Team FC
Amar Singh Chamkila was born Dhanni Ram in the village of Dugri near Ludhiana in 1960. He had always been interested in music and shot to fame with the album "Takue Te Takua Khadke" in 1979.
Chamkila teamed up with another singer, Amarjot, and the two had packed akhadas hanging to each of their words. Chamkila and Amarjot made a great team, working off of each other and creating magic on-stage. Not only were they a sensation in Punjab but also performed in places like Canada and Dubai.
Chamkila used his music to give commentary on drug abuse, violence and Punjabi masculinity, becoming a bold new voice of the state. But the artist's raw use of language was often considered vulgar by conservative and insurgent groups of the 1984 Sikh riots.
Chamkila, despite and perhaps because of his popularity, received several death threats and frequently had to go into hiding.
On May 8, 1988, Chamkila and Amarjot arrived at Jalandhar for a show when they were gunned down by motorcyclists. Their murders remain unsolved, with conspiracy theories placing blame on everyone from jealous competitors to terrorists to Amarjyot's own family. Chamkila was only 27 at the time.
From School of Lies to The Menu