MARATHI ROCK

Bands like Moksh,Say and Asmi have been taking baby steps to popularise the niche genre of Marathi Rock

Bands like Moksh,Say and Asmi have been taking baby steps to popularise the niche genre of Marathi Rock

After dabbling with conventional methods of reaching out to audiences,when Marathi rock music band Moksh didn’t find things materialising,the members came up with an innovative marketing tactic One Rupee Shows – wherein the band charged just one rupee from the organisers for a performance. This has encouraged many event organisers to give us a chance to perform and popularise our music, says Sagar Joshi,bass guitarist of the band. Moksh was formed by five Mumbai-based youngsters,who were hardcore rock and metal fans. At the same time we were also fond of Marathi music; so we thought of fusing the two. Sometimes we add Hindi lyrics too, says Joshi.

Moksh,widely considered the first Marathi rock band,plays only original Marathi rock songs and also writes several metal ragas. Ragas are a dying section of music; people think they are too long and boring. What we’re trying to do is to adapt them to the metal genre and reduce them to a standard track length. It’s worked for us so far,people enjoy the aggressive punch of the metal and appreciate the classical aspect of the tracks, adds Sagar Joshi.

Infact when Moksh performed at K J Somaya College,Mumbai,the music was loved by the students despite a majority of them being Gujaratis and North-Indians. They couldn’t understand the lyrics but tried to sing along and cheer us. This proves that if your music is good,then language can’t be a barrier, remembers Joshi.

Another band Say,a trio of musicians from Mumbai that make blues and romantic numbers in Marathi,already have one album under their belt and will release their second album in August. Their single,’Break up Ke Baad’ is immensely popular with the youth.

Catering to a niche audience,Marathi rock bands now aim to reach out to wider audience. For instance,Nagpur-based Marathi pop and blues band,Asmi,is less than a year old and is already winning over new fans with every performance. They recently launched their website and regularly post updates on their Facebook page. Similarly,Say the band uplinks its singles on Youtube and by sending Bluetooth messages to their friends.

However,Say’s lead guitarist,Samir Saptiskar says that popularity of their songs is not translating into enough stage performances at the moment.

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Echoing the same sentiment is Subodh Sathe,the vocalist of Asmi. He says,Our music is appreciated by people who follow Marathi rock but we want to reach out to new audiences,create more awareness for our music,which is difficult. However,we will continue our efforts.

Their efforts are showing results in small ways. While Moksh has signed on two commercial Marathi movies along with a tour across Maharashtra,including Pune,post monsoons; Asmi and Say are planning shows in different cities in the state.

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