Vasu Dixit Gives an Electro Spin to the Kannada Folk on ‘Mullu Reignited’

When Bengaluru-based artist Vasu Dixit released the folk-fusion song “Mullu” in 2016, it went on to become part of his debut self-titled album but took on a life of its own for being a powerful new way to present the words of Karnataka’s foremost music proponent, Purandaradasa.

Going strong at over 1.8 million views on YouTube, Dixit recently released a new folktronica take, titled “Mullu-Reignited.” Aided by producers Joel Sakkari and Manu Shrivastava, it presents a new avatar of the Vasu Dixit Collective that has taken shape over the last year. “I was looking for someone who also plays live and produces at the same time,” Dixit says. He also wanted to make the collective a little more compact (“yet have a bigger sound,” he adds), so it now exists as a six-member iteration and as a trio.

It wasn’t deliberate to pick “Mullu” for a folktronica twist just because it had millions of views, but more so because Shrivastava had worked on it among other existing compositions. The push also came from wanting to break away from the existing setup of drums, guitar and bass setup. “I was doing the same kind of stuff […] I felt I was not really experimenting with my sound,” Dixit says. For “Mullu-Reignited,” the Vasu Dixit Collective brings in thavil artist Tavil Raja, nadaswara by Dakshina Murthy, percussionist Madhu S.S., saxophonist Sweethin Hartman and mandolin played by Bharat A.S.

Even though Dixit does talk a lot about exploring electronic music in a deeper way only recently, it’s not his first brush per se. In 2013, the Dixit-fronted folk-rockers Swarathma teamed up with producer Dualist Inquiry for a high-energy remix of their Kannada song “Naane Daari.” Dixit says his understanding on the production level and instrumentation level has changed over the last decade. “I don’t understand all of the subgenres, I only know it as EDM. This is all a new world for me […] You can really like create multi-layered song, even in terms of live performances and not just on a production level,” he adds.  

The latest release has had a few mixed reactions, but Dixit is unfettered. “I’m not saying that it’s a success or it’s like a failure or neither. But the attempt of wanting to create something new has been successful for sure,” he adds.

Up next, there are more songs that are getting the folktronica twist, but also original songs like the Hindi tune “Ramu Kaka” coming up. Dixit worked on it about two years ago and has occasionally road-tested it at solo gigs. “The song is about a passing of an era or generation. Once it’s passed, it’s done. You can’t do anything. With phones and iPads and then AI, things come and go. With generations, certain values also get lost with the passing of time,” Dixit says. He’s created a character, named Ramu Kaka, who represents people who quietly observe things but only suggest things when asked.

Watch the video for “Mullu Reignited” below.