Here comes the Sun

Members of the young band Arka, who will soon launch their debut album in Chennai, tell Chitra Swaminathan about their experimental, yet rooted, sound

November 20, 2014 08:35 pm | Updated 08:35 pm IST

Members of Arka: Santhosh Chandran, Selva Ganesh, Karthik, Ravichandra Kulur and Mishiko M'ba. Photo: K. Pichumani

Members of Arka: Santhosh Chandran, Selva Ganesh, Karthik, Ravichandra Kulur and Mishiko M'ba. Photo: K. Pichumani

It’s mid-afternoon and five musicians huddle together in a small recording studio in the dusty, crowded Pillayar Koil Street in Triplicane. Oblivious to the din outside, they are masterminding their new creative plot.

Pianist and arranger Hardeep’s fingers move swiftly and lightly over the keys as he digitally positions the music for a track.  Dhiddhin dhin dhin, takjannu ta …ace kanjira artiste Selva Ganesh tells him how one of the chords should end, while singer Karthik hums the tune. Guitarists Mishko M’ba and Santhosh Chandran listen intently, at times striking the strings excitedly. Sitting in a corner, well-known flautist Ravichandra Kulur sways the bansuri to the high and low notes.

As they go back and forth on the line ‘ Sadiyon se yeh pyar hamara, tujh bin mujhe ab nahin rehna …’ (Our love spans many centuries, and I don’t want to now live without you), it seems to define their strong musical bonding. It’s the type of song that makes you daydream with its reflective guitar riffs, steady pulse and wistful vocals. 

Meet the members of the new band Arka (meaning Sun in Sanskrit). “We want to throw light on our bright, tuneful ideas,” laughs Selva, referring to the title. The band will soon mark its arrival with the album And a Half . “It’s called so because we have used scales ranging from two-and-a-half to five-and a-half,” he adds.

The group’s eagerness to enter uncharted terrains comes through in the photo session, when its members, unmindful of the filth and stench, pose against an old structure with peeling plaster and broken walls. Onlookers gather by the dozen to witness the five happily display their camaraderie. As the photographer leans against a garbage bin to get that perfect angle, one of them remarks in a lighter vein, “After all, ideas come from everywhere, even trash!”

“But seriously, no other location could have so effectively summed up our music,” says Selva. “There’s the feel of the land, the surroundings, the moods and universal emotions in our compositions. That is why it’s hard to categorise our music. Even though I have been rigorously trained in Carnatic from age five, labels don’t matter to me much. I believe if you are honest to your art, it will definitely appeal to people’s minds and souls.”

The prince of chartbusters, Karthik, nods in agreement. The lack of formal initiation into any genre, and not hailing from a musical family have never come in the way of experiencing music on his own terms. “The studio and the stage have been my gurus. My interaction with various artistes and the myriad songs I have rendered are invaluable lessons. They give me the confidence to explore and engage with the art at different levels,” he says. So what triggered the idea to come together and form Arka? Says Ravichandra, who has accompanied sitar legend Pandit Ravi Shankar in more than 200 concerts, “Selva, Karthik and I performed together for the first time at a festival organised by Tanmoy Bose in Kolkata two years ago. There was an instant rapport. At the show, and after it too, we felt the need to take this collaboration forward. And it has happened.”

Soon, bassist Mishko, known for his intense Afro grooves, and rhythm guitarist Santhosh Chandran, sought after for his flamenco-inspired style, joined. Each accomplished artiste brings to the band his individual skill and understanding. They are more excited about the freedom Arka offers, to let their musical minds wander and, have hence, put on hold their other projects. “We are kicked about the fact that all the pieces in the album are original. They have a well-defined structure and a strong raga-based foundation. So the move forward for a wider appeal is not by cutting ourselves off from tradition,” explains Karthik.

But doesn’t every band make this promise of a new sound, which is usually a mixture of the old and the new? “Oh no, not us. Such promises don’t make any sense, since I feel you cannot invent; you can only experiment. Music is about permutation and combination. If you come up with a novel one, you will have the satisfaction of having done something different,” says Ravichandra.

With a surfeit of bands, how does Arka plan to position itself? “We are positive because this band is not an overnight start-up by a bunch of amateurs who are confused about the music they want to make. In fact, soon after the launch, we plan to tour countrywide. We are even looking at European platforms,” says Selva.

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