Carrot, Potato, Beans, White Pumpkin, Peas, Egg Plant, Coconut, Green Chillies, Red Chillies, Cumin Seeds, Tamarind Paste, Salt, Yoghurt and Curry Leaves combine to create this tangy dish relished by the people of Kerala. Off late a newer version of this all time classic dish has emerged and people seem to love the taste. This one however is for the ears and the sound is provided by the association of Tony John, Rex Vijayan, Mithun Puthanveetil and Binny John. Together, they are best known as Avial.

Avial

“We sing in Malayalam so we never felt the need to have a name that was English, so to speak” says Rex Vijayan who handles guitar playing duties for the band. “Still a lot of people who aren’t from Kerala thought Avial is not a very Malayali sounding name.  Even when we go abroad, people always want to know what it means as it sounds very global” he says.  Within Kerala the idea that a much cherished eatable was going on to represent a band didn’t go down too well at least initially. “Our friends were questioning our seriousness of it all. To them Avial seemed like a fun name and we are pretty easy going people so they felt we were simply carrying that image forward with the band.”

Avial catapulted to fame across the country after their first single Nada Nada was released in 2003. They also shot a music video for the song and it was released by SS Music. The tremendous responses they received to the song egged them to go further and continue in the same vein. “The fact that we sang in Malayalam is what helped us get that success initially, and those who do not understand the lyrics look upon the vocals as another instrument that accompanies the song” says vocalist Tony John.  The guys within the band knew each other even before they came together to form Avial and Rex reckons that it was natural that they sing in their mother tongue. “There was never a plan to sing in Malayalam before but whenever we met even just to jam and chill out, we used to sing old Malayalam songs. Also we like how poetic it sounds, very unique for someone who hasn’t heard it before.”

Avial - In Performance

Their conviction to continue to sing in a language that cannot be understood by majority in the country has only strengthened as the years have gone by. At a time when most Indian bands are trying to ape their western counterparts, bands like Avial strongly feel the need to get back to their ethnic roots.  “I listen to Italian, Brazilian or any other kind of music that sounds good. A song like Macarena for example finds a connection because, end of the day it is the music that matters” says Tony.  Avial’s faith in the local language seems to be well placed and one wonders if it offers any guarantee of success when compared to the English speaking fraternity. “I can only say that it’s best to do what comes naturally to you. For us it happens to be our mother tongue and there are bands who are really big in India today and have made it through singing in English” says Rex.

Avial do not write the lyrics for their songs. They like to borrow folk songs from the past or in what can be described as a first for a band, have specialists who write raw, folk sounding lyrics around which the band weaves its tunes. This rather uncommon method is preceded by the band members helping their writers out with a theme and even pictures to help them grasp the vision that the band has for a song. “These people are mostly our friends and they happen to be very good at writing these songs. When you come to think of it, Folk music and Rock music have this very raw feel to them, which is why we feel that it is good to combine both. Also we are particular about how the lyrics sound to the ears when sung, and the people who work with the lyrics have a very good understanding of these requirements which makes it good for us” informs Rex. Most of Avial’s songs are reality based and are related to the political and social happenings within the country.

Avial

Avial released their first self titled album in 2008, four years post coming together. This was an extraordinarily long time by any standards and their second album is still in the making as we are made aware by Tony John while he speaks on the subject. “The thing is, we are all very lazy people by nature! (A fact which was also corroborated by Rex) We don’t go in with an intention to produce a song, it is all very instinctive. If you ask me how much of the second album is made, I would say probably up to thirty percent of it has been put together in some shape or form!” he says.  Going by that it would possibly be easier to estimate the delay rather than the arrival, not until mid 2012 would be our guess. “We normally jam and then have a tune and the grooves in place” says Rex. “But, when you get back to these things after a few weeks, they may not sound as appealing as they did when you came up with it. So in order to move ahead, the music that we do must surprise us.” Tony’s house serves as the unofficial ‘headquarters’ of the band and the band normally prefers to hang out doing nothing too productive on most days. “Most of the stuff we do, we keep changing it and then finally get tired and delete it!” he says. One glance upon their Facebook page, or the comments on a video suggest that the pressure to release a second album is steadily building but they remain determined to do it their way.

Prior to the release of their very first album, they were a five member band.  The powerful, booming and raspy vocals heard on most of their first album (except two songs which had Tony’s vocals) were sung by former vocalist Anand Raj Benjamin Paul. His departure certainly left many of their fans somewhat discontent. “It was sad. He got married to an American and is now settled in the US. However Rex and I had put a lot of work into the production of the album, we couldn’t have stopped there” says Tony as he reminisces back to the sudden and possibly the only really difficult time of the band’s journey so far. “Post his departure, it was tricky for us because people heard his voice on the album and mine when we played gigs. However I believe that our fans are fiercely loyal and have shown it by sticking with us. Yes there are those who are hardcore fans of Anand’s voice, and they’d miss that element but there isn’t much that can be done about it” Rex feels that not too much needs to be made of the differences as there are some differences which are basic in nature too. “For example Anand looked very rugged himself, and that went along with his vocals too! Tony is more sophisticated when it comes to the stage presence and looks you could say but as a vocalist, though different, I feel that he pretty much nails all of our stuff.”

