Music Melange

“We are all for promoting fresh talent and after listening to the fusion of sorts,we were keen that the group play for us this Friday,” says Virk who would also be launching their new South African delicacy ‘Peri Peri Chicken’ with the event. While Panchkula-based Ankit Balhara is a well-known singer (he’s a former Sa Re Ga Ma show finalist),the Desi Sultans bring in a two-member Chandigarh-based crew who are into music production with their USP being hip-hop. “We are a decade old band that plays out original compositions in a mix of rock and hip-hop styles,” says the lead vocalist Abhimanyu Bansal. Desi Sultans will also be releasing their first CD this Friday. “Our lyrics are very topical. We have songs dedicated to Chandra Shekhar Azad and the Indian political system. We like to make a social statement through our work,” says Bansal as he introduces us to his other crew member Simardeep Singh Sidhu,a pro on the turntable.

Interestingly,this Friday will see the Desi Sultans do a jugalbandi of sorts with Balhara,who likes to call himself a ‘music experimentalist’. Also ‘scratching’ the turntable will be resident DJ Rohit. “There’s no point doing the usual. We will do a fusion of Indian classical singing with contemporary melody and lots of rap,” explains Balhara who is also working on his debut CD that will make the most of this fusion. “It’s untitled for now but the tracks are old Bollywood numbers presented in an all-new format. It’s not a remix but fusion of various genres,” adds Balhara. Though hip-hop is not new to India,it’s yet to find acceptance,to which Bansal says,“That’s why we pepper our performances with commercial club numbers but do add in our original style,” adds Bansal. Friday Live will be hosted at Cafe Oz on August 27,9 pm onwards.