The Brass Baraatis

A typical band would have around twenty people,depending on the size of the wedding procession and the kind of fanfare the families want. “The wedding planners decide on the size of the band according to the pomp the wedding has,” says Zakir Hussain,the proprietor of Ravi Band in Delhi . However,the band cannot do without certain instruments. “The saxophone,the clarinet,the half-bass and the full bass,no wedding is complete without it,” says Manoj Hamav,manager of Hinglai Wedding Band in Mumbai.

It’s hard work and involves long hours. The tunes they belt out may sound scratchy,but the bands work long hours perfecting them. “We have to keep playing while on the move,rarely standing still. We have also to play in all kinds of weather conditions—hot,cold or windy. Sometimes even in the rain,even though we stand the very real risk of our instruments rusting. However,a little bit of rain is not going to deter a baarati in full flow – they don’t mind getting wet while dancing,” says one of the conductors of Shiv Mohan Band,Delhi ,who wished to remain unnamed. “Every day,we have to practice for up to four hours,perfecting each song,” adds Hamav.

According to Manoj Kumar,proprietor of Krishna Band in Chandigarh,“A wedding is incomplete without the brass band playing. We even time our performances with many traditional rituals like when the boy climbs the ghodi.” For a city that boasts of many retired servicemen,military bands were popular too and it wasn’t surprising to see a pair of bagpipers marching their way in announcing the bride’s arrival. “Only 10 percent poeple prefer military bands,the rest feel a wedding would be incomplete without the pomp and show or as we call it band and baajaa,” quips Kumar,who is inundated with bookings all through the year.

Most popular Bollywood songs are added to the ‘song menu’ of the band as they come. But some classic tunes have remained to the point of becoming clichés. “Some songs,like Munni and Sheila,have become such a rage that they had to be added to the bank. A perfect example is Main nikla gaddi leke,which became so popular when it came out in 2001 that we started playing it at every wedding and it is now one of our ‘classics’. At the same time,there are some evergreen tracks,which have to be played at every single wedding,” says Hussain. “I know people are scathing towards brass bands because we play songs like Mere yaar ki shaadi hai and Sapne mein milti hai at pretty much every wedding,but these songs are also the most popular among baaratis. Yes,sometimes a baraati will come up to us,requesting us to play a particular song,which is why we have to keep up-to-date,as far as songs are concerned. But the real bhangra begins with Aaj mere yaar ki shaadi hai,” says Hamav.

Employment can sometimes become a real issue,especially during the thin months of the wedding season. “Most of our workers come from states like Rajastan,Uttar Pradesh and Bihar,where weddings usually take place after harvest. They come here,looking for work in the winters. During the summer months,we are usually short-staffed,and are forced to charge higher prices,” he says.

However,over the past few years,inflation has affected the bands and they have had to increase their charges to keep things on an even keel. “Our prices have shot up by almost 50 percent over the last three years because suddenly,the cost of living has gone up so much. Instruments have become more expensive,our artistes demand more money and even our floating workers,who work on a day-to-day basis,ask for roughly twice the amount that they used to previously!” exclaims Hussain. “Earlier,even if the pay was lower,we used to earn a good amount of money through bakhshish,when a baarati,usually on hearing his favourite song,used to give us a hefty tip. However,since the recession took place,this practice has all but died out,” laments Hamav.