The latest to come from Avial is a song called Aana Kallan (Aana means elephant in Malayalam and Kallan means a thief, which translates to elephant liar or big liar) as part of the Malayalam movie ‘Salt N Pepper’. The response to this song has been phenomenal in Kerala and there is a feeling of content within the band. “We actually bought a book which had folk lyrics in it and Aana Kallan appealed to us and then a tune was born” says Rex. While Rex was quite happy to lend their music to the movie industry based in Kerala, not everyone in the band shared the same opinion. “I was hesitant at first” says Tony. “I thought it was bullshit to be honest but Aana Kallan related to this character in the movie and we had the song written, it just had to be worked upon before we had the final product ready.” The success of the song has helped them gain a mass appeal within Kerala. While Avial was already popular with the people who followed the scene, it was still a band that was left wanting mainstream recognition. “The man on the street possibly got a taste of Avial the band” says Rex. While this might surprise many who read through this article, there has always been a feeling within the band that they were better known outside of Kerala rather than within their home state. This makes the success of Aana Kallan dearer to them.

Tony John, Rex Vijayan, Mithun Puthanveetil and Binny John

Their popularity outside of Kerala is demonstrated by the sheer numbers of people who can sing along the choruses to their songs which are sung in Malayalam. Also they are one of the very few bands who have managed to perform abroad. “One of the fondest memories I have is of a Mumbai college which was full of Gujarati students singing along to our songs” says Rex. He couldn’t recollect the name, and hence we stick our neck out to say it could have been Narsee Monjee or Mithibai in all likelihood. Aadu Pambe with its monstrous guitar riff and masterful arrangement remains the bands favorite song to play to any crowd. “I really like to see the crowd jumping along to that one” says Tony. “There are other favorites too like Chekele, Karukara, Ettam Pattu, etc.”

As they are about to sign out, we are tempted to ask what they prefer more – the band or the dish? Both Rex and Tony declare their undying love for, take a deep breath – the dish! “We all are big Avial (the dish) fans, so it is unfair that you ask us to choose! In fact you cannot ask this question to any self respecting Malayali!” they say.

Well, we prefer the band too. Nada! Nada! Nada! Nada! Nada!

Article by Vignesh Iyer

Equipped with a degree in architecture, he decided he would rather do something unconventional than find a regular job. As luck would have it, MTV India decided to launch a VJ HUNT which he won and then, life didn’t change overnight. We’ll just say that he embarked on a path which allowed him to make the changes. From being THE face of MTV he founded ‘Submerge’ for the ones who were thirsty for quality Electronic Dance Music to be played in India, through Submerge came about the now world renowned ‘Sunburn’ festival and he isn’t done with the partying just yet! Vignesh Iyer finds out.

We’re sat inside the Bagel Shop based in Bandra and Nikhil Chinapa is exactly as what one would imagine him to be. Mostly laidback, sipping on a cold coffee and if you are imagining the body hugging tee and shorts, that’s about right. Furiously working away on his laptop though, and a little peek reveals man’s best friend on the screen – Facebook. He is concerned that the recorder might not pick up our conversation and therefore has decided to hold it up like a microphone while he speaks. “How much of Kaliyon Ka Chaman and Mambo Number Five can one listen to?” he says when quizzed about how the VJ turned DJ. “The music that I love wasn’t getting played at all and that’s how it happened!”

Nikhil Chinapa

One wonders how he finds the time to work with MTV as a VJ, do his disk jockeying duties while also managing a business on the side, which really can’t be considered as something ‘on the side’. Surely, there is some kind of a deal here with the man. God, we mean. “Haha! I am actually running a negative balance there!” he says. “There is MTV, the DJ stuff, Submerge, Sunburn and we plan to start off with the Rainbow festival in Bangalore in May. Apart from all of this, there are music based projects in Oman, Nepal and Coorg.” So how does he manage to retain his sanity amidst all of the work and the jam packed schedule? “It’s a combination of coffee, gym and music that helps keep things balanced!” he says. Sleep, as has been mentioned on the Submerge website is strictly optional for him.

Submerge was founded in 2003. It was a manifestation of the same pent up frustration that pushed Nikhil Chinapa into becoming a DJ. The vision was to have a one stop shop for Electronic Dance Music in India and eight years since its inception, that is exactly what it stands for. Today it is recognized as a brand that delivers quality music, quality nights and works with people who have a certain standing in music. For many of the DJs it represents a benchmark which they aim to reach. They boast of having hosted some of the best nights in clubs across the country where a variety of widely well known DJs have come down to perform for the overburdened dance floors. “I think that frustration which we felt was felt by many and it’s not something that dies off” he says. “Because in a space time continuum, you are always going to have a seventeen year old who is pissed off at the music that’s around him. So frustration goes hand in hand with the youth which is probably why we always keep hearing fresh music! So I see Submerge as an entity which will constantly keep evolving and changing.”

Perhaps one of the reasons why Submerge is such a resounding success is because of the outlook to ‘business’ the three main people associated with the venture have chosen. Nikhil, DJ Pearl (who is also Nikhil’s wife) and Dr.Hermit never looked at Submerge as more than just another wild party. “You never see any hurdles as such when all you are doing is organizing this party. Dukaan bandh hain? Theek hain coke kahin aur se le aate hain!” he says with a grin spread across his face as he emphasizes his point further. “I think that is also one of the reasons why Submerge has managed to sustain itself while some of the others have fallen by the wayside.” he suggests.

