Bangla band has acquired mainstream status: Rockstar

Despite Bengali band acquiring mainstream status, the artistes in non-film music genre have to slog, rockstar and Cactus frontman Sidhu says.
"With internet and cable tv blurring the gap between village and towns, Bangla Band has taken the mainstream route with popular band singers in the line up beside icons like Haimanti Shukla and Rupankar in even suburb music events. It can be called cities having taken over the villages and not the reverse in terms of culture, and lifestyle," the popular music composer in Bengali films, told PTI here.
Sidhu, who was speaking about the success of Blah Blah Blah, an irreverential, anti-establishment album by the band Cactus, would however rue that artistes in non-film genre still has to take the take the whole onus of promoting their album.

"This is one irony. While producers in film come up with money and logistical help for promoting the albums, we are the sloggers."
"However, to complement that the trouble an artiste takes is worth it considering a solo singer and prominent music band are accorded the equal status now," he averred.
Coming to Blah Blah Blah by Cactus, the recipient of Banglar Gourav Samman this year, Sidhu said, "It is common man's expression against ongoing incidents (in the country)."

Popular singer, music composer and director Dibyendu, now with Cactus, said "as a team we would now love to take our music to the country route."

When asked, Sidhu, the music director in Namte and Namte and band singer in Jaatiswar, said "If we introduce our songs to the all India audience, a la a popular Malyali band, that would be transliterating tracks like "Tumio Bojho Amio Bujhi," but it was all in embryonic stage.
"We are happy with the success of Blah Blah Blah which had witnessed running out of the stock on flipkart shortly after release. We are with Cactus in any of their future plan to introduce another Bengali album," a spokesperson of Asha Audio said.