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Journalism of Courage
Established in 1991, Parikrama is considered to be one of the biggest independent rock groups in Asia. But the members of this music band feel that they are just a “bunch of school kids” who came together and started playing for their love of rock ‘n’ roll, which has only grown stronger with each passing year. Known for their songs like But It Rained, I Believe, Tears Of The Wizard, and Translucent Night, the band has performed across the country enthralling their fans every time they come on stage.
From being discovered on the Mahindra Independence Rock as an emerging talent to being a performer on it — how has your journey been?
It’s been absolutely beautiful and it does not seem like we will complete 33 years soon, our beginning seems just like yesterday. We have a strong connect with a few festivals and cities, and Mahindra I-Rock of course, is on top of the same. It is home!
You are one of Asia’s biggest rock groups. In what ways, do you feel, the genre has evolved/undergone a makeover in India?
Thank you so much! We actually never considered ourselves to be the biggest anywhere. We’re just a bunch of school kids who started with the love of playing rock ‘n’ roll and we are still those kids. Rock ‘n’ roll has seen many changes and frankly is on its way back up after losing out to other genres about a decade ago. It has survived over 60+ years and that’s proof enough that it’s a very, very strong medium of music and can never ever fade away.
How different were things when you started out in the early 90s — in terms of being discovered, audience, platforms, etc — as compared to emerging bands today?
It was very tough way back then because sending out music to people was only through physical mediums like audio tapes, CDs, etc. It’s much, much better now in terms of being discovered etc.
You are among the few independent bands who have consciously stayed away from Bollywood — why? Has it been a difficult decision to stick to?
Not at all, we started with a common love to play classic rock and of course that evolved into originals and we love what we’re doing! We were never interested in Bollywood and are not even now, but if anyone comes up with an offer where we end up doing our music the way it is then why not as a band?
What do you think has helped you stay relevant for over three decades now? Did you ever fear losing out in the rat race?
That’s the beauty I guess, that we never fear losing out and will always be in the rat race. The numbers and such don’t matter to us, we just love what we do and will be doing the same. I seriously don’t know what we did differently, we probably stuck to what we started out and pledged decades ago, and that’s rock ‘n’ roll for life!
Music is ever-evolving. How challenging can it be for a band to keep up with these changes, yet retain their originality?
That’s a great question and it’s very important to change things around with time but still maintain your own identity. Parikrama’s 32-year journey has all different phases of original tracks and will continue to be so in our new releases. Lots of new music coming up including one to be released on the day we play at Mahindra I-Rock.
What goes behind making a song for Parikrama?
Lots of personal experiences – good, bad, happy, sad, etc. Over all, we still do it the old way. Nitin (Malik) and Sonam (Sherpa) were the main songwriters. After Sonam’s passing, it’s now Nitin and Abhishek (Mittal) who do so and others are also slowly adding in to the main song writing. There on, after a basic structure is done, everyone works out their parts and we still finalize things the old way – by meeting for rehearsals and making the changes and so on and finishing the song.
Tell us about your upcoming performance at Mahindra I-Rock.
We will have many new originals and many surprises as well at this years’ Mahindra Independence Rock.
One musician/band you, as a band, enjoy listening to/seek inspiration from?
1000000s of them, buddy! But yes, Rock Machine has always been an inspiration for us.
Being a band can come with many challenges. How do you ensure each voice in the unit is heard to avoid rifts?
We have developed that over the years and we communicate — that’s the biggest key. It’s like a family where you have ups and downs but still stay together!
Mahindra I-Rock will be held on November 4-5 at Mumbai’s Bayview Lawns. Parikrama will be performing on the final day.
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