As we prod further on any of the party associated challenges, there is a visible nonchalant approach as far as Nikhil is concerned. There hasn’t been a glitch so far even while convincing international DJs to come down and perform in India. That is obviously not much of a problem at this point in time considering they have grown much as a brand, but even the early days were relatively smooth. “Artistes always have a keenness for exploration, they want to go to a territory where they haven’t worked before and India for many is seen as this final frontier” he says. The professionalism that one has come to expect of submerge these days has surprised many an international act into saying “Wow! I never expected this!”

Companies like Submerge and other entertainment related events have hugely benefited from the government ban on advertizing alcohol via mainstream mediums like the television, newspapers, etc. This means that the sponsors have had to find other avenues to market their product and what better way than to display alcohol to a crowd that’s already high enough on music and ready to groove! “When you look at overheads, club costs, salaries and the cost of drinks, you cannot recover what you pay a DJ on a night purely on what the club makes” states Nikhil. “So yeah the sponsorship does come in handy and they see the kind of crowd that comes in for our events. They have good brand recall and we ask for small amounts of money most of the times. It’s beneficial for all parties.”

One thing Nikhil does concede very honestly is the fact that being a MTV VJ definitely helped when it came to establishing Submerge. “A certain percentage of the initial crowds that came in would come to the event because there was an MTV VJ at the event. Through that we have been able to convert a few into trance music lovers, from where they go to our website which is a knowledge resource and we’ve had people who have become friends or fallen in love or out of it!”

A fast developing perception within the country is that Submerge has perhaps monopolized the market, that it is the be all and end all of EDM in India. It is difficult for people to notice the competition when one name clearly stands out and Nikhil is quick to refute that charge. “Oh that is absolutely untrue. There are other independent companies or independent artistes like Midival Punditz or Jalebee Cartel who are doing an incredible amount of work” he points out and is keen on stressing further, “There is a crew based in Chennai and the DUSK (DJs United to Save Kolkata) crew in Kolkata and I told them that sounds cheesy by the way! However I think on a pan India scale we are probably the most organized of all the companies that are out there.”

The Sunburn music festival started in the heavenly state of Goa in 2007. Organized by Submerge and seen as one of the best festivals in the world, the three day festival has had many a famous name come down to play for the party crowd that flocks the beaches of Goa every year. Artists like Ferry Corsten, Funkagenda, Paul Van Dyk and Richard Durand are just some of the illustrious international names that have performed at the festival. While the three day extravaganza certainly leaves most of its revelers asking for more, there are some murmurs of discontent. One of the primary factors has been the rising ticket prices and the mention of it is not received very warmly at the other end. “I think the ticket prices were fair last year considering what is on offer at Sunburn. I don’t see people complain if the beer is too cheap though. When I go to China I pay four times the amount I pay for a beer at Sunburn. Does anybody say anything about that?!” He also speaks further on how it would cost much more to watch a single DJ play his set abroad than it does at festivals like Sunburn where multiple acts are on show. “I mean I get to hear Funkagenda, Ferry Corsten, Paul Van Dyk and so many more for the price of just one ticket. I know there is a sentiment that we are a monopoly and therefore we can raise the prices but if you sit down and do the math for a festival like that in Goa at that time of the year, with flights, accommodation, security, stage management and hospitality, etc. it is an absolute nightmare and it costs a huge amount which I can’t share!” he states firmly.

Another issue which is slightly less worrying than the rising ticket prices is the possibility of two huge acts performing on two different stages at the same time. This in fact happened at Sunburn 2010 where Paul Van Dyk and Funkagenda played on two different stages confusing the crowds as to which one to pick. However Nikhil does not see this as a problem at all but sees it as more of a planned move instead. “Okay, so it will actually get worse this year. The whole idea of a festival is to not see everything that’s on show. Why would you want to come back to it then?” he asks. “If you miss your favorite artist like say Funkagenda, then watch him when he is on his India tour or come again to Sunburn!” he says. When quizzed about the names that might be coming down for Sunburn 2011, he flatly refuses to reveal any name but that of his own.

Nikhil Chinapa’s aim is to reverse the current trends. He truly believes that India is the country to be in for DJs and while an upcoming DJ might want to play in Europe which is seen as the hub of Electronic Dance Music, Nikhil believes it can be India. “The idea is to reverse engineer the entire global music scene altogether. I have been abroad with Pearl and it is really no big deal. We find that we get more respect and adulation in India than anywhere else!” he states as he explains his vision further, “I have found that India is far more vibrant than any other place, so if the scene here is as vibrant as the people are, there wouldn’t be any need to go abroad and play.”

He is as laidback about his business plans as he is while sitting on the couch at Bagel Shop and doesn’t see the need to have a necessary long term plan. “The trick is to not plan at all” he states. “The trick is to go out and throw a party, call a few people and see what happens!” We think that’s worked out just about fine so far, and there’s no reason to believe it won’t in future.

