Born to rock

The drummer who drums up unbeatable beats

by PRERANA MARASINI

FROM ISSUE # 117 (September 2005) | IN THIS ISSUE
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Remember the drummer of Prism band who rolled out unbeatable beats during the 80s? That was Dev Rana, who still drums on.

"We had many good times as Prism," says Rana. The band broke up officially long ago but they get together sometimes. Dev Rana wants to bring out an album with Prism as he says, "We had original compositions, but they never materialised into an album."

Rana was born in Malaysia and educated in Singapore where he picked up music. He could have joined the British army like his father but he learnt the guitar before switching to drums when his band Prism was drummerless. "I realised I was a born rocker," he says with pride. Ever since, he's been drumming a fine tempo.

Unlike the hooligans at concerts these days who throw bottles instead of listening to music, they were well behaved," says Rana of fans and crowds at concerts back then.

One day, a girl from the audience approached him after a concert. They began seeing each other and two weeks later, eloped. It was an inter-caste marriage between a Rana and Rai that has worked out well. "I'm fortunate to have a wife like her, she's very supportive," says Rana. They have a son named Dennis, who is also into music.

Right now, Dev plays music at three different places: Music Land, Red Onion Bar and Station Pub. Older, wiser and a better drummer, Rana plans to bring out an album by 2006 also performing at concerts "for the sake of music and goodness of society."