When I requested an interview, Vinkur Khurana’s first reaction was, “An interview! I am not famous or anything”. My answer to that is that one does not have to be famous to stand out in a crowd. “Being ordinary yet being extraordinary” can be achieved by anybody.
Vinkur Khurana stood out in the “ordinary crowd” because, despite being a businessman, he has been able to follow the voice of his heart. It is indeed commendable to be able to be a family man, a businessman, a musician, and a sportsman, all at the same time! I met him at his home, in his basement, where he has set up his own curated studio. I personally felt he is a remarkable personality as he is running a business, practising music, as well as participating in sports! In fact, he is the chairperson of the Sports Committee of the Friends Club and also plays veteran table tennis at the state level. Extremely humble and grounded, his humbleness comes across when he mentions the numerous people in his life who helped shape his character. He has deep love and respect for his visually impaired music teacher, Late Shri Dharmendra Saluja. He trained under him, on a keyboard, for many years, starting, as early as, 11 years of age. Saluja paved the path of music for the sensitive and talented boy, Vinkur. Although Shri Dharmendra Saluja was used to commuting on his own, Vinkur went the extra bit to drop him, as far as he could, to his next class. While on the road, Vinkur would be amazed at the receptiveness of his teacher’s ears, as he could recognize the sounds of vehicles from far away! Over the years, Vinkur has professionally learned the keyboard, but the harmonica, melodica, accordion, and cajon were all self-taught instruments. In the future, he aspires to learn and play more instruments.
Vinkur makes a special mention of Aman Nath, his friend and neighbor, and also a well-known music producer and composer. Nath opened an array of avenues for Vinkur; he introduced him to production and recording with Logic X, professional software to record and compose music. He also mentioned Manish Kumar, another music producer/instrumentalist from Dehradun who has helped him in his studio setup at home. He feels glad that his daughter is also now learning the guitar and has an ear for music. He feels all children should learn at least one musical instrument and should also play one sport, as they can be enjoyed for the rest of their lives, and there is no age to learn and start.
Another name he wants to mention is Ashok Bhandari, a renowned mouth organ player of India. Vinkur, to improve his skills on the mouth organ, approached Bhandari. Gauging Vinkur’s desire to learn, Bhandari was more than willing to hone the skills of a willing and enthusiastic student. Dholki is another instrument Vinkur is comfortable with. Destiny! His mother wanted to learn the dholki, but when she lost interest, Vinkur covered for her pending classes and ended up learning another instrument from Late Shri Dharmendra Saluja. I could feel that Vinkur had an ear for music; in fact, he very sportingly played for me on the instruments he had. He also happens to be a part of the music club in Friends Club. In this club, all music enthusiasts get together on Sunday evenings and sing together. It is such a nice venue to unwind and be happy. The club also hosts an annual talent show to help people recognise their hidden, buried, latent talents and passions. I came back home, inspired, motivated, and with a feeling of contentment, after meeting Vinkur Khurana. I feel people like him are an inspiration to society.
