompting Surinder Sonia to start working with Chamkila. In 1980, her first album with Chamkila Takue te Takua had 8 songs full of suggestive lyrics. The album became a blockbuster and launched the career of Chamkila.
Amar Singh Chamkila felt significantly underpaid by Surinder Sonia and moved on to move on from that partnership and developed a long-term partnership with singer Amarjot. Some of their best hits together were Takue te Takua, Bapu sada ghum hogaya, and Lak mera kach warga. The songs were often criticized for having sexual and disrespectful lyrics but they resonated with a mass audience and made both of them popular.
Where is Surinder Sonia Now?
Surinder Sonia passed away on 29th October 2019 after enjoying a great career in the field of music. She had her own set of fans who would look forward to her songs till the very end of her life. She was last featured in the documentary Mehsampur which was about the life of Chamkila and his assassination.
Surinder Sonia deserves a great amount of credit for Chamkila’s rise as she was the established star when Chamkila started singing with her. However, with rising popularity, Chamkila moved on to greener pastures. Such a pattern has often been observed in artists but what remains at the end of it all is the art that they have created. The art that Chamkila and Surinder Sonia created lives on beyond their years and takes the shape of Diljit Dosanjh and Nisha Bano in the Imtiaz Ali-directed biopic.
Also Read: Real Story of Kikkar from Chamkila