India’s First One-Man Band Hits All The Right Notes

Gladson Peter was on tour in China when I first reached out to him for this story. Despite the uncertainty that Gladson would be able to check his Facebook messages, I sent across the request for an interview and, within an hour, India’s first one-man band had got back to me with a date and time. Two weeks later, I sat across from the 25-year-old who has performed across India (with a special place in his heart for Mumbai), now taking his music to the rest of the world, and pressed play on the recorder. A greater purpose, the dangers of smoking and what it means to be happy - the free-wheeling conversation with Gladson Peter was inspiring.

QTube Cafe in Bandra doubles up as an incubation space for street performers and on a particularly sunny day in November it also served as the site for my interview with Gladson. Run by the National Streets for Performing Artists (NSPA), this bright, airy cafe has been an important part of his musical journey, I assume as he points to a photograph of him pinned to a notice board on one of the walls. Skillfully balancing a guitar, harmonica, ukulele, drum set and even a pair of ghungroos, Gladson seems unfazed by the load on his back. “The instruments weigh around 25 kilograms,” he informs me and chuckles at my startled expression. I regain my composure because I remember that the cafe is only available for another 58 minutes and ask my first question. Today, Gladson can play 50 instruments but which one did he pick up first? “When I was three years old, I was gifted a red toy keyboard on my birthday and that is how it began - my dad taught me how to play ‘Happy Birthday’ and stuff like that, but as I grew older I realised I didn’t like the keyboard.”

What caught his fancy, instead, were the spoons and forks lying around the house that were to become his music-makers for a while. “I enjoyed beats more than tunes. Whenever I used to be at home, or when we went to our native place, I used to collect utensils and dabbas and make a drum kit.” Since then, Gladson has mastered the bongo (his first ever rhythm instrument), the congo, drums, flute, ukelele and 45 other instruments, each with its own unique story. A mention of the flute, for instance, sees his face light up as he recalls a 5-rupee rudimentary flute that he bought from the roadside when he was just 14. “I learnt the flute in my toilet because I was very scared to tell my parents that I had bought something without their permission,” he laughs. There seems to be a surprising ease with which Gladson overcomes failure - whether that meant sneaking away to the bathroom for flute practice, recovering from a smoking-induced illness that left him underweight and bedridden, coming to terms with the grim reality that he may never be able to make music again and, most importantly, bouncing back to become Mumbai’s only (and India’s first) one-man band.

“I really don’t blame my friends but my circle was filled with people who smoke. I don’t have an issue with smoking - now, I’m just concerned,” he clarifies. Gladson began vomiting violently in his final year of college and the once state-level athlete found himself unable to keep down even a morsel of rice. Despite his fear of doctors, his mother tricked him into going to the clinic where his worst fear was realised. Due to a condition called pleural effusion, the precursor to tuberculosis, not only would he have to sit out his final year but also stop making music indefinitely. The surgery to mitigate his condition left Gladson with two holes in his lungs, that are now 60% damaged. Ask him what that meant for his music and he looks up with bright eyes to tell me, “Music was always my passion, I would do anything to pursue it.” He never lets his illness come in the way of his passion as he continues to practice and excel at different, innovative techniques. However, it’s not without its limitations. All of Gladson’s shows are limited to 20-25 minutes each but he hopes that he can fill every minute with groovy beats and happy melodies.

Singer, songwriter and all-around music powerhouse, Gladson credits the leap from a boy with talent to a one-man band to Billy Joel, his iconic Piano Man and a miracle. A college assignment got Gladson thinking about the classic (and karaoke top 10 for basically everyone), the use of multiple instruments and doing something different. “When I started practising, my mother would tease me about how my two legs were also free to play instruments. So I strapped on a pencil box to one leg and a toy tambourine and played it.” While Gladson’s popularity in college soared after this foot-thumping realisation, he was going through a particularly hard time personally. Even as he struggled to zero in on a career path, he was coming to terms with the fact that, unfortunately, he would be discriminated against due to his skin colour. Coupled with his health problems, Gladson admits that there was a moment when he felt like giving up and said to himself “I don’t see the purpose of living anymore”. His father, a pastor at a church in Mumbai, singing in choirs and a strong connection with God have always guided Gladson so he turned to his support system.

It was God who came to Gladson’s rescue, in a lucid dream one night – “Strap on all the instruments you can play and do that for the rest of your life,” he told him. While the musician had never previously heard of one man being able to play that many instruments at one time (his only frame of reference was Mickey Mouse and a Vodafone ad), he was determined to follow through on God’s will. So, he did what anyone would do and Googled ‘multi-instrumentalists’ and ‘many instrument players’ to chance upon what would become his life’s purpose.

Despite resistance from his family, stemming mostly from concerns for his fragile health, Gladson started working at NSPA and saved up to build his 25-kilogram set. However, he wasn’t as prepared to debut it a year later on the stage of a reality show, India’s Got Talent. “The time of the audition was 8 AM and, up till 7 AM that morning, I’d never even tried the kit on.” For the second time that morning, my jaw dropped and Gladson hurriedly explained, “If I take an instrument, I can pick it up in a very short time.” Frustrated that my musical capabilities would only ever be on display to the shower head in my bathroom, I urged Gladson to tell me more about this nerve-wracking audition. Having grown up listening to church music, Gladson had no real exposure to Bollywood or Hindi songs. The chorus of ‘Vande Mataram’ cemented his position in the next stage of the competition as well as the status as India’s first ever one-man band, a lovely coincidence.

Today, Gladson is part of a Facebook group comprising one-man bands from across the world, looking forward to giving a TEDx talk in Mumbai, performing in Warangal to round off the year and committing to his mission of spreading happiness. “Everyone should put a smile on someone’s face, that’s about it,” he signs off, matter-of-factly.