— confident he will make it big one day
HARRESH Singh, or ‘Big Harresh’, as he is known on the Essequibo Coast, has participated in more chutney competitions than anyone; and has won the Chutney Soca Monarch Competition five times in Guyana. Why is it, then, that we seldom hear about Harresh? It’s always about Fiona Singh, Mahendra Ramkellawan, or some other artiste whose lyrics seldom make any sense.
With so many wins, just why is ‘Big Harresh’ not as popular as the rest?
We at the Chronicle cannot decide for sure; but, as Harresh puts it, one of the challenges in show business is having to cope with the ‘big ones’ in the business, who may just not like you, for some reason or another.
That is something that bothered him in the initial stages of his career, but it no longer does, he told the Chronicle in an interview recently.
Singh, 39, was born and raised in Bush Lot, on the Essequibo Coast, and is hoping to move to Georgetown soon, with the hope that this will make it easier on him in terms of his career.
“Everything calls for a lot of money, and I’m in a dense area because Essequibo is slower than in Georgetown. Plus, there are some in the industry who like to keep others down. Show business is a very funny thing,” he observed.
During our interview, Harresh came across as someone who has great confidence in himself, despite not yet having managed to gain much fame. “I would call myself a superstar! For you to measure how good you are as a singer, you have to go on competitions and win, and that’s what I do,” he proudly acknowledged.
In addition to chutney, Harresh delights in singing Bollywood songs. He likes karaoke, and does some  English songs as well.
As he puts it, the thing that mostly sets him apart from his colleagues is the fact that he composes his own songs. “I compose my own songs, own air, melody, everything! The rule is originality, and other singers in Guyana should adopt this,” he remarked.
“Right now, many artistes are using back Bollywood songs and fitting in their voice and lyrics. Do not pirate people’s songs! Try to compose your own songs. When you pirate, you kill the culture. It’s just like a copy cat,” Harresh urged.
He continued: “You have young children who never knew and heard about the original singers, and who therefore give all praise to the copy cats. And that’s bad. That’s what I like Anand (Persaud, karaoke singer) for. You singing, sing back the original Bollywood thing. Don’t try to put in your own words.”
Being a Hindu, Harresh started singing in mandirs. He explained that when people heard him sing the bhajans, they liked his voice. Observing this, he decided to devote his entire life to singing.
“I love singing. In fact, Kumar Sanu is my nickname on the Essequibo Coast. I imitate him a lot,” he said, adding that he came from a singing family. He also tries to imitate Mohammed Rafi and Kishore Kumar.
Locally, Harresh gives much respect to Celia Samaroo, owner of Shakti Strings; and Queen Yasmin, of the Originals Band, now existing outside of Guyana.
At present, Harresh is a part of Shakti Strings, and will soon join the Clarity International Band that will once again come on stream. He also works on his own at times. People would just call him up to sing, while others would show up at his house and request his service.
Harresh described himself as a very cool person, who loves singing very much. He also believes in being friendly and down-to-earth.
He can be contacted on Facebook, and his email address is Hareshsingh19@yahoo.com.
‘Big Harresh’ who attended Anna Regina Secondary School, believes that he will significantly improve his skills within the next 10 years. “I’m sure that I will make it. I’m following my dream. I hope to get bigger and better.”
He was high in praise for Minister of Culture, Youth and Sport, Dr Frank Anthony, whom he said offered a lot of support to him.
One of his short-term goals is to compose a CD and record it. He is hoping that it will catch the attention of promoters from around the world.
Just recently, Harresh received a cheque for over half a million dollars as his prize for falling in the top 10 winners in the International Chutney Soca Monarch Competition that was held in Trinidad. In fact, he said, the three top winners of the competition in Guyana all fell within the top 10 over there.
He was a little disappointed that when the Guyanese artistes went to Trinidad, their music was not pushed, as in the case of the rest of artistes participating.  They were promised that their music would be played on the radio before the competition, but nothing of that sort occurred.
When they (the Trinidad artistes) come to Guyana, though, they are pushed, and all their music is played. Some Guyanese are too foreign-minded. We need the support of our Guyanese people, too,” he said.