Exclusive Release: The Yellow Diary’s Video for the Wavy ‘Sada’

The Yellow Diary while filming the music video for “Sada.” Photo: Courtesy of the artist

Early last year, The Yellow Diary amassed some very influential fans when they released their debut single “Marz” in October. The Mumbai experimental alt rock band received praise from various music industry biggies including composer-singer Vishal Dadlani, Bengaluru folk star Raghu Dixit and guitarist Warren Mendonsa.  

After their second single “Bawri Chhori” (released in February 2016), The Yellow Diary went into the studio to return armed with more detailed, hard-hitting tracks. Says lead guitarist Vaibhav Pani about laying low from gigs and concentrating on writing, “Whatever content we put out henceforth had to go beyond what we’ve previously released. We decided to go all out and push our musical boundaries.”

Formed in 2015, The Yellow Diary’s founding members are Pani, vocalist Rajan Batra and keyboardist Himonshu Parikh. Says Batra, “Rhythmically and sonically, the band that we had imagined initially was totally different,” referring to the fact that “Marz” and “Bawri Chhori” were released when it was still just the three of them. The band’s current experimental alt rock sound developed after bassist Stuart DaCosta (from Hindi pop rock act Mauj Maharaja, formerly of jam band Something Relevant) and drummer Sahil Shah joined.

“Having Stuart and Sahil now bring the perfect energy to the band and take it all up a notch,” Batra explains, adding that the band’s camaraderie offstage began to reflect in their live performances, fueling the idea to portray The Yellow Diary as a live band rather than a studio project. This in turn inspired the music video concept for the band’s third single “Sada,” an uplifting anthem about life and love, inspired by Parikh’s engagement.

“Before we started playing live shows, we were asked several times ”˜How do you guys sound live?’” recalls Parikh, adding that the band’s response to those questions comes with this music video. “We all wanted to make the biggest impact and convey the vibe of our live performance in the most transparent and unfiltered manner,” says Parikh. He explains that the band spent months practicing to match their live performances to their studio ones. The result is a simple but dynamic live video that highlights each band member equally with close-ups, capturing their individual performance styles. Filmed at Cotton Press Studios in Mumbai in August, “Sada” also features a live audience watching the band as they perform, completing the feel of a gig.  

Rather than a full-length album or an EP, The Yellow Diary plan to release five more singles by December, each one with its own music video. “We’ve come quite far as a band and we absolutely don’t regret being underground for a while,” says Pani. “The music that we eventually came up with deserved the time and effort.”

Watch “Sada” below: