NEW DELHI: Had Arun Valmiki played Tamanche Pe Dis today when asked to at a Bareilly birthday party, the DJ would probably have been alive. He didn't, and paid the price with his life. On Monday night, Arun made the fatal mistake of refusing to play the song requested by rowdy guests. The people who had hired his services were probably of the opinion that a DJ should obey orders, and didn't mind shooting him dead to remind him of his duties.

Not very long back, a midnight brawl took place in a Noida pub, and here too the DJ was roughed up for not playing the requested song. From Bareilly to NCR, it seems people in this part of the country take their music so seriously that they can even turn killers over their favourite song. We asked some DJs about this breed of `music connoisseurs', and the peeved fraternity told us how they deal with these bullet rajas at clubs in NCR.

While someone like DJ Aqeel can afford an entourage to keep trouble at bay and also clearly mention in his contract that he won't take requests, the budding DJs can't. From gaali-galoch to death threats, these DJs, who entertain us playing house, trance, DnB, dubstep and Bollywood, face it all on a day-to-day basis. They are forced to endure these things as occupational hazards while remaining courteous and sporting a smile. The sentiment among them might be `Hum kisike baap ke naukar nahin', but they don't say it out loud. Instead, the DJs keep the music playing and the party going to make sure people have a good time.

Artistes need to be treated with respect

I had a show in a water park in Noida. I follow a format of singing first, and then DJing. The organizer felt that the singing part wasn't required and asked me to come straight to the DJing part. He could have called any local DJ instead of calling me. These people simply don't understand that an artiste needs to be treated with respect.

Ramji Gulati, singer & DJ

I was forced to leave the console

They request us to play all kinds of chhichhora songs and when I don't play them, they feel bad.If there's any song request, I tell them to give it to my assistant because I am wary of getting too close to these people. Once I was playing at a wedding, and the guests were like yeh baja, woh baja. One guy was so sloshed that he wanted to listen to Ganga Maiya (Gangnam Style). Forget about a DJ, do they realize that they are talking to a girl? I left the console.

DJ Akanksha Popli

A guy told me `tere ko bahar dekhta hoon'

I ask the host or a bouncer to bail me out of the situation when things come down to gaali-galoch. Once, a guy clicked my photo with his phone and said tere ko bahar dekhta hoon, and he did keep his word. I had to ask the host to intervene. He was drunk, I was not.These people want Govinda tracks to be played.Who is going to explain to them,"Arey bhaiya,yeh club hai. Yahan aise gaane nahi bajte."

DJ Param

A war can take place over `mera gaana kaise nahi bajaya'

In Delhi,a war can take place over `mera gaana kaise nahi bajaya'. And it's one of the reasons I don't take requests. I prepare a set and I don't like to make changes just because somebody feels a particular song has to be played. If it becomes very important to play that song, I ask the resident DJ to take over the console. But what can become really scary is when somebody is allowed to carry a gun inside.

DJ Minaz Bhat

These troublemakers come from the outskirts of delhi

Usually, people do not talk to me rudely, probably because I am a girl. But whenever I smell trouble brewing, I ask the bouncers to take the person away. I feel these people are not the regular partygoers of Delhi. The troublemakers are those who come from the outskirts of Delhi, and there's trouble only once in a while. The kind of old Hindi tracks they ask for, no professional DJ would have them in their collection.

DJ Peri

Only solution is to beef up security for the DJ

Having been a part of the industry for two decades, I can say people getting rowdy over their favourite song not being played is nothing new. The uncouth will create a scene, be it in a pub or a cinema hall. I have seen DJs being manhandled. These rowdies do such things because they know they will easily get away. And so, such irreverence for DJs, or for that matter any entertainer, will continue. The only solution is to beef up security for the DJ.

DJ Jayant

Played the khalnayak song 10 times

About two years ago, I was playing at a private party in West Delhi. Some guys who were dancing suddenly brought out their revolvers. I was asked to play Nayak Nahi Khalnayak Hoon Main ten times in a row that night. When a guy with a gun asks you to play something, the wise thing is to just do it.

DJ Dheer

It's simply not possible for a DJ to honour everyone's song request and they all have their own favourite tracks. I simply play the song that a sharabi asks me to play. There's no point arguing with him. They don't see the difference between shadiwala DJ and club DJ.

DJ Marsh