Article by Vignesh Iyer

Bloodywood represents the fourth chapter of a story which began seventeen years ago when Vishal Dadlani, Shiraz Bhattacharya, Randolph Correia and Papal Mane came together to complete the Pentagram line up. An alternative rock band during the early years since its inception, they decided to take the bold step of changing their style altogether after their first album. Three albums post the genre shift and they stand tall as one of the country’s finest ever bands. Vignesh Iyer wants to find out more about their latest album and they seem eager to share.

Bloodywood

“When we changed our sound we never thought particularly about the success it might bring” says front man Vishal Dadlani when quizzed if it helped accelerate their growth. In almost two decades of their existence the one thing that the band has consistently done is put in a lot of thought into what they do. “There always is a thought, but we did that as we had to know what to do next. If you look at all our albums, in terms of the music and lyrics we always have had something to convey” he says.

It’s a typical late afternoon at the Hard Rock Café in Mumbai and the band has just finished with their sound check at the nearly empty joint which is expected to be full for the gig at night. After posing for a few photographs and some idle chatter later, Randolph Correia joins in. “You have no idea man, we got a lot of stick for the change in sound” says the guitar player talking about how the idea of a ‘band’ was always about being into rock or metal. “The positive thing though is it helped us separate the wheat from the chaff” he says referring to their extremely loyal and knowledgeable fan base which exists presently. “The people who really loved us stuck with us after that change. I reckon every band has a part of its fan base which likes them because they are big or popular and those kind of people left after ‘Up’ (their second album) came out.”

There are definitely no signs of regret for their decision all those years ago and there needn’t be. While ‘Up’ pointed the way to how Pentagram was going to sound in the years to come, their third album, ‘It’s Ok, It’s All Good’ again with a strong electronic influence at its core demonstrated their belief further. The song ‘Voice’ from the album was released as the first single and has since gone on to be one of the most requested songs at their gigs. The song also received considerable airplay on VH1.

It is the 22^nd of March, 2011. A special day for Pentagram not because of their gig at Hard Rock Café, which is really no big deal for a band which has played at the Glastonbury festival, Sundance music festival in Estonia, Great Escape festival in UK and many others. However the day represents an achievement for the members of the band as it is the launch of their fourth album. The brilliantly named, ‘Bloodywood’.

“Each of our albums has been a statement and I think this is our strongest one yet” says Vishal looking visibly excited before the launch gig. “Bombay is mostly known for Bollywood. For us Bloodywood represents the urban, edgy, razor sharp, intelligent side of art which exists as an alternate culture.” This fiercely individualistic, vibrant, non-commercial and increasingly viable face of art is only going to get stronger as the years roll on, they believe. “The only reason we decided to name our album that was because Bollywood and Bloodywood are two names that exist within the same space and time. For us Bloodywood portrays the other side of the coin” he states assertively.

Bloodywood is an album that took them back to their roots while it still retains the quintessential Pentagram sound that we have all come to know of over the many years. The ‘roots’ part of it points to the thought process rather than the sound itself.  “There is nothing basic about this album in terms of sound, but when we speak of roots it goes back to where we came from in terms of being guitar driven and also in terms of being lyrics driven and very outspoken.” Sonically, the band is very clear about the fact that Bloodywood is a huge new step.

As clichéd as it may sound, one cannot escape facts and like so many works of art that one hears of, the magic of the city of Mumbai has strongly influenced this album too. Bloodywood stands inspired and produced out of the sights and sounds of the city that surrounds the Pentagram folk.   “You and I derive everything out of the city we live in, the people that surround us and all of that is there in the sound” says Vishal.

Pentagram has been playing a few songs off their new album prior to their album launch. “The beautiful part about it is the fact that people have heard different versions each time as we’d keep tweaking them about, but what they will hear on the album now is the final product.” They go on to talk further about how their previous album ‘It’s Ok, It’s All Good’ laid the thought process for Bloodywood in a way. “It was a step in this direction” says Vishal. “Songs like Electric and Voice had a similar vibe to them.” There is however a crucial difference when it comes to the lyrics that both the albums contain. “Voice for example was a song that was telling people what to do. Songs on Bloodywood tell you like it is. It is up to you to figure it out, understand and act hopefully.”

“Nothing on this album was a contrived effort really, everything came out in one singular flow” says Randolph as he gets back to the conversation after a short phone call.  The album was a natural byproduct of sixteen years of being together as a band. “We found that we had reached a point where us trying to come up with a song wasn’t a part of the process. It would just happen. Even the production for me was more about how good the sound quality was rather than trying to tweak structures.” While Bloodywood inevitably draws from their previous work and from ‘It’s Ok, It’s All Good’ in particular, there are some remarkable differences between the two albums. These differences will certainly help Bloodywood stand out individually they are sure. “This one is fairly raw in a sense, but you know it is very 2011!” says Randolph. “On the previous album, there were quite a lot of fillers and we felt that the production sometimes took you away from the song. There are no fillers on this one I can assure you. All fourteen songs speak something, they mean something and it is probably the most personal album from us.”

