At the heart of the Ministry of Dhol, is its founder and leader Prithpal Rajput also known as the ‘Funky Dholi’. Prithpal is a highly skilled multi percussionist and a charismatic live performer. He started drumming at an extremely young age and is acknowledged as a veteran dhol player in the UK.

His first introduction to Indian percussion began when he was a small child sitting in his grandmother’s lap. Every Saturday his Grandmother would play the Dholki at the gurudwara (Sikh Temple) during religious congregations known as Satsang. He became enchanted by the hand techniques that produced such varied rhythms that the other women would sing over. It wasn’t long before Prithpal contributed by keeping time with a hand held shaker called a Chehna. Within months his Grandmother gifted him with his first percussive instrument. Through practice of his own dholki, Prithpal’s skills made him a regular participant in these satsangs.

In 1982 Prithpal became a student of the legendary late Tabla practitioner / Ustad Gurmeet Singh Virdee at the Leicester School of Music. The next nine years brought a whirlwind of major performances in collaboration with various classical and semi classical musicians and vocalists.

During this period, Prithpal joined a Bhangra dance team. Here he was introduced to his “percussional” soul mate….the Dhol. He then applied his knowledge of Tabla and Dholki to create a dominating sound phenomenon that soon became the rhythmical backbone of the group.

Prithpal now began to spread his wings, performing at several Bhangra shows encouraging a steadily growing following and huge demand. He also began passing on his skills to the youth by devising his own syllabus and running Dhol workshops.

At the start of the 90’s decade, Prithpal teamed up with one of the UK’s Premier Bhangra DJ’s. For the first time an Eastern folk drum blended with Western break beats to produce a new genre in music. This spurred a pioneering trend and saw Prithpal being the highlight of several other DJ sets.

This innovative new style of dhol playing led Prithpal to become the first person to play to James Brown’s track ‘Funky Drummer’ earning him the nickname ‘The Funky Dholi’. He also fused dance steps into his act creating passionate performances that incorporated his mind, body and soul. It was such originality that made him shine all across the UK’s Asian DJ circuit.

He soon became an idol for hundreds of youth who aspired to be like him. With their enthusiasm and his own willpower, Prithpal founded the Ministry of Dhol in 1993. Since its Genesis the MOD has gone from strength to strength continually expanding.