Drummed out of the studio

The new season of Coke Studio promises to bring fresh names and styles. But will it be able to match its Pakistan counterpart?

In its upcoming new season, the musical show Coke Studio @ MTV wants to be “always on”, invading more TV channels, social networking sites, record stores and even the radio. The news might not uniformly please music aficionados, some of whom feel the local version struggles to match the class of its Pakistani counterpart. The show’s makers, however, promise that several changes, which will enhance the experience, are in the works.

While old hands Amit Trivedi and Ram Sampath return, the show will bring in fresh names like music director Sneha Khanwalkar, Punjabi rapper Raftaar and Bollywood composer Pritam. Trivedi, who is working with Punjabi/Sufi singers Harshdeep Kaur and Jyoti Nooran, will likely make them experiment with other styles. The show will also reduce the total compositions from around 40 to 12, with one release every month. Every song will have two videos – one set in the studio featuring the artists and another in the form of a visual interpretation of the lyrics. The episodes will include these videos as well as interviews with the artist and the back story of the compositions.

A second creative video will allow the songs to have a longer life and blend with the programming of general entertainment channels where they will be aired routinely, says Debabrata Mukherjee, vice-president (marketing & commercial), Coca-Cola India. Aditya Swamy, executive vice president and business head, MTV India, says they are following the idea that less is more. “The episodes will be intimate and personal because of the back stories. We try to go deeper and get closer to the artist.”

Papon

Among the successes from its earlier three seasons is Kattey, an interesting alliance of the robust vocals of Rajasthani singer Bhanwari Devi with feisty verses by rapper Hard Kaur. There is also Husna, produced by Hitesh Sonik and written and performed by Piyush Mishra, a heart-wrenching song about lovers separated by the Partition. “Music over here is about love, passion, feelings and emotions. It is for a selective audience that does not want to hear about clubs, bottles, ladies, etc etc” says Raftaar, in a thinly-veiled reference to the popularity of Yo Yo Honey Singh. Still, this show has had more misses than hits.

The concept, which came to India in 2011, tries to blend traditional eastern sounds with elements of western music and encourages collaborations between experienced artists and emerging musicians. The idea is to create offbeat music and a new base of listeners. The Indian chapter is often criticised for Bollywood influence, which is said to result in convenient, simplistic compositions. Although it works with talented musicians, the collaborations are somewhat restless with instruments, vocalists and an overactive camera all competing for attention.

When the Indian cricket team defeated Pakistan in a recent World Cup encounter, jokes circulated about how the latter still had the better Coke Studio. Coke Studio Pakistan seems to work for the same reason why the country’s television dramas find critical approval in India – they are understated and free from frills. Produced by Rohail Hyatt and later the band Strings (Faisal Kapadia and Bilal Maqsood), its songs feature raw, powerful vocals supported by inventive instrumentation. The result is a progressive folk sound. It did, however, get a share of flak for featuring too many global artists recently, which appeared to take away from the largely traditional flavour.

Clinton

The sow’s critics have not minced words, slamming it for picking big names from Hindi cinema more than indie artists. Columnist Madhavan Narayanan tweeted, “Coke Studio India has now become that dhaba you find inside a 5-star hotel. Vain kitsch trying to be rustic and organically flavoured.” But the show is not aimed at purists, argues Swamy. “A lot of people think of Bollywood as a bad word. But I want the content to reach as many people as possible, for a successful crossover between mainstream and underground.” Regardless of the debate over quality, the concept does expand the offerings in the non-film or alternative music space. “The music scene in India is still fragmented, but encouragingly diverse,” says Ram Sampath. “The show helps by adding to the pack of home grown icons.”

Starting March 1, the show will air on the first Sunday of every month at 8 pm