Vishal Dadlani is a name that is well known not just among the niche crowd that follows the independent music scene in India, but is also fairly well known among the masses because of his hugely successful presence in Bollywood as one half of the music director duo of Vishal – Shekhar. “Pentagram influences what I do there, but nothing of what I do there is brought back here” he makes it clear. “Pentagram is who I am man, that’s my core and that’s my being” he says when asked if Bloodywood had borrowed something from his experience working in the film industry.

“It took us sixteen years to make this album is what I always say!” quips Randolph and feels that this is the one album that they have worked harder on than any other Pentagram album. “It was a two year thing in totality maybe.” The songs ‘Paper Toys’ and ‘Let Go’ were among the first ones to be written. “After which came Mental Zero and In My Head, if I remember clearly” he says looking pensive as he reminisces.

The Indian Independent music scene has witnessed the rise of many a band that rose to gain recognition and short lived fame only to break up. One of the most obvious reasons to that is the fact that music is still not seen as a viable career option in the country. With Bollywood managing to blanket almost 90% of the masses under its huge wings, the scope for an alternative has never been explored by the majority in India. A rising force the independent music scene might be, but it has yet to be ‘noticed’ by a considerably large portion of the one billion that reside within the country. This problem coupled with all the regular everyday problems of holding a band together meant that many of the bands have disbanded over the years.

“We got recognition very early and we realized at that point that we were getting trapped in it.” A desire to escape from that led Pentagram to find their own voice and forced them to find their own sound instead of doing popular covers. “We are not shoving ourselves into each other’s faces. We don’t do the regular hanging out thing or partying every other day like most other bands” says Vishal. There is a very mature outlook to things within Pentagram and one gets the feeling that all four band members are in a space where everything becomes an unspoken understanding which leads to an almost telepathic connection when they are together. “Me and Randolph used to fight a hell lot, but about four years back or so, it came to a point where all it took was a phone call. Even an apology is never needed.” They are in a dream space where every other band in the country would want to be and Vishal feels that there is certainly one aspect that has helped contribute in a big way to that – “Nobody is the leader” he says. Coming back to Bloodywood and as a parting question I ask them to describe the album in one word; “Bloodygood!” says Randolph. Who is to argue now eh?

Article by Vignesh Iyer

He is barefooted on stage every time he performs. Dressed in a simple Kurta and Lungi with his ankle bells chiming along to the earthy music, Raghu Dixit’s traditionalism isn’t restricted merely to his attire. It stems from having pursued the Bharatnatyam for seventeen years, from crafting out melodies for words borrowed from yesteryear literature, singing in three different languages and most importantly he possesses a soul that is essentially, farmer like. It is no wonder thence that so many people find an instant connect to the Raghu Dixit sound, for its effervescent charm is an escape from the harsh realities of today’s world. There is an honesty about it, which is rare. We find out more from the man himself.

Son of Soil - Raghu Dixit

One of the most interesting things one could know about Raghu Dixit, is the fact that his music wouldn’t have existed at all if not for a friend who mocked him for doing the Bharatnatyam. “He said it was an effeminate art form, so I had to ask him what would be the manly thing then,” he says as we speak to him after his sound check at Hard Rock Café in Mumbai. So, in his quest to be a ‘macho man’ and more importantly, to prove his friend wrong, Raghu Dixit set about trying to learn the guitar within two months. “I am wholeheartedly thankful to that guy!” he tells. But, the best part of this anecdote is yet to come! While Raghu Dixit’s story since then has been well documented, no one knows of what this friend of his is up to. Luckily enough, they still remain in touch to this day. “He is a great friend of mine and is now a priest in Goa!” Talk about role reversals.

His rise to, let us say – ‘getting known’ was littered with a few more interesting tales. After finishing his MSc in Microbiology, he moved to Belgium as part of an employee training program at Smithkline Beecham . His landlord discovered his music and managed to get him airplay at a local radio station. The positive response he managed to evoke from the European audience made him contemplate about the possibilities back home and forced him to pack his bags for a return to motherland.  “I didn’t tell my people for three months that I got back from Belgium,” he confesses. “I let my mother know hesitantly and she stopped talking to me.” It was only after he started sending her paper cuttings of his band Antaragini, that the cold war ended. She cannot see him being anything else now, he is proud to add.

Raghu Dixit on Later... with Jools Holland

If the previous incidents were important stepping stones to a promising career, his gig at Zenzi (Bandra) proved to be the one definitive moment. “I was doing the same stuff that I am doing today, but you can say that I got discovered that day.” Playing around college circuits and places around the country provided him with short term satisfaction but, this one gig changed it all. Seated in the audience that night, were music composer duo Vishal – Shekhar who were blown away by the freshness his music contained. “I can definitely claim that Vishal and Shekar very proudly put me on the world map. People got to know about me.” he informs before speaking further about how his rising market price is not the cause for his belly. “The one thing I inherited from dad,” he quips!

He likes the versatility and depth that a violin offers, and jamming with a Carnatic Violinist during college days provided inspiration for the trademark Raghu Dixit sound that we hear today. “He was a proper Carnatic classical Musician and I was trying to impress girls with English songs. But a while later, we started composing songs seriously and the girls went out of my head, music took center stage,” he says. Speaking of sound, Raghu Dixit anticipates a drastic change for his second album, “My sound was never a clinically masterminded sound as such, it is more of people jamming together and bringing their own thing to the table. A lot would depend also upon our producer, whomsoever it may be.”  Despite having been a front man for over a decade now, he is not a trained singer he reveals “I am trained for everything else except singing! A friend of mine who designed our logo says that it comes naturally out of being in an urban setting with a rural soul.”

