(Of Stellar Rock Bands & Rockstar Tourism)
By Subhasish Chakraborty, Travel Journalist.
If there is any region of India that can lay claim to the axiom of being the rock
music capital, it has got to be the North Eastern region comprising the Seven
sister states. As a travel writer for the past two decades, I have been a witness
to the stupendous growth of Rock & Roll as a tourism product, especially in
countries like USA and UK, where exclusive and thoughtfully curated Rock &
Roll tours are de rigueur.
There are two key reasons why I have decided to pen down this feature
concerning the North Eastern Rock & Roll legacy, which no other geographical
region in India has. Reason No 1 is Moheener Ghoraguli, the first Indian Rock
Band (Bengali) launched from Kolkata in the 1970s and I am a proud Bengali
myself. Reason No 2; I was born and raised in the gateway city of Guwahati,
the pulsating metropolis that has been the breeding ground of great Rock
Bands and has over time evolved as a much sought-after concert venue.
This region is unlike any other Indian destination; life out here is happy-go-
lucky and blessed with some of Mother Nature’s choicest creations, ranging
from the wilds of Kaziranga to those formidable snow-clad Himalayan peaks
in Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh; and under the such, a fabulous natural setting
is the native musicians who truly Rock! Where music is a language and the
entire region, is a living museum of Rock & Roll. As a past native of India’s
North East, I can guarantee you that the Rock & Roll phenomenon will never
fade away from this ravishingly beautiful region blessed with equally beautiful
people, whose fashion sense and innocence are the envy of metropolitan
crowds.
I am in accord with frontline correspondent Eshwar Sundaresan, who rather
evocatively portrayed the region’s Rock music scene in a recent edition of the
publication thus:
People here, it will be observed, have always wanted an identity contrarian
to the mainstream identity, and Rock and Metal were as far away as one
could get from.
Sundaresan adds:
Those who are better informed will be aware of the role played by the student
agitations in Assam, Mizoram and Meghalaya in the 1970s and 1980s. When
the army was called in and curfews were common. During those
interminable evenings, according to the legend, the region’s youth began
listening to the stereo and strumming on the two guitars that every
household here is mandated to own. This probably explains best why metal
and rock fared better than pop and jazz in the region.
As somebody who spent his formative years in the North East from the period
of 1970s to the 90s, easily one of the most volatile periods, with the entire
region embroiled in terrorism; ULFA in Assam, NSCN in Nagaland, MNF in
Mizoram and what you have… I have had a first-person experience of the
region’s booming Rock & Roll phenomenon.
It has been twenty-two long years since my family shifted to metropolitan
Kolkata, and yet, our umbilical connection with North East remains strong,
treasured and precious as ever. I owe a colossal debt to Guwahati, my
birthplace and the picturesque hill station of Shillong (98 Km. away), the
cities’ Rock bands have had an enormous impact on my admiration for Rock
music.
I still vividly remember the night of 12th December 2007, when I was one
amongst the crowd at Shillong’s iconic Nehru stadium where the German Rock
band Scorpions performed in front of a crowd in access of 30,000!
With Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s focus on developing India’s North East,
his commitment to catapult this region as India’s “Engine of Growth” and with
five ministers from the North East finding a place in his cabinet, North East
has never had it this good, viz-a-viz representing the region at the centre (New
Delhi); and it is perhaps the most favourable time to seek for the official
recognition of “Rock & Roll” as an integral element/part of tourism in the
North East!
If the mandarins of India’s Tourism industry, inclusive of the Ministry of
Tourism and the Seven Sister States’ Department of Tourism work
conscientiously towards the objective of bestowing official recognition
to “Rock & Roll” as a form of niche tourism in the North East, it will go a long
way in restoring the region’s belief in the country’s governance and a perfect
culmination in the direction of redeeming the *“Lost Pride” of the region’s
hitherto neglected Rock & Roll musicians.
As Indians, we are living in an era and are by now quite accustomed to seeing
the Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi being accorded Rockstar receptions
in places like Madison Square. Who will forget the “Howdy Modi” event at
New York’s Madison Square Garden, in the aftermath of his thumping win in
the 2019 Lok Sabha Elections?
