Fifty-year-old Ashok Maskeen from Jalandhar has become an inspiration for many after a simple social media reel changed his life completely as Ashok who once worked as a machine operator in a factory to support his family has now been receiving offers from Bollywood and live stage shows after his singing gained attention through Coke Studio.
Ashok Maskeen lives in Mahasha Colony near Maksudan Chowk in Jalandhar and for most of his life he struggled with poverty and worked hard to earn a living and even though music was always his biggest passion family responsibilities and financial problems forced him to continue working daily wage jobs for many years.
Today his voice is reaching people across the country and the song he sang for Coke Studio “Bulleya Ve, Aur Lagda Ni Dil Mar Jaana…” has already received millions of views online and brought him sudden fame.
Ashok shared that he developed a love for music during childhood and his father used to sing at religious gatherings and jagratas which inspired him deeply. Ashok studied at a government school in Maksudan but had to leave school after Class 6 because his family could not afford further education and to support himself he learned work related to manufacturing water taps and operating machines in factories but despite his difficult life his love for singing never disappeared.
Ashok said he became a huge admirer of famous Punjabi singer Sabar Koti after hearing one of his songs on television many years ago and determined to learn music from him Ashok went to meet the singer at his home in Jalandhar Cantt however things were not easy in the beginning and according to Ashok Sabar Koti initially refused to teach him still he continued visiting the singer’s house every day for four days later impressed by his dedication Sabar Koti finally agreed to train him.
Ashok revealed that he did not even have enough money to buy a bicycle at that time and would walk nearly 15 kilometers from Maksudan to attend music lessons and later he managed to travel by cycle whenever possible. Since he also worked in a factory he could only attend training sessions on Thursdays which was his weekly day off.
Even after learning music Ashok’s financial condition prevented him from building a proper career in the industry and he continued working in factories while occasionally singing at local jagratas and small events although Sabar Koti helped him record two devotional songs in the 1990s Ashok never received major recognition.
About 13 years ago Ashok married Monica from Gurdaspur and the couple later had a daughter so with growing family responsibilities music once again took a back seat and though he continued practicing singing regularly as a hobby.
Ashok’s life began to change around a year ago when his brother suggested making a social media reel featuring his singing and at first Ashok refused but later agreed to sing a song connected to his mentor Sabar Koti following which his brother uploaded the reel online without expecting much from it.
The video soon started reaching a large audience and eventually caught the attention of Mumbai-based music composer Tanishk Bagchi and Ashok recalled that he received a call asking whether he would like to sing for Coke Studio to which initially he hesitated because he was worried about losing his factory wages and even asked how much he would be paid for the project explaining that he could not afford to leave work without income.
Later he agreed to sing and the project became a turning point in his life and his song gained huge popularity online introducing his voice to a national audience and after the success of the song Ashok decided to leave his factory job and focus completely on music and according to him the support he received from people in music industry gave him confidence to finally follow his dream full-time.
Ashok also shared an emotional moment involving his daughter’s medical treatment and said his daughter needed surgery because of health issues related to her nose and cleft lip and when the family struggled to arrange money for hospital expenses Ashok contacted Tanishk Bagchi for help and claimed that the composer immediately agreed and covered the surgery expenses.
Today, Ashok still lives with his wife and daughter in their modest two-room home in Jalandhar and the lane where he lives is locally known as “Musicians’ Lane” because many residents there are connected to music in some way and now after years of struggle Ashok says he is receiving offers for Bollywood playback singing as well as live stage performances and also tells that he has already recorded songs for films and signed projects with music companies.