The Raghu Dixit Project

While the Bollywood fueled launch definitely propelled him to heights that otherwise would have been far more difficult to achieve, it is his music that has helped him stay there. Apart from being one of the premier independent musicians in the country, The Raghu Dixit Project has also enthralled audiences all over the world in countries such as the UK, Korea, Japan, Russia, Hong Kong etc. “What they seem to like about us in foreign countries is the fact that our songs are happy and positive. Most of the bands there are singing about the anger, frustration, death and stuff like that,” he mockingly says.  That they manage to leave a gig with people smiling behind them is a thought that pleases him immensely. “I could write about a girl and guy or my problems but I think people would only relate to that so long as their situation is similar. Once that changes, the connection is lost.” It is this thought that led him to consciously seek out for evergreen literature written by saints and philosophers. “Their writings describe the beauty of the country that I live in and some of their simple philosophy has allowed us to sustain life in a very beautiful and down to earth manner. The songs written by Kabir, Bulleh Shah or Sant Shishunala Sharif are extremely universal and eternal,” he says.  Raghu Dixit’s primary mission is to help a sixteen year old understand the messages these songs contain through his unique brand of music and he always ensures that he explains the meaning of a song before he plays it at a concert.

The Raghu Dixit Project

Raghu Dixit performed at the BBC’s ‘Later..with Jools Holland’ show on the 16^th of November, 2010. It is a stage where many legends such as Eric Clapton, Kings of Leon and Paul McCartney have played. What’s more, there was one other legendary musician sharing the stage with him that very night – Led Zeppelin’s Robert Plant. “I was initially not interested in going all the way to the UK for the show. They just wanted us to play one song on stage.” Furthermore, the west still seems to be holding on to the stereotypical image of Indians and Indian music in particular.  “They wanted an instrument with that ‘black thing on the top’ I speak of the Tabla!” he says referring to BBC’s insistence that he use the instrument, though he hadn’t used it before. Co-incidentally there happens to be a frame of Pandit Ravi Shankar hanging along one of the walls of HRC, Mumbai. “Thanks to people like him,” says Raghu, pointing at the picture with a wry smile painted across his face. Despite these minor hesitations, the experience itself turned out to be one of the best days of his life. “It was intimidating initially. You don’t just walk in and expect to see Robert Plant doing his sound check. Besides, the studio is massive with many bright lights on the ceiling and people running around as though they’re trying to prevent the world from collapsing!” he says. The professionalism on show was the most impressive part. Their clockwork precision meant that the sound check was done in fifteen minutes flat. “I still pinch myself over that experience, it was absolutely magnificent!”

“In India, we are pampered. There you have to lug your own equipment, unpack and pack.” For anyone who imagined foreign gigs were all about travelling inside a tour van filled with champagne, plasma TV’s, groupies and the like, Raghu is quite happy to bust the myth. The notion that bands are actually invited to play abroad and taken care of is not true, it happens only in rare cases. Bands like The Raghu Dixit Project actually end up spending a huge chunk of their locally made money abroad. “Everything is done at my cost now, I spent almost forty lakhs last year because whether I make money or not, I need to pay the musicians and my management team abroad. Can’t even afford roadies who can carry my stuff!” he informs as he smiles upon seeing my utterly bewildered face.

Son of Soil - Raghu Dixit

The idea it seems is to consolidate a chosen market and therefore he has a twenty member team consisting of managers, PR agents and a few evangelists who do it for the love of his music. “It’s a common misconception even for a lot of the bands. During our entry level tour the first time, we hired the venue, sound and invited select industry personalities to watch us after which there was food and wine. All out of my pocket!” The Raghu Dixit project did thirteen of such gigs as an exercise in familiarizing their name amongst the UK music industry’s big names. Many such regular trips to the UK, countless gigs at pubs and many festivals later, they have managed to create a buzz around the place by now.  They plan to do Australia and the US next. “We need at least three to four summers before we can break into a particular territory, but I am a very ambitious guy and we’ll do it,” he says exuding confidence.

The press and critic responses to his music abroad have been largely mixed and their obsession for the quintessential Indian sound doesn’t help when artistes go abroad. “Some of them want a Carnatic sound to be played on the guitar and maybe they can’t take it when an Indian player does a two handed guitar lick and burns up the fretboard!” However, their undisputed professionalism is something Raghu Dixit has a lot of respect for and wishes the Indian independent music scene had a lot more of it. “They scrap your sound-check if you turn up late and even a delay of five minutes makes them grumpy,” he says.  He also believes that their overall professional approach combined with the best of technology is one of the biggest reasons for the profound satisfaction on stage. “We’ve never had a bad gig abroad!”

Speaking about the potential for Indian bands to do well abroad, Raghu Dixit states a whole lot of the usual suspects but isn’t best pleased when his brother, Vasu Dixit’s band Swarathma is mentioned. “They’re a pukka copy of my music anyway, I completely discredit Swarathma of any originality at all. The music, sound, persona and the attire are just a pretentious imitation of my band,” he states firmly. That awkward moment later, I ask him the one question I had to. Does he still do the Bharatnatyam? “Yeah, just that its belly dancing now!” and he’s off to find an iron box to press his lungi before the performance.

