Mr. Manu Kumar Srivastava, IAS, is a bureaucrat par excellence whose work speaks for itself. Hard work, dedication, and efficiency are the hallmarks of his successful career. But there is another field the Additional Chief Secretary of Home Department, Maharashtra, excels in, and not everyone knows about it. He is a very good singer, too!
He took up singing as a hobby in his childhood and indulged it to grow into a passion over the years. For some time now, he has been recording his songs at home and uploading them on his YouTube channel.
Indian Masterminds contacted him in Mumbai, where he lives, and convinced him to share his singing journey with us.
In an exclusive interview, Mr. Manu Kumar Srivastava replied candidly to our questions about his singing, his recordings, his YouTube channel, and more.
HIS MOTHER FIRST NOTICED HIS TALENT
When he was barely 5 years of age, his mother first noticed him singing songs from a movie he had seen with her. They were living in Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh, then, where his father was posted as a Deputy Superintendent of Police in Special Police Force.
“My mother thought I was singing well for a kid of 5 years and encouraged me by asking me to sing in front of her friends who would visit our household. Soon the word spread, and I would often be made to sing at gatherings and in school. This got me singing right since my early childhood.”
NO FORMAL TRAINING
With the passage of time, music became a hobby for him, but it just remained a hobby only, as his father always wanted him to focus on his studies and didn’t want any diversion of any kind.
“The result was that I didn’t receive any formal training in music at any stage of my student life.”
MUSIC PLAYED SECOND FIDDLE TO STUDIES
He excelled as a student in school and college. And it was his father who set him on that course.
“Thanks to the influence of my father, who despite his very hectic professional life would always find time to personally teach me various subjects, I had set the goal of joining Civil Services very early in my life. So, music always played second fiddle to studies.”
SINGING TOOK CENTRESTAGE IN UNIVERSITY
However, his untutored singing continued through his growing up years, with radio being his primary source of music.
“I would learn new songs and ghazals by regularly listening to various radio programmes on ‘Vividh Bharati’ and sing whenever there would be any social occasion or get-together. In Lucknow University, where I studied between 1979 to 1983 for my B.Sc. and M.Sc., I used to be one of the main singers at various functions.”
MUSIC HELPED DURING UPSC PREPARATION
Even when he was preparing for the Civil Services Examination, he would always find time to listen to his favourite programmes on radio and watch ‘Chitrahaar’ on Doordarshan.
“Music always provided a welcome diversion from the tedium of studies.”
FIRST IPS, THEN IAS
He got selected for IPS at the age of 22 years in 1985 but took the Civil Services Examination again the same year, since the ultimate goal always was the IAS.
“After writing the Civil Services (Mains) Examination-1985, I joined the IPS training, first at the National Civil Defence College, Nagpur and subsequently at the Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel National Police Academy, Hyderabad, where I trained for approximately seven months before I left the training midway after getting selected for the IAS.”
ONE OF THE MAIN SINGERS AT LBSNA
The rigours of exams and trainings did not, however, dim his passion.
“My singing continued in the Lal Bahadur Shastri National Academy of Administration, Mussoorie, where I would always be one of the main singers at various functions.”
MAHARASHTRA CALLING
Mr. Srivastava got allotted to Maharashtra cadre of the IAS and came to the state, following completion of his training.
“In Maharashtra, I have served at various places in various positions over last 35 years. It has been a memorable and enriching journey.”
THE FIRST RECORDING
During his posting as Collector Kolhapur between 1995 to 1998, he got acquainted with a music director duo who encouraged him to record songs and Marathi bhajans in their studio, which he did for the first time under their supervision.
“This gave me an exposure to singing on music tracks. Since I liked the idea, I started buying and collecting karaoke tracks.”
FIRST CD RELEASED BY GHAZAL MAESTRO
Thereafter, during his second Collectorship at Nagpur between 1998 to 2002, he recorded a CD at a local studio, using his music tracks.
“This CD which contained cover versions of songs sung by maestros like Mukesh and Kishore Kumar, was released at the hands of Mr. Jagjit Singh, the legendary Ghazal singer.”
MUMBAI PRESENTED NEW OPPORTUNITIES
After spending 7 years in two postings at Nagpur – first as Collector Nagpur and then as Municipal Commissioner Nagpur – he moved to Mumbai in 2005 on getting posted as Additional Municipal Commissioner, Municipal Corporation of Greater Mumbai.
“Mumbai brought me in contact with many personalities from the field of music and several musically inclined persons. As a result, the opportunities for singing multiplied for me.
COLLECTED NEW KARAOKE TRACKS
The City of Dreams had more in store for him. The availability of Karaoke Tracks also improved in Mumbai.
“I steadily acquired a very healthy personal collection of around a thousand music tracks of old Hindi songs, which I keep on my mobile phone. This enables me to sing anytime on my favourite tracks.”
STARTED RECORDING AT HOME
It was in 2015 that he was introduced to recording on laptop by a singer friend who used to record at home. He told him about the recording software and microphone that he used.
“Accordingly, I, too, acquired Logic Pro X software for recording on my MacBook Pro laptop and purchased an Apogee USB microphone, and started recording on my laptop. I loved the idea of recording at home on music tracks, as it allowed me to record as per my convenience in the privacy of my home.”
BALANCING WORK AND PASSION
Mr. Srivastava has been posted in Mumbai since 2005, and since 2008, he has been working in Mantralaya as Secretary/ Principal Secretary/ Additional Chief Secretary of Departments like Urban Development Department, Revenue Department and Home Department.
“My professional responsibilities do not allow me to record songs at home regularly. But whenever I get any opportunity, I do try and record my favourite songs on my laptop and upload them on my YouTube channel.”
