Fun and Games

“After sweating it out through the day at the various venues,athletes and delegates from all over the world are rocking the evening concerts. The response has been great so far,” says Subir Malik,lead keyboardist of popular contemporary band Parikrama,who was roped in by Sahitya Kala Parishad to organise a list of the bands who will play at the open-air plaza-cum-amphitheatre at the Village during CWG. So far Delhi bands Parkrama and Them Clones have had performances. The two-hour gigs begin at 6.30 pm ensuring that the athletes do not have a late night. Entry to these performances are free for the CWG Village residents. A handful of invitations are available for others.

“You have to see how the athletes enjoy themselves and dance to the music,” says Dhaval Mudgal,lead vocalist and the manager of band Half Step Down,a five-member band specialising in rock ‘n’ roll. Other bands who will perform over the duration of the Games include Pentagram,Euphoria,Indian Ocean,Naad Brahma and East India Company.

“Our music is actually all about Indian classical solos interwoven with jazz to create a groovy feel. I am sure people are going to love it” says Louiz Banks,whose son Gino will play the drums during the performance of his band Naad Brahma.

Indian Ocean,considered to be one of Delhi’s oldest contemporary fusion band will be closing the rock festival on October 13 with songs from their new album and their recent hit numbers from the film Peepli Live “Things are looking good now. We are not really planning to play any special compositions. We have performed in front of international audience before and have always had some great response. I am sure the guys here will like it too,” says Amit Kilam,drummer,Indian Ocean.

Some of the regulars at these rock parties include the Australian,Canadian and Nigerian participants. However,most musicians say the Indian athletes and delegates are missing in action. “I guess they are busy practicing for their events,” smiles Surojit Dev,drummer,Them Clones.

Of course,not everybody is happy with the selection of bands for the performances. Delhi band Mrigya,for instance,is pretty miffed at being left out. “We are an 11-year-old band with albums,international tours and all the other credentials in place. We should have been performing there,” says Indraneel Hariharan,bassist,Mrigya.