Article by Vignesh Iyer

From 1981 to 1998 it lasted. A monumental journey that began with sneaking in original songs between playing covers to audiences, ended up with the band releasing three all original albums under two different names, Rock Machine and Indus Creed. They embraced the cover seeking crowd, gave them a proper taste of original music,  toured the length and breadth of the country, attained mainstream media coverage and left their fans pining for more when they ultimately decided to stop twelve years ago. Now, the vacation has ended and they’re back to refresh memories, relive moments but most of all, to begin a new chapter; to continue the journey…

Indus Creed

“Hey we just got back because we are broke!” announces Zubin Balaporia managing to evoke ripples of laughter across the warmly lit room at vocalist Uday Benegal’s place. “The irony is this quote coming from you!” Uday rebukes him playfully. More laughter. Nothing has changed they claim and we’ve got no reason to doubt that, going by the nonchalant humor and the general vibe.  “Oh and Mahesh looked tired back then too, so really, everything is the same,” says Zubin.

Fresh from playing around the US with his fusion band Alms for Shanti along with former Indus Creed member Jayesh Gandhi,  Uday Benegal returned to India in 2008. “Whenever I used to get back from a vacation we would generally hang out together and yeah we did speak about getting back at times”. About a year back Uday Benegal, Mahesh Tinaikar and Zubin Balaporia began thinking about it seriously and contacted other ex members, “But, they were pretty much spread across the world and their lives had taken other directions which meant they couldn’t be a part,” says Uday. The reunion happened with their blessings though, and with some friendly advice that said “If you are using the name, do us proud. Don’t f**k it up!”

Their busy schedule meant that the Indus Creed reunion was preceded by an acoustic project started by Mahesh Tinaikar and Uday Benegal a while back.  It is called Whirling Kalapas and their quest for a drummer to play along with, led them to Jai Row Kavi, who will now be the mainstay drummer for Indus Creed version 2.0. “He was quite delicate with the drums on those mellow soft tracks on our acoustic project, but his tendency towards Bhayank Maut and Pin Drop Violence kind of style would emerge every now and then!” quips Uday.  The focus now is clearly more towards Indus Creed as Jai has been welcomed into the fold due to the fact that he is an extremely solid rock drummer. Also the obscurely named Whirling Kalapas it would seem wasn’t exactly a name that people could cling on to. “People would call it kallappas, kaapals, etc. and sometimes the wireless kalapas,” says Uday with a deadpan expression spread across his face while the others smirk.  They still intend to continue with it as a side project while Indus Creed rolls on.

It is difficult not to wonder why a bunch of people with such genuine camaraderie and understanding would have wanted to part ways all those years ago.  Indus Creed back then wasn’t a band that was struggling to get noticed. They were touring all over the country and abroad, getting a reasonable amount of media attention and all of that, not because they could pull off covers; but because their originals kicked some butt. In short, they were living a dream and had had sizable success for an Indian band. The decision to not pursue the road together might have shocked many but the band has its own take on the situation back then.

Indus Creed

“There was this slant towards Bollywood happening at that time and in a big way really,” informs Zubin. “We were under a lot of pressure from the record companies to play in Hindi and change our style but, we weren’t prepared to do that.” That clichéd dilemma which has confronted many a band before was staring at them in the face. The classic band versus record company argument demanded that they take one of the two paths – Be yourself or be what the world (or majority of the country in this case) wants you to be. History tells us that they chose neither of the options and it wasn’t without good reason.  In hindsight, it probably wouldn’t have been fair had they taken any of those options. They wanted to do something different. “We had always done things the way we wanted to. Even the albums were initially recorded by us and then handed over to the record companies.”

Zubin then goes on to also elaborate on the feeling within the band during the time, “We had existed for seventeen years which is a huge accomplishment for any band anywhere in the world and we all felt compelled to explore other avenues too. We dint want to play gigs just for kicks. Looking back I feel it was a sound decision. There was no animosity and we stopped as the best of friends without any regrets.”

“There is very little money in this business,” says Mahesh Tinaikar. The lead guitar player gives one the impression that he prefers playing to talking and has been silently observing the conversation develop for a while now.  “We don’t need the record companies or television anymore to promote ourselves, but back then the situation was quite different,” he argues. It would be a while before he decided to break the self imposed silence again during the course of our interview.  Then I remembered Zubin Balaporia saying he was normally tired and they had just finished up with a photo shoot. So, we let him be.

Uday Benegal points to another positive that distinguishes today from back then, “I can say that musicians are fairly happy because of piracy, because what it has done is killed the record companies.” The ‘cheapening of the music industry’ didn’t go down too well with the band and the relatively non – existent independent music scene back then meant that Indus Creed had to take a breather. That they took it for way too long is another matter altogether!

