VISHAL DADLANI
A well known figure on the Indian Rock scene, Vishal Dadlani has been associated with [v] Launch Pad from its first season. Known for his forthrightness, he's best known as the frontman of Pentagram, and has simultaneously also revolutionized the Hindi film music genre as one of the best music directors in the country, with Vishal & Shekhar. He has spearheaded many movements for causes he believes in, and encourages fresh new talent to write their own music and make a difference with a song.
Pentagram is by far, India's best known and most popular rock band. Known for their unique electro-heavy sound, they have created a sonic space which is instantly recognisable. Pentagram has had three smash albums, and more than five hundred performances across the country and the world. They recorded and released India's first exclusive-to-internet song, The Price of Bullets, during the Kargil war. The video, directed by Farhan Akhtar, was blacked out by channels across the board for being "too politically loaded", although the song itself became the most downloaded track on the Asian mp3.com charts. Internationally recognized, they have played festivals abroad, including the legendary Glastonbury festival, with contemporary giants like Coldplay, Fatboy Slim and White Stripes. Voice, their first single from the album It's OK, It's All Good (2007) won the Song Of The Year award at the recent Jack Daniel's Annual Indian Rock Awards, where Vishal was also awarded Vocalist Of The Year.
Vishal and Shekhar teamed up to make music for films in 1999, and burned up charts with music for movies like like Pyaar Mein Kabhi Kabhi, Jhankaar Beats, Allah Ke Bande (song), Dus, Om Shanti Om, Tashan, Bachna Ae Haseeno and Dostana. They have also kick-started the playback careers of singers as well known as Shaan, Kailash Kher, and Anushka Manchanda, and more recently, Raja Hasan and Amanat Ali. Not content with being powerhouse composers, Vishal and Shekhar are also legendary performers on stage, as proven by the trails of screaming audiences they leave behind everywhere they go, most recently on the Bollywood 'Unforgettables' tour. They have also formed a record label to release and promote outstanding artists, the first of whom, Raghu Dixit, is already a massive success.
Vishal's knowledge and experience make him the ideal person to identify and train India's next big music sensation.
BOBBY TALWAR
Bobby plays bass guitar for Zero, which is one of the most popular rock bands in our country. He practiced corporate law for three years before realizing that his passion lay elsewhere. Zero started off 10 yrs back when four guys came together and started jamming in his bedroom. His law degree provided him a different perspective and he was able to advice other bands as they were naive about certain things.
That's when he decided to take the plunge and go to the other side and do something to promote alternate music. Non-Bollywood music did not have a support system in India and Bobby wanted to change that. He formed Only Much Louder which is an Events and Artist Management Company, which professionally manages leading bands in India. They also produce live musical concerts and events.
Bobby soon realized that these bands needed visibility and ways of distribution. Therefore he formed two other companies; Counter Culture Records, that produces, markets and distributes independent performers and musicians and Babble Fish Productions which produces music videos, ad films and corporate AVs.
He was also instrumental in bringing down the first international music festival to India, the Big Chill Goa. Big Chill is a UK based music festival which has close to 40 foreign performers. He has principled aims to change perceptions of music as viable career option. He also wants to change perceptions of Indian music abroad, and demonstrate that it is not all about Bollywood.
ANIRBAN CHKARABORTY
Orange Street started off in 1995 at New Delhi when singer Anirban Chakraborty aka Bann teamed up with guitarist Saibal Basu, at the time when, to make original music was yet to be "considered" and was largely overlooked by the country obsessed with anything "not Indian". Orange Street's distinctive sound is a combination of rock, Indian classical & traditional Dhol shot through an electronica bed.
In 2003, Bann decided to completely revamp the band. He felt that people were also evolving in their own ways as times were changing. Thus getting together some very talented musicians, Orange Street evolved with a ground breaking sound which is the first of its kind in their country. The album "DHARMA" saw this outstanding collaboration of the new line-up with guitarist Donn, drummer Ashwin Andrew, bassist Dara, Hindustani classical singer Imran Khan and the Dhol player Parveen Sethi. Orange Street is now preparing for the new season of music festivals, film projects and release of the new album.
SHAA'IR + FUNC
She's from New York, he's from Mumbai. Rated one of Vh1's Top Ten emerging artists out of India, the diasporic duo's brand of electronic "lovebeat" has rocked over 60 shows in New York, the UK and India. India's answer to the electronica/ dance scene, S+F's sound is distinctive: bass-heavy rhythms, poetic lyrics, and haunting synth melodies. Their live shows are always high on energy, performance and costuming, and always tons of fun.
