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“My spirituality gives me my strength. I dream of being a music composer someday”

Autorickshaw drivers, or rather their reluctance to convey disabled passengers, feature prominently in the narrative of Kanpur native Amit Kumar (34). It reminds us that accessible transport remains a pressing issue for persons with locomotor disabilities in India.
 
During Amit’s initial days in school his parents used to take turns to ferry him to and fro since autodrivers refused to do so and it was with great difficulty that they managed to hire a driver who agreed to take on the job. A critical moment arrived when Amit, after 12th grade, aspired to be an animator in an MNC and got admission for a course in animation. He excitedly got ready for the first day of class, only to learn that the autodriver who had agreed to a regular pick-up-and-drop had abruptly pulled out of the deal! This last-minute betrayal came as such a blow that he quit his studies and spiralled into depression for five years.
 
Fortunately, Amit has always been supported by his near and dear ones. “I had the most wonderful friends in school,” he says. “If not for them my life would not have been what it is today. They continue to assist me to this day whenever I have to travel for an event.” And then there’s his family. “They pampered me a bit too much actually,” he confesses. “They did everything for me. I lived such a sheltered life I didn’t even know the streets around my house!”
 
The end of his animation dreams marked the lowest point in his life. But then one day he decided to break out of his cocoon: “I didn’t want to be stuck at home forever. I decided to stop pitying myself and be more independent.” He sat for his B.A. exams, going to college in his wheelchair and requesting people to help him reach the examination hall. At around the same time he went to a friend’s birthday party and was asked to sing. Everyone applauded his talent and encouraged him to take up singing as a profession. The seed of a new idea was planted in his brain. 
 
Amit decided to take part in The Voice, the Hindi reality show that showcased singing talent. In 2009 he went to Mumbai for the contest and made it to the top 120 but got no further. He realised he needed formal training if he wanted a career as a singer. Back in Kanpur, he was invited to sing on stage at an event. The organiser told him, opportunities will come your way but you have to step forward and take it if you really want it. That statement motivates him to this day. He made it to the venue but what happened afterwards is etched in his memory.
 
The event got over at 2 a.m. and Amit was stranded with no conveyance in sight. He was crying as he pushed his wheelchair onto the road and slowly started homeward. Some policemen spotted him and asked what he was doing out so late. They found him an auto to take him home but the driver was reluctant to comply, and he did so only when the cops ordered him to. Amit kept mum about the incident because he was afraid of his father’s reaction. 
 
In 2010 Amit started music classes but after a year his father advised him to stop since it would not bring him a livelihood, and asked him to start preparing for banking exams. For a year or two Amit struggled unhappily and finally told his dad that banking was not for him. They had a long conversation in which his dad told him about the hardships he might face but he finally convinced his dad that only music would satisfy him. 
 
From 2012 onward Amit entered the music arena with serious intent, undergoing training and doing his Masters in classical singing. He got a job at the Indian Idol Academy in Kanpur and later taught in several music schools until he and his dearest friend Kirti Ganguly started a music academy, Swar Gandhar Sangeet Sansthan, in 2019.
 
Amit lives with his mother Laxmi Das (his father died in 2021). He adores his sisters Prathibha and Preethi. Laxmi’s sister had a pet name for Amit – ‘Bunty’, which stuck. “There are many Amits who are singers but not many called Bunty,” he says, explaining why he has adopted the moniker Banti Singer for his stage shows – he is not only a music teacher but also sings at events, performing in old age homes and orphanages for free. His dream is “to be a music composer one day”.
 
When we spoke to him he was heading off to the holy city of Vrindavan. “According to medical textbooks I am 80 per cent handicapped, so the only thing I am good for is to lie in bed all day. But look at me – I can do everything on my own, and this, I believe, is because of the divine presence in my life.”