Swanand Kirkire

Biography:  Swanand Kirkire is a lyricist-singer-writer. He was born and brought up in Indore, and then he moved to Delhi after doing his graduation in commerce. In 1996, Swanand graduated from National School of Drama and started doing theatre; he went on to become a television serial writer, chief assistant director, dialogue writer, lyricist, and singer. Kirkire won the National Film Award for Best Lyrics in 2007 for the song Bande Mein tha Dum from the 2006 film, Lage Raho Munna Bhai. Swanand Kirkire was born to Chintamani (father) and Neelambari (mother), both of who are classical singers. However, he has no formal training in singing. The first try came with direction when Swanand wrote and directed a play on freedom fighter Bhagat Singh in New Delhi.