JOIN USFormed in 2004, the band Advaita is known for their music that they say, ‘comes straight from the heart and speaks to the soul’.
Having started with performing gigs in Delhi, the band has travelled a long way and is now looking forward to perform at the Bacardi NH7 Weekender, scheduled for November 28 and 29 in New Delhi.
Ahead of their performance, Metrolife got candid with Ujwal Nagar, the Hindustani vocalist of the band, who talks about Advaita’s music, their journey, struggles and much more.
“Advaita’s music sums up the contemporary Indian lifestyle.
We have a very unique mix of Hindustani classical with arrangements that are worked on carefully. Despite being self taught musicians, we all have the sensibility to not dilute the beauty of a traditional piece by overdoing the arrangement or taking it into a space where the essence of the melody is lost,” he says.
Having been in the music scene for over a decade, Advaita has been able to carve a niche for itself with gigs all over the country and abroad. However, like most independent bands in India, it too had its set of struggles and challenges.
“For most bands in India the perpetual problem is getting across to the masses. Our music never reaches beyond a certain point.”
“Independent bands don’t have the funds to make expensive videos that are backed by huge media houses. Alongside, we face problems with sponsorships for productions that we have the content for, but are difficult to execute. They hardly support something beyond the ‘known faces’. Also, we need funds to travel abroad. For a large band like ours the travel expenses are the biggest challenge to overcome,” he adds.
So in a condition like this, Advaita feels open to enter the Bollywood music scene, especially because the genre still rules the industry. “Bollywood supports many people financially and it’s such a large industry that one simply can’t compete with it. The only sensible thing to do is to co-exist and be open to collaborations when there’s an opportunity. So, we certainly would like to make film music, or do background scores as long as the vibe of the band is not diluted because of scripts,” explains Nagar.
They also feel that alternative platforms like Coke Studio, The Dewarists and MTV Unplugged, are “the best way for a band to break into the TV audience.”
“They do change the way an average listener looks at a band or the independent music scene. One can see how much work needs to be done when playing live which is required to a backing track at a usual commercial event or awarding ceremony. These platforms have certainly helped us come a long way and we were one of the only bands to have been featured on both Coke Studio and MTV Unplugged, in the same year!”
Elaborating on their future plans, Nagar says, “We have our Bacardi NH7 Weekender gig coming up and this one’s going to be special so one must not miss it. Besides, Advaita has been writing some new material and also tweaking our live set. So hopefully our fans will see some new stuff very soon.”