On the 9th of August at Blue Frog Mumbai, Indigo Live brought brought together ‘Cry Freedom- The Fight On Violence Against Women’. Addressing the issue of crime against women by bringing together socially aware & like-minded individuals through the platform of music and comedy, the night bought together various artists cutting across genres of Electronica & Indie pop. The impressive Artist line-up included stand up comedian Aditi Mittal, Indie singer-songwriter Vasuda Sharma with Shanks and the trilogy of Indian Electronica giants Sulk Station, Sandunes & Dualist Inquiry.
Cry Freedom is a platform for the youth to express their freedom in daily lives. Freedom from discrimination, violence, corruption, moral police etc. Using music as a platform, the aim is to create awareness and public support towards social issues that affect our country. Curating the Electronica spirit of the night were Bangalore based electronic/trip-hop duo Sulk Station. Formed by Tanvi Rao and Rahul Giri in 2009, their music is driven by Tanvi’s sultry vocals wrapped in a haze of atmospherics, minimal beats and homegrown synth sounds.
Their songs are a mix of contemporary electronic music genres such as trip-hop, post-dubstep & ambient, with traces of Indian classical music. Adding to the flavor was the lovely Sandunes, whose live music backgrounds blended with a heavy dose of UK underground electronica and genres ranging between 2 step, future garage, post dub step and experimental electronica. Completing the Electronica experience was the heavyweight Dualist Inquiry-brainchild and solo project of Sahej Bakshi. Armed with incredible mixing skills and an undisputed control over the guitar, Sahej showed how he’s a seasoned performer and justified how he’s one of the leading producers and live performers of electronic music in India. Fresh from the release of his critically-acclaimed album ‘Doppelganger’, Sahej churned out some fantastic home productions as well as other tracks ranging from funk house, house, dubstep, trip-hop and guitar-based-electronica.
At about 10:30 pm, we were graced with model, travel writer, VJ and actress Shenaz Treasurywala, who gave an invigorating speech on Women discrimination. Describing a chilling story of how even she has been a victim of abuse, Shenaz fired up the audience calling for a change in the mindset and asking for us to take a stand on this fight on violence against women before tearing up and stepping down from the stage. The crowd cheered in affirmation as she was greeted with applause and adulation.
Shortly after began the trilogy of Indian Electronica acts. Starting proceedings were Sulk Station with their dark and moody synths and breakbeat electronic. Playing tracks from their album ‘Till you appear’, Raj & Tanvi kept the atmosphere melancholic as Tanvi’s vocals provided the surrealistic edge to compositions of electronic perfection. With their tracks like ‘Bindiya’, ‘Piya’, ‘Supressed’ and‘Wait’, their set was packed with elements of ambient electronica alongwith eerie atmospherics and some euphoric synths. A short set but masterfully delivered by the duo from Bangalore.
Following them was Sandunes-electronic project of Sanaya Ardheshir. Sanaya had a plane to catch, hence she played a short set. But nothing short of brilliance ensued in her set as she displayed her phenomenal skills with the mixers. With tracks from her own productions such as ‘Rabbit Hole’, ‘TBH’ and others, she kept the energy consistent with her track selection.
With 2 step and post-dubstep productions, she kept every audience member on their toes as she spinned out her unnamed collabration with Billie fountain and her remix of Shaai’r + Func’s ‘Oops (Sandunes Remix)’. At around midnight, Sanaya aka Sandunes bid the crowd adieu as she waved and rushed off the stage to catch her flight! We hope she was able to catch her flight after sending us onto our own!
Concluding the night and this noble cause was the superbly skilled Sahej Bakshi aka Dualist Inquiry. Known for his driving productions as well as his captivating stage presence, the crowd was thoroughly enthusiastic in anticipation as Sahej made his way on to the decks. With his electric guitar in close proximity, Sahej started off with ‘Gettin’ Live’ by Griz setting off his mix with a Soul and Funk feel. Adding his signature guitar riffs and improvised breaks, Sahej kept the crowd guessing as he controlled this opera of sounds as only a conductor would. With tracks like ‘Delta’ by C2C (), ‘Icarus’ by Madeon and Pretty Lights’s ‘I know the truth’, the energy was palpable as he seamlessly blended through genres.
Playing tracks from his own backyard, he played the irresistible ‘Exile’ and ‘Gravitat’. Sending shivers down our spines was the delightful remix of Coldplay’s ‘Life in Technicolor (Dualist Inquiry remix)’. Other tracks churned out and masterfully transitioned over each other were ‘Rock it’ by Sub focus, Grizmatik’s ‘Digital Liberation Is Mad Freedom and the soulful ‘Coffee Break’ by Zedd’s dead.
What makes Dualist Inquiry one of the finest performers in the country, is the tremendous energy he brings into his live sets. With improvised riffs on his guitar on most tracks, he makes the set experience a little more impromptu for audience members as he infuses live performances with his live mixing. As his set came to a close at nearly 1:45 a.m., the crowd hadn’t had enough as even at the time of the closing presentation, the crowd rose into chants of “..ONE MORE SONG..”! And Sahej made his way back onto the decks, beaming from ear to ear, to play a few more songs. Playing remixes of Crystal Fighters’s ‘You & I’ and ‘Pogo’ by Digitalism, he ended the night with his remix of Adustam’s ‘Number2 (Dualist Bootleg Remix)’ before taking to the microphone and acknowledging the love he had received, “..Bombay, thank you so much for tonight! You guys were amazing….please adopt me!”
And so came to end a night for a good cause. Perhaps in the time to come, Cry Freedom and more musical platforms such as these will help curb the violence and discrimination plaguing our country. And with that dream we bid adieu till the next time we dance united!
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Reviewed by Hamed Khalidi.
Edited by Angelica Syiemiong Pereira.
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