Baiju Dharmajan Syndicate On Four-City Tour

Baiju Dharmajan

Baiju Dharmajan, former guitarist with Kochi prog rock band Motherjane, visited his hometown in Vypin Island in Kerala to shoot a music video last month for the song “Philia,” [watch below] off his first full-length album The Crossover. His second video was for the solo-heavy rendition of Piyush Pandey’s “Mile Sur Mera Tumhara,” also the name of his current tour, concludes with a workshop and performance at BK Birla Institute of Engineering & Technology [BKBIET], Pilani on March 18th.

Dharmajan kicked off his tour on March 13th at the National University of Advanced Legal Studies [NUALS] in his hometown Kochi. Last time, the guitarist played a special homecoming set on Republic Day at Kochi Town Hall this year,  the first in the town after splitting from Motherjane in 2010. He says it was the one of the most memorable gigs he has played as a solo artist: “During the Motherjane era, we had played some incredible shows, like IIT Saarang in 2003, and then in Kolkata in 2008.” After playing to fans, students and family in Kochi, the Mile Sur Mera Tumhara tour includes stops at Kolkata, Delhi and Pilani. “It’s all about playing and expressing myself musically. I don’t really care whether there’s an audience,” says Dharmajan, who adds that the setlist for his tour includes the six-track The Crossover in its entirety, and the song “Mile Sur Mera Tumhara.” “I also have 18-19 other songs left over from the time when I was writing The Crossover. It’s definitely enough for a 90-minute set,” says Dharmajan.

The guitarist performs with Alex Puthumanna on bass, Sylvian Luiz on vocals and guitars and drummer Jayaraj CR, all of whom were his students. “To me, they’re like any other musicians. I’m just generally very comfortable with them, that’s all,” says Dharmajan, saying it was his manager’s idea to call the group a syndicate.

Dharmajan heads into the studio after the tour, providing music for two Malayalam movies including Davom Panthradum. He also plans to write, perform with members of Carnatic fusion band Karnatriix.

Baiju Dharmajan Syndicate performs at BKBIET, Pilani on March 18th, 8pm onward. Entry Rs 100 for BKBIET students, Rs 200 for general entry. Event details here.