Cartel Madras Set to Bring ‘Big Noise, Big Energy, and Big Trouble’ to India

The anticipation is palpable as NH7 Weekender, India’s ultimate music festival, gears up for an electrifying performance by the trailblazing hip-hop duo Cartel Madras. The stage is set, the buzz is mounting, and fans from all corners of the country are eagerly awaiting an experience that promises to be nothing short of revolutionary.

For Contra and Eboshi, the powerhouse sisters behind Cartel Madras, this performance isn’t just another show—it’s a homecoming. Born in Chennai and raised in Calgary, Canada, their music is an ode to their South Asian roots blended seamlessly with hip-hop.

As the festival dates (December 1-3) draw near, excitement ripples through the fanbase.

Cartel Madras has been making waves globally with its bold lyricism, unapologetic attitude, and fusion of diverse musical influences. Their tracks are mixed with themes of empowerment, identity, and breaking societal norms, making them a voice for many who feel underrepresented in mainstream music.

Contra and Eboshi delved deep into their journey, music, and the upcoming NH7 Weekender performance in a conversation with Rolling Stone India that echoed their bold and unapologetic style.

First things first, what is the one thing you’re most looking forward to during your trip to India?

To be back home after such a long break will be incredible. The last time we were back home, Cartel Madras was in its infancy, we flew back to Canada to play our very first show. It feels like so much has changed since then, to come home as an artist and create music in Chennai will be electrifying. 

Are you planning on collaborating or making music with any of the Indian artists?

We plan to shoot a music video in Kerala with some folks we’ve been in touch with for several years online. There are many artists in the South Indian hip-hop scene that we would also love to collaborate with. No name drops yet; you’ll have to wait and see.

Which is the one project you’re most proud of?

The Serpent and the Tiger honestly feels like a musical project that is like no other in the West or the East. We think we made something truly unique, larger than life, experimental, and charged during a very interesting time in the world, and we’re extremely proud of that EP.

Could you tell us something that people don’t already know about you or your music?

I think a lot of people don’t know that we’re pretty deep into directing, producing, and writing films and documentaries. Over the pandemic, we really grew FOREIGNERZ, our art and production house, and it touched quite a lot of different artistic disciplines. Our vision expands into fashion, film, public art, and so many different spaces. We think this is an important thing for people to understand about us when they take us in as Cartel Madras. We are born into many forms of art, and we continue to morph and evolve artistically.

If you were left alone on an island with just one song installed on your iPod, which one would it be?

Contra: This is a crazy question so I’m going to cheat and say an album instead – Tarika Blue by Tarika Blue.

Eboshi: Concierto de Aranjuez 

Have you tuned to any Indian or Punjabi music? Do you have any favorites?

We’ve always had our ears to the ground with Indian music, as kids and also as we developed into musicians. Currently coming from our contemporaries in India we definitely love listening to Parimal Shais & MC Couper, Ranj is absolutely fantastic. Rudy Mukta is also one to watch! 

What is the one thing about the NH7 Weekender that you are most excited about?

We’ve never performed at an Indian music festival before, so even trying to imagine a completely different audience at such a huge event is a really exciting idea – we’re curious to see how the Indian public will receive us, we think it will be exhilarating for both us and our NH7 audience.

What can we expect from your set at the event?

Full Cartel Madras treatment – big noise, big energy, big trouble. 

Could you tell us a little about your roots and how you ended up in Canada from Chennai?

We are Tamil and Malayali by background, immigrated to Canada quite young, and from there, we had to cut our teeth on the absurd and very conservative province of Alberta—cowboy country, if you will. As we grew and began to develop as artists and thinkers, we have always tried to see through the flattened, easy-to-consume platter of what we are offered as our ‘cultural roots’ within the diaspora. We come from complicated, strange, and unique roots in family, and those anomalies definitely led to who we are. We are informed by the politics of South India and are constantly provoking, uncovering, and presenting many stories from back home, from many people. 

Where did “Goonda rap” come from?

Moving to the West we wanted an easy and immediate way to be allowed to experiment as rappers & musicians. We found it easier to present a new sound, a new idea, a new concept when we already had christened it as a new ‘genre’ within a genre. Goonda Rap was born, to express a rowdy, thrilling, alternative, and uncompromising type of music from two characters you would have never before seen in Canada.

Please state some influences behind your music.

Our music is an amalgamation of the many things that found us in various parts of our lives – it’s never just music. Film and literature have always found their way into our music, which we try to nod to in our music videos and artwork. The noise people have made through history finds its way into our music; the stories of culture-shifting events and the philosophies of great minds. 

We’ve always had a soft spot for auteurs in film; François Truffaut, Wong Kar-Wai, Charlie Kaufman. We’ve let their cinematic stylings guide us in so many ways. Pair the absurdist dialogue from playwrights like Beckett and Pinter with concepts of flamboyance, brutalism, and maximalism and you’ll find the place where our inspiration lives.

A message for your fans from India.

WE LOVE YOU AND WE CAN’T WAIT TO PARTY WITH YOU!!! Thank you for your support from the very beginning and your passion, we couldn’t do this without you.