Thanks to Prime Minister Modi’s soaring popularity on the world stage as a
statesman, India has gained tremendously from “Brand Modi”; be it the
foreign direct investments, his meetings with global CEOs and engaging the
Indian diaspora in the nation’s development of people worldwide have started
perceiving India as a much-preferred country to do business and invest in its
economy. The latest accomplishment is the G20 Presidency conferred upon
India for the 2023 summit to be held in New Delhi.
According to Rock music aficionado Kit Shangpliang:
There is still a great longing for rock concerts among people here but
marketability is the issue and many promoters choose digital music over live
events. Every day, they are reaching out and finding a community of their
own. They are not waiting for big events and bright lights and not going for
big cities to find their audience as most rockers do nowadays.
This is where government recognition is crucial and if Rock & Roll is endorsed
by the Ministry of Tourism, it will have a positive rub-off effect on the musical
fraternity of North East.
If you travel to places like Seattle and Cleveland in the US, visitors are
encouraged to embark on trips to the various musical hubs close to the city
centres. In Seattle for instance, no vacation is ever complete without a visit to
the iconic Edgewater Hotel which once played host to the legendary Beatles
and Led Zeppelin… There is also the opportunity of staying for a night or two,
just to soak in the ambience of a bygone era. Another city that fascinates me is
London. The way the city’s many musical wonders have been preserved and
showcased to discerning visitors is always inspiring and worth pursuing. Be it
discovering the “Swinging Sixties”, or trips to those famed recording studios
and residences of Rockstars, London truly epitomizes the free-flowing musical
spirit.
London’s exclusive guided “Magic Mini Bus” tours offer visitors opportunities
to appreciate the city’s stupendous musical history and once you purchase a
London Rocks membership, the whole of London’s musical legacy is yours to
savour.
Despite the infrastructure bottlenecks, Rock bands of North East India have
carved a niche for themselves in India and the hugely competitive global Rock
music landscape. For instance, Girish and the Chronicles (GATC), a Sikkim-
based Rock & Heavy metal band, recognized for their “soaring vocals, biting
guitars, thunderous bass and pounding drums” have been pioneering the
Rock & Metal space for a decade now. Metal Injection, one of the world’s
authoritative Rock & Metal music publications thinks that:
India has been churning out some seriously awesome metal lately! Formed in
2009 by vocalist Girish Pradhan, Girish and The Chronicles (GATC) are
known for their electrifying and energetic performances on stage. With a
mixture of the sound of power ballads and the hard rock and that 80s classic
metal sound, they give us a sound that not many bands today can capture.
GATC’s latest album: “Rock The Highway” (2020) has been an outright hit
worldwide and speaks volumes about the inherent musical talents available
in the musical ecosystem of India’s North East.
The Tetseo Sisters from Nagaland is another musical brand that has surpassed
all the obstacles and come out blazing with their signature fusion folk music
with concerts taking place in cities like Detroit and Chicago. By dint of their
spellbinding music, Tetseo Sisters are kind of Brand Ambassadors of India’s
North East. The rich musical ecosystem of the region has meant that despite
hard times, there are still Rock bands like Liberated Minds, Lucid Recess,
Vinyl Records, The Lynx, and Thunder’s Cave… Who is belligerently keeping
the Rock & Roll culture alive?
Danny Marak of Adam’s Apple was spot on with his take on the Rock music
scene in North East;
The saddest part in our state is that there are many talents in all genres but
there are no promoters or even a platform. This is frustrating for artists
many of whom quit… The promoters must work hard to support young
musicians.
This is where the government’s endorsement is so vital. If this burgeoning
Rock & Roll legacy is offered financial and logistical support, a new Tourism
vista will open up for India Tourism. With a Prime Minister like Narendra
Modi at the helm, music lovers globally expect that as the great nation India,
takes giant strides in the league of nations, North East musicians who are
carving out a niche for themselves at the altar of Rock & Roll, will be given the
recognition they deserve, thereby heralding the dawn of an exciting era in
India’s Tourism landscape.
Let me quote that immortal phrase:
Rock & Roll is not just music, it is a way of life, and it has its own spirit!
And, so be it for India’s North East.
