Sundar Popo

The story so far.

Written and edited by Smokiller

Sundar Popo, born Sundarlal Popo Bahora in Monkey Town, Barrackpore, in 1943, is credited as the father of chutney music in Trinidad and Tobago. His mother sang and his father played tassa, and as a teenager he sang bhajans at temples and weddings while working as a factory watchman. In 1969 the radio host and promoter Moean Mohammed heard his song Nana and Nani, which mixed Trinidadian Hindustani and English, and had it recorded with the BWIA National Indian Orchestra. That record changed Indo-Caribbean music on the island. His first LP, Come Dance With The Champ, arrived in 1979, and over his career he recorded more than 15 albums. Scorpion Gyul is the song most tied to his name, and Babla and Kanchan scored with their take on his Pholourie Bina Chutney. He later headlined in New York and shared stages with Anup Jalota and Kishore Kumar. He died in 2000.