Indus Creed

Coming back to the family after their twelve year hiatus hasn’t changed much except for the fact that opening themselves up to different genres of music has helped them all evolve as musicians. If the music they played back in the 80’s felt fresh, it seems like their followers can expect much more now. “It’s a natural progression really. The kind of music you make will always come from what you have been listening to. Our new material will focus more upon getting more of a contemporary sound because what worked then may not work in the present day scenario,” states Zubin.  Some of their old songs have been reworked and tweaked and they have also written new material. “We want to look forward with a glance backward at the past every now and then,” says Uday, his suggestion an indication towards their desire to retain focus on the future while they recreate some of the old magic from time to time. Indus Creed loyalists, a new album before mid 2011 can certainly be expected.

A key contribution towards that album will definitely come from drummer Jai Row Kavi and bassist Rushad Mistry. Both are relatively young when compared to their band mates and are in their twenties. I cannot help but ask them if they suddenly feel too old, “Nah, we probably make them feel younger!” replies Jai and continues as the subsequent laughter dies down after Uday has astutely pointed out that he is the one writing out the cheques.  “I heard them in 1999, after their break up and I think ‘Pretty Child’ was the only song I knew then. However, they said they were getting back together and I obviously wanted to be a part of it man.” The band knew Jai well as he had played with Whirling Kalapas earlier.

However, Rushad’s was a different case. “This is the first time I am playing with someone whom I do not know much about and only Mahesh had seen Rushad play before,” Uday informs. The bass guitar player is seated with his arms folded and has so far remained quieter than the man who recommended him to the band. Maybe that is why he was chosen by Mahesh Tinaikar, a part of me thinks. “I had never imagined I’d be playing for Indus Creed, such a legendary band!” he says. He finds the stories from the old days interesting “Like when some guy told them I sold my sisters shoes to buy your concert tickets all those years back!” before going on to speak about his experience so far. “It has been good, I’ve grown as a musician and learnt much.”

Indus Creed version 2.0 made its debut at the Hard Rock Café in Mumbai on the 7^th of October. The old classics, the old classics with a contemporary touch and the new songs, all of them had an impact upon the crowd that had absolutely packed the venue. Thanks to Facebook, the comments on their page have been immortalized and this magazine cannot be accused of hyping it up. “Most of the comments on our page are about how much the audience enjoyed the newer versions of the old classics. There is fear about changing them as people like to hear them as they remember it, but it was cool and the feedback we received has been very positive,” mentions Zubin enthusiastically.

Indus Creed feel that their greatest achievement to date has been the significant contribution towards making original music an important part of the independent scene in India. “I wanted to throw up every time I sang ‘Let it Rock’ by Bon Jovi, I hated that. Sometimes we even had to tell the crowd that our own songs actually belonged to another band,” reveals Uday much to my amazement. They point out towards the emerging clubs all around the country which allow for a gig to happen hurdle free. “Earlier we had no indoor venues, it was all outdoor and the equipment, fight for the best sound guy, the sheer size of the task made it tougher. Now I would say that the scene is more fertile,” suggests Uday. Mahesh now decides to speak again “Also you can make an album sitting at home now,” he says coolly.

As they are about to embark on the latest chapter, the path left behind looks like it has been a relatively hassle free path. End of the day, they went out to do what they loved and did all of it and much more together. Seventeen long years, three albums and a break up later they’re back to it again while making it all seem like a breeze. No fights, no awkwardness and as they pointed out, nothing has changed. It is very convincing but I’m tempted to ask if they could have done anything at all differently and Uday responds, “Doesn’t everyone feel that way?” and goes on to talk about stuff like how they would have liked to record live drums instead of using drum machines on the two Rock Machine albums. This was possible when they recorded it on the self titled Indus Creed album in LA.  There is no melodramatic statement or a philosophical reminiscence. This fierce determination to not dwell upon the past is probably what got them so far ahead, one feels. The single mindedness may have possibly led to the break up then, but they’re together again and that very zeal suggests, they are meant to be. Welcome back, you have been missed!

Tomorrow

Waiting for Tomorrow

Indus Creed will headline a charity event, named ‘Tomorrow’, to be held on the 24th of November at the St. Andrews auditorium located in Bandra, Mumbai. The other artists scheduled to perform are noted guitar player Chandresh Kudwa and Hindi alternative rock band Radio.
The event is an initiative by Umang Foundation Trust run by professor Anil Thomas of Thomas Tutorials based in Kalina, Mumbai. Having witnessed the appalling state of schools around Tsunami affected areas, this professor decided to help them in the best way he could and decided to raise funds in order to help the children study under better conditions.
Suyash Mohan from Live & Direct Entertainment and Media and founder member of Hindi Rock Circuit, is one of the main brains behind the event. “Our aim is to primarily raise funds for the cause. Whatever our sponsors pay directly goes to charity as the event was an idea suggested by the Umang foundation. We hope to attract corporate donors and continue to do more of such shows.”
“We’ve done charity events in the past too; we just need to be sure about the integrity of the organization. Everyone knows that sometimes it can be a little less than honest,” says Uday Benegal. Infact, One of the earliest gigs Indus Creed played at was the ‘Save Bhopal’ initiative.
One of the highlights of this event at St.Andrews is expected to be Indus Creed’s best known song ‘Pretty Child’, which will be played along with the Ecole Mondiale School Choir. “The song is almost tailor made for this and we’ve never done something like this before, so we’re looking forward!” they say.

Article by Vignesh Iyer