SHAA'IR + FUNC are DIY artists from Mumbai and NYC. Together they produce and compose music. They have released an album entitled ‘NEW DAY – The Love Album' out on Counterculture Records (MUMBAI, India), in MAY
ASHUTOSH PHATAK
Mumbai-born composer Ashutosh Phatak's music is the stuff of dreams. Opulent, lucid and at times unsettling, Ashu's mystic sound scapes artfully weave stories of love and loss, of hope and fear: stories that are at once intensely personal and invitingly universal. His debut album ‘Sigh of an Angel' is rooted in duality, and exists in fantastic worlds that are intimate, expansive and rich in their visual imagery.
Ashu, a graduate in Western Classical Music Theory from The University of Pennsylvania, has been professionally composing music for the last 15 years. He is one half of the immensely successful composer duo "Smoke" better known as "Ashu & Dhruv" in the business world. They have recently released the album Smoke Signals which includes the hit single Summertime Rocks and have scored many successful films including Bombay Boys and White Noise. They have also completed their first international film Broken Thread.
RAGHU DIXIT
Raghu Dixit is a self-taught guitarist-singer-composer-song writer-musician from Mysore, now settled in Bengaluru. As the founder-front man of his band Antaragni for more than eight years, and now of The Raghu Dixit Project, Raghu has performed more than 250 concerts all over India. His band The Raghu Dixit Project released it's debut album in 2008 and have done a world tour to promote it. Raghu's music is a seamless amalgamation of Indian ethnic music and styles from different parts of the world. His lyrics though intense, are simple and speak about every common man's emotions and experiences, therefore, making his songs extremely popular among his fans. Inserting Indian ethnic folk, Sufi and classical phrases cleverly into his songs, Raghu's singing style can be described as unique at best. His vocal range and versatility has often been appreciated with awe. His songs Mysore se aayi, Mumbai, Antaragni, Hey Bhagwan, Har Saans Mein, Gudugudiya and many more are very popular among his fans. Raghu has also produced music for contemporary dance and theatre productions.
A well known figure on the Indian Rock scene, Vishal Dadlani has been associated with [v] Launch Pad from its first season. Known for his forthrightness, he's best known as the frontman of Pentagram, and has simultaneously also revolutionized the Hindi film music genre as one of the best music directors in the country, with Vishal & Shekhar. He has spearheaded many movements for causes he believes in, and encourages fresh new talent to write their own music and make a difference with a song.
Pentagram is by far, India's best known and most popular rock band. Known for their unique electro-heavy sound, they have created a sonic space which is instantly recognisable. Pentagram has had three smash albums, and more than five hundred performances across the country and the world. They recorded and released India's first exclusive-to-internet song, The Price of Bullets, during the Kargil war. The video, directed by Farhan Akhtar, was blacked out by channels across the board for being "too politically loaded", although the song itself became the most downloaded track on the Asian mp3.com charts. Internationally recognized, they have played festivals abroad, including the legendary Glastonbury festival, with contemporary giants like Coldplay, Fatboy Slim and White Stripes. Voice, their first single from the album It's OK, It's All Good (2007) won the Song Of The Year award at the recent Jack Daniel's Annual Indian Rock Awards, where Vishal was also awarded Vocalist Of The Year.
Vishal and Shekhar teamed up to make music for films in 1999, and burned up charts with music for movies like like Pyaar Mein Kabhi Kabhi, Jhankaar Beats, Allah Ke Bande (song), Dus, Om Shanti Om, Tashan, Bachna Ae Haseeno and Dostana. They have also kick-started the playback careers of singers as well known as Shaan, Kailash Kher, and Anushka Manchanda, and more recently, Raja Hasan and Amanat Ali. Not content with being powerhouse composers, Vishal and Shekhar are also legendary performers on stage, as proven by the trails of screaming audiences they leave behind everywhere they go, most recently on the Bollywood 'Unforgettables' tour. They have also formed a record label to release and promote outstanding artists, the first of whom, Raghu Dixit, is already a massive success.
Vishal's knowledge and experience make him the ideal person to identify and train India's next big music sensation.
BOBBY TALWAR
Bobby plays bass guitar for Zero, which is one of the most popular rock bands in our country. He practiced corporate law for three years before realizing that his passion lay elsewhere. Zero started off 10 yrs back when four guys came together and started jamming in his bedroom. His law degree provided him a different perspective and he was able to advice other bands as they were naive about certain things.
That's when he decided to take the plunge and go to the other side and do something to promote alternate music. Non-Bollywood music did not have a support system in India and Bobby wanted to change that. He formed Only Much Louder which is an Events and Artist Management Company, which professionally manages leading bands in India. They also produce live musical concerts and events.
Bobby soon realized that these bands needed visibility and ways of distribution. Therefore he formed two other companies; Counter Culture Records, that produces, markets and distributes independent performers and musicians and Babble Fish Productions which produces music videos, ad films and corporate AVs.
He was also instrumental in bringing down the first international music festival to India, the Big Chill Goa. Big Chill is a UK based music festival which has close to 40 foreign performers. He has principled aims to change perceptions of music as viable career option. He also wants to change perceptions of Indian music abroad, and demonstrate that it is not all about Bollywood.
ANIRBAN CHKARABORTY
Orange Street started off in 1995 at New Delhi when singer Anirban Chakraborty aka Bann teamed up with guitarist Saibal Basu, at the time when, to make original music was yet to be "considered" and was largely overlooked by the country obsessed with anything "not Indian". Orange Street's distinctive sound is a combination of rock, Indian classical & traditional Dhol shot through an electronica bed.
In 2003, Bann decided to completely revamp the band. He felt that people were also evolving in their own ways as times were changing. Thus getting together some very talented musicians, Orange Street evolved with a ground breaking sound which is the first of its kind in their country. The album "DHARMA" saw this outstanding collaboration of the new line-up with guitarist Donn, drummer Ashwin Andrew, bassist Dara, Hindustani classical singer Imran Khan and the Dhol player Parveen Sethi. Orange Street is now preparing for the new season of music festivals, film projects and release of the new album.
SHAA'IR + FUNC
She's from New York, he's from Mumbai. Rated one of Vh1's Top Ten emerging artists out of India, the diasporic duo's brand of electronic "lovebeat" has rocked over 60 shows in New York, the UK and India. India's answer to the electronica/ dance scene, S+F's sound is distinctive: bass-heavy rhythms, poetic lyrics, and haunting synth melodies. Their live shows are always high on energy, performance and costuming, and always tons of fun.
SHAA'IR + FUNC are DIY artists from Mumbai and NYC. Together they produce and compose music. They have released an album entitled ‘NEW DAY – The Love Album' out on Counterculture Records (MUMBAI, India), in MAY
ASHUTOSH PHATAK
Mumbai-born composer Ashutosh Phatak's music is the stuff of dreams. Opulent, lucid and at times unsettling, Ashu's mystic sound scapes artfully weave stories of love and loss, of hope and fear: stories that are at once intensely personal and invitingly universal. His debut album ‘Sigh of an Angel' is rooted in duality, and exists in fantastic worlds that are intimate, expansive and rich in their visual imagery.
Ashu, a graduate in Western Classical Music Theory from The University of Pennsylvania, has been professionally composing music for the last 15 years. He is one half of the immensely successful composer duo "Smoke" better known as "Ashu & Dhruv" in the business world. They have recently released the album Smoke Signals which includes the hit single Summertime Rocks and have scored many successful films including Bombay Boys and White Noise. They have also completed their first international film Broken Thread.
RAGHU DIXIT
Raghu Dixit is a self-taught guitarist-singer-composer-song writer-musician from Mysore, now settled in Bengaluru. As the founder-front man of his band Antaragni for more than eight years, and now of The Raghu Dixit Project, Raghu has performed more than 250 concerts all over India. His band The Raghu Dixit Project released it's debut album in 2008 and have done a world tour to promote it. Raghu's music is a seamless amalgamation of Indian ethnic music and styles from different parts of the world. His lyrics though intense, are simple and speak about every common man's emotions and experiences, therefore, making his songs extremely popular among his fans. Inserting Indian ethnic folk, Sufi and classical phrases cleverly into his songs, Raghu's singing style can be described as unique at best. His vocal range and versatility has often been appreciated with awe. His songs Mysore se aayi, Mumbai, Antaragni, Hey Bhagwan, Har Saans Mein, Gudugudiya and many more are very popular among his fans. Raghu has also produced music for contemporary dance and theatre productions.
