For years, 94.3 Radio ONE Mumbai soundtracked my drive to office and back with songs from my childhood. These songs helped me combat loneliness, work-related stress, and the manic city traffic. One song that always spoke to me more than the rest was Living On A Prayer by Bon Jovi.
You know, hit-maker Desmond Child was broke when he moved to New York in the early 80s. He was so 'down on his luck' and it was 'so tough' that his girlfriend had to work 'the diner all day.' She'd 'bring home her pay for love' while he wrote songs. They didn't have much, but had 'each other.' In hindsight, that was 'a lot.' In 2008, Desmond Child was inducted into the Songwriter's Hall Of Fame. In a career spanning more than four decades, his songs have been used by Alice Cooper, Joan Jett, Aerosmith, Ricky Martin, KISS, and of course Bon Jovi to name just a few. Desmond Child is now married to the man he loves and they have twin sons via surrogacy. If you think about it, none of this would have happened had he not been under self-imposed house arrest in New York. 'Tommy and Gina' are not fictitious characters, you see. They are as real as you and me. And it's their struggle that made them who they are. Remember: The toughest steel always gets sent through the hottest furnace. Our time will come. We're already 'halfway there.'
Before I click the 'Publish' button, I want to thank Desmond Child for pouring his heart into his songs. And I want to thank Vineet Singh Hukmani for founding 94.3 RadioOne and pouring love into Indian airwaves. Men like that don't really care who gets credit for the great work they do. Hence, future generations depend on their kind. ~ Tirthankar Poddar