How International Rock Bands Were Introduced to India

The people who show great interest in International Rock bands in our country are truly breathtaking. India has witnessed in the past and is about to witness the bold and crazy guitar riffs and vocal prowess of many golden bands who have largely blessed the scenes especially in tier 1 cities like Bengaluru and Mumbai. We’ve seen a surge lately in January thanks to the grace of Linkin Park, Guns and Roses, Michael learning to rock, Bryan Adams more so last year. So, has there ever been a question that might have been ingrained in your mind about where the starting point of all this was? The emergence of such bands choosing to perform in India dates back to the 80s and there is an interesting story behind the introduction of this Western Rock craze to Desi eardrums.

And that credit goes to the Parsis, who have always been considered one of India’s most Westernized communities. And the First Rock Concert held on our soil was the concert of British Rock Band ‘The Police’, the initiator behind which was The Time and Talent Club whose ladies decided to host this band for the first time in India as a part of their fundraising activities. Homegrown blog noted: “The club reached out to this band by contacting a renowned talent agency in Mumbai. The band’s bassist, Sting’s brother, Philip Summers, was instrumental in reaching out to the club. And after the Police withdrew their interest, the club decided to host this concert on March 26, 1980, with the venue marked as the defunct Rang Bhavan in south Mumbai’s Fort District, with a seating capacity of 5,000 spectators. As soon as this concert was announced, many people Excitement and anticipation increased, causing the show to sell out instantly.

But the crowd did not stop there. Even after the show started, many enthusiastic and curious concertgoers flocked to the arena without showing any tickets; This exceeded the expectations of the organizers and turned the performance into an unexpectedly eccentric show. The band’s lead percussionist, Stewart Copeland, said of the line in a video: “At sound check, they thought the gig had started and they went through the walls. They trashed all the fancy seats of all the people in the front row who had paid for the show. We were playing to people on the street and they reacted exactly the way an audience in Leeds would react, which was pretty cool. It was one of the most emotional shows we’ve ever played.”

However, the effort and risk taken by the women of the time and the talent club turned out to be a huge success and a lot of funds were raised through this event and these funds were fully directed towards charities like healthcare, education and Poverty alleviation.

And the Venue, Rang Bhavan, was also a powerful testament that set the stage for many other mainstream and famous artists. Revolver Club also adopted this venue as the “stage of their dreams” for many artists. It was a great honor to perform on the same stage where legends like Herbie Hancock, Dizzy Gillespie, Shaggy, L. Subramanian, Zakir Hussain, Ustad Rais Khan once performed.

However, what the Ladies of Time and the Talents Club did was not limited to just one evening; Rather, it led to the beginning of a culture embracing International Rock Music that is still vibrant and enthusiastic even 40 years later.

This Article Written By Yoga Adithya, Deccan Chronicle Intern.