This unique show delves into the forgotten sounds of Madhya Pradesh’s Nimad region

The pandemic was a time of quiet stoic suffering Yet beneath it all there was creativity blooming For multiinstrumentalist musicians and producers Bharat Chandore and Jayesh Malani it brought an opportunity they had never expected Their six monthtrip in the region of Nimad in Madhya Pradesh led to a discovery and exploration of indigenous music sounds and life of the region that has now evolved into a live performance encapsulating the cultureSearching the heartlandThe journey began with Chandore travelling to Nimad in 2021 during COVID19 ldquoHe Chandore traces his roots to the regionrdquo Malani points out After spending almost a year Chandore reached out to Malani for a collaboration When the first lockdown opened the duo set out to begin their projectA Chichli dhol player Pic CourtesyAakash Mehsram right Dhangar musicians with their tamburaldquoFinding the musicians was a taskrdquo Malani reveals adding that the culture of Nimad and its music had never been documented and many of the musicians were the last of their branch Over three months the search led to a coalition of eight musical groups from the region who would contribute to the eponymous album Having selected a core group that included dhangars dasrath dada Kumawat sisters Kabir Panthis and Harbolas among them the duo settled down in the village of Chichli on the banks of the Narmada river for the next 25 days The abandoned village that falls under a flood risk area is where they recorded the Nimadi folk songs in a mud hut ldquoIts the hutrsquos natural acoustics were very goodrdquo Malani remarksChandore recalls that the folk musicians were initially apprehensive ldquoWhen I first approached them about the need to document their culture they were not very keen and were unaware of what we were planning to do To be honest we did not have a complete picture of the plan eitherrdquoSound of musicThe tracks they recorded were different from the mainstream says Chandore The dhangars residents of the region travel around singing bhajans by the saint poet Kabir the musician shares ldquoThey play it on the tambura mdash a fourstringed instrument similar to the ektara but with a fuller sound The other wonderful sound is that of the Chichli dhol Most dhols have a sharp loud bang But this one despite its large size has a very warm soundrdquoJayesh Malani and Bharat Chandore right Warren DrsquoSylvaThe music varied from soft bhajans to frenzied trance ldquoFor instance at the festival there is a moment when the people are taken into a fervour as though possessed by a spirit Then the dancers move to the beat of the dhol till they are exhausted We wanted to use their trancelike musicrdquo Chandore saysEvolving for the stageWriter and theatre director Warren DrsquoSylva set about shaping the compositions into a live experience on stage eight months ago To this end he opted to add elements of LED visuals projection mapping of traditional folk art and animation ldquoWe are interspersing voiceovers visual elements by artists videos of the folk musicians sharing stories and their journey with this narrative to create an immersive mixedmedia performancerdquo he explains adding that with the live show their aim is to create a unique experience of the music the folk groups and culture in the form of a live musical documentary that takes the audience on a journey across the rural landscape of Madhya PradeshWith close to 100 collaborators mdash from the musicians of Bombay Brass led by Rhys Sebastian the Aftab Qadri qawwal party bassist Keshav Iyengar to new media artist Vinay Khare filmmaker and visual artist Keerthi Raju visual architect Percival Crasto sound engineer Armaan Tejani production manager KG Ramnarayan and the costumes of Bhumika Dube and Shweta Pasricha mdash it feels like a massive productionldquoIt is still evolving and we donrsquot yet know how it will shape itselfrdquo DrsquoSylva tells us After Mumbai the troupe will head to Goa in December ldquoWe hope to keep releasing the tracks in singles The next one is expected in Novemberrdquo Malani shares Needless to say it will be a new sound that will echo through the auditoriumOn October 27 730 pmAt St Andrews Auditorium St Dominic Road Bandra WestLog on to inbookmyshowcomEntry Rs 499 onwards