Hyderabad Gets a New Gig Series Starting This Week

Hyderabad indie rockers The Tapes. Photo: Courtesy of Mad Parrot

It took all of one day for organizers of Hyderabad’s latest event Mad Parrot to conceptualize the event, before they announced it on June 28th. Bassist and sound engineer Abbas Razvi, who also performs with metallers Skrypt and death metal band Godless, along with his visual artist wife Pranati Khanna and photographer Nirbhay Kuppu ”“ the people behind the gig series — want to shine a light on what they feel is a growing independent music scene in their city. Razvi says, “We feel that even if there aren’t enough bands right now, this initiative will encourage artists to create new music and perform in an environment where they will be appreciated and supported.”

The first edition of Mad Parrot, which takes place at Houz of Blues on July 9th, features indie rockers The Tapes, blues/funk band The Songsmiths, Khanna’s own indie pop rock band The Ragamuffins and alternative/blues rockers The Ferdinand D’Souza Trio.

The Ragamuffins, who came together in September last year, say they’ve had a good response with gigs so far. Khanna says, “It’s not the best place for indie music, but it’s cool now.” All bands will play a 45-minute set at Mad Parrot’s first show and Khanna says they’ll play six songs, including their upcoming single “Dropping Like Flies”. She says, “It is a sarcastic song about everyone around you just dying.” The Tapes, on the other hand, have been around since 2013, with three EPs to their name, including an as-yet-untitled one they’re prepping to release this month. Vocalist Pranav Kumar says, “There’s one song on it called ”˜Tripping On You’ which we’ll play at the gig. It’s the first song we ever made with the full lineup.”

Hyderabad indie band The Ragamuffins. Photo: Courtesy of Mad Parrot

With a pay-what-you-want charge, Razvi says Mad Parrot is currently in trial mode. While Khanna says the entry fee model is because “people like to feel like they’re part of a movement”, Razvi admits it could be risky, but they’ve got most of their expenses covered. He says, “Since this is our first event, we will only learn by experience and take a call after the show. We want to create an experience for the bands and audiences that is on par with the rest of the country and the world.”

Mad Parrot V.1 ft The Tapes, The Ragamuffins, The Songsmiths and Ferdinand D’Souza Trio takes place at Houz of Blues on July 9th, 2016. Event details here.