MUMBAI: The life of a rock musician in North East might be glamorous but it’s rarely easy. Beyond the high of a good performance or the thrill of winning a competition, playing to earn a living is a struggle in the region. The market is too small; the infrastructure to support entertainment is weak and socio-economic pressures often drives young musicians to drop their instruments for clerical jobs or to ever-present alcohol and drugs.
“Even very good bands who win competitions end up being small towna cts playing wherever they can. Although there are few bands that can command Rs one lakh for a concert, the going rate is between Rs 16,000- 50,000 for a show,” states Hornbill National Rock event manager Neingulie Nakhro.
Many of the artists too are stuck in the Blues-Rock mode which is great music for those who love the genre but limiting the artists’ repertoire in many ways. Till a decade ago, most artists in the Northeast wouldn’t want to be caught dead singing or performing a Hindi song.
Related Post
However, necessity and globalization are changing things albeit slowly. The decades of insurgency in most states, low economic growth has driven many youth out of the region. This in turn has led to exposure of cultures.
Globalization of music and entertainment has ironically also softened the North East’s youths disdain for Bollywood music and mainstream Indian pop. Conversely, the undeniable talent of the regions musicians have developed a significant underground support base among music lovers all over. The recent performances by Shillong Choir on reality show and for president Barack Obama’s visit has also won fans from mainstream. Musician and VJ Luke Kenny, for instance roped in Aizawl based rock outfit Boomerang as part of the music team for his ‘Rise of the Zombie’ film.
“It’s true that a number of bands or acts will still not want to play a Hindi number. But today, many artists are okay with it and are willing to perform,” says Nakhro.
Feelers are now being sent from both sides- mainstream music and entertainment industries, and the northeast’s music fraternity to engage and solidify connections.
“Most of the request we are getting now are for one-off shows in big cities like Delhi and Mumbai. Our organization takes these requests up and sources out the right band for them. The last attempt was with Saregama label for the winning band of Hornbill rock competition 3-4 years ago. We definitely would like to expand these tie-ups and connections,” points out Nakhro.
He however is cautions about expecting too much, too soon from these tentative collaborations. Both sides- northeast and mainstream India’s music/ entertainment industries- operate in different spheres with differing music values, styles and business models. Musicians from the northeast will have to learn not only the intricacies of playing styles but how the multi-billion entertainment industry works.
“We cannot raise expectations yet on what we can offer or whar the labels can offer. Both parties will have to learn from each other and adapt accordingly. As for now, I can say, one can get very good talent at very reasonable rates.
We are willing to play the role of nodal agency for all Naga and northeastern bands,” he added.
