Shor Bazaar @ Celebrate Bandra festival - Nov 19th, Carter Road promenade

Hey y’all! After a period of intense procrastination due to the fear of outlash from right-wing extremist groups for the excessive usage of non-Marathi languages in a public speech/performance/swearing-in ceremony, after investing in multiple security upgrades ranging from a team of 22 Black Cat commandos, a crate of chappal-repellents from the U.S.A., and anti-anxiety drugs including newer generation benzodiazepines, Shor Bazaar is venturing to perform at the Carter Road promenade in Bandra, which is the social capital of Mumbai, which, in turn, is the economic capital of the nation, as part of the “Celebrate Bandra festival” alongside Xenabob.

It’s apparent that the guy who wrote this has forgotten the art of simplicity. We, at Shor Bazaar, apologize. What he meant was this.

Shor Bazaar Live! @ Celebrate Bandra Festival alongside Xenabob
Stage: Carter Road promenade, Bandra
Date: November 19th, 2009
Time: 7 pm onward

We would appreciate it if you would turn up and provided appropriate laughter/applause. We promise to show placards to help you decide on the appropriate amount of response for each moment.

FB event page: http://www.facebook.com/krishnakumarv?ref=name#/event.php?eid=176029404386&index=1

MyBand MyMusic event @ Hyderabad - 26th of September

So,

Adam Gilchrist calls us and says he needs someone to infuse some energy into the likes of RP Singh and Rohit Sharma (vis-à-vis the Champion's League). Needless to say we agreed.

Umm, we wish!

The real story is like this. 8 of the top bands from the country. MyBand MyMusic event. 26th of September (this Saturday). 6 hours of non-stop music. Last time we checked, the Nizams are going to dance with us. Well, let's see.

As a part of this, we are going to be on TV, radio, and the papers. The gig will be telecast live on a Music television channel as well! So, are YOU gonna go our way?

You better!

Details:

Saturday, September 26, 2009
5:00pm - 11:55pm
Rock Heights
Hyderabad, India

Price: Rs. 100/-

(Tickets available at select Cafe Coffee Day outlets in the city.)

More details at

http://www.myband.co.in/MyBand_MyMusic/
http://www.financialexpress.com/news/myband-mymusic-concert-by-indian-music-bands-at-hyderabad/520116/
http://www.facebook.com/myband.fanpage?v=app_2344061033&ref=ts#/event.php?eid=134796262435&index=1

We aren't I-Rocking XXIV

Shor Bazaar regrets to announce that we will not be participating in I-Rock XXIV. We were very much looking forward to performing there, but due to reasons beyond our control, this has become impossible.

Our next scheduled gig is the MyBand MyMusic event at Hyderabad on 26th of September. Don't miss it!!

Deccan Chronicle story on the upcoming 'Savita Bhabhi' video

Today, Deccan Chronicle published a story about our single "Savita Bhabhi" and its upcoming music video directed by Varun Agarwal from Last Minute Films. You might want to read this. Plus, it's got that fantastic photo of us posing in marching band costume. Aren't we all excited about this now?

Read on, here, if you are lazy!

Tribute video for Savita Bhabhi

September 1st, 2009
By Our Correspondent

Remember Savita Bhabhi? Yes, she’s the same bhabhi who was India’s first online toon porn figure who was recently banned by the Indian Government. The desi cartoon porn series is now an inspiration for a tribute video made by Bengaluru boy and filmmaker Varun Agarwal and Mumbai-based music band Shor Bazaar. Says Varun, “When I was in Mumbai, I saw the whole Savita Bhabhi mania. The office boys would watch it and she was a cult figure there. Jayajit Dash (front man of Shor Bazaar) and I met up. I proposed the idea of creating a song about Savita Bhabhi and we decided to make a one-off video.” While the government has banned the porn series, Varun insists that their video does not promote the porn figure. “We have not used even a single image of Savita Bhabhi. The video is just a fun take on something popular,” he says.

After Shor Bazaar created a song dedicated to Savita Bhabhi, they found out that the website would be banned by the government. There were protests by bloggers and by people on Facebook and Twitter, says Varun, adding, “It’s amusing how the government decided to ban this one site when there are tons of other porn sites that are easily accessible.”

So would they have used Savita Bhabhi’s images in the video if she wasn’t banned? “No, we still wouldn’t have used it ‘coz we aren’t promoting porn or her,” says Varun, referring to the video which shows a guy who can’t find a job during recession and also has a tough time finding a girlfriend. “He suddenly comes across Savita Bhabhi and his life becomes rosy as he gets whatever he wants from her,” reveals Varun.

While the unique video will be out by the end of this week, Varun says that they won’t be able to get it on air ‘coz of the ban on Savita Bhabhi. “But we will release it on the Internet where we will surely get a lot of responses,” says the young filmmaker who feels that there’s more to Savita Bhabhi than just being a porn figure.

Here’s to some ‘clean’ fun!

(Courtesy Deccan Chronicle)

Mumbai Mirror online article on topical/conceptual song-writing

Mumbai Mirror's Ashwini Gangal* has written an article about the conceptual song-writing among Mumbai-based rock bands. Shor Bazaar (and the Doc) have been quoted along with a couple of dozen other bands (including Coshish, Tough on Tobacco, Demonic Resurrection, Zygnema, Ankur Tewari and the Ghalat Family etc.).

Find the article here. It's an interesting read!

Musical Tales

By Ashwini Gangal

Storytelling through music is not alien to rock music but there of late seems to be a positive surge in the kind of song themes and story concepts. We nose around and explore what Mumbai's rock bands are singing about nowadays

Come in dear sir,
Let me show you around.
I serve the master,
Who lives in this house,
The guests are arriving,
Dont look so pensive,
Dinner will be served shortly,
A treat for the senses...'


Not the likes of David Bowie, Jim Morrison or Roger Waters; the lines above represent the kind of lyrics city-based rock bands are penning these days. With more and more bands mushrooming constantly, lyrical and musical narratives are hitting some bold notes.

Mangesh Gandhi, songwriter, Coshish, explains, "There are scores of new bands and hence newer ideas and issues to write about. Many progressive bands are releasing concept albums where one single story is woven through all the songs .The effort is also to create 'musical films' where the audience hears not only the words but also visualises the story being narrated. These are great new developments."

Krishna Venkitachalam, bass guitarist for Shor Bazaar, observes, "People don't think of bands as sources of stories and interesting concepts – a huge misconception, because the point of being a musician is not to perform but also to convey a message.”

Gandhi points out that although a recent trend in Mumbai, this has been happening in the West for a while now. Riju Dasgupta, songwriter for Albatross, agrees with him. “Internationally, musical storytelling is common; in fact there's an entire genre in the west that's LOTR-based, called 'Tolkien Metal',” he informs.

He further adds, “In Mumbai, concept albums are picking up though – Demonic Resurrection for example has a fantasy-based one. Also, bands are now expressing unique things; Bangalore-based band Slain sings about Christ, for instance."

Spreading the word

Singing about socially relevant issues and spreading preachy messages almost seems ironic given the bratty image most bands portray, but surprisingly enough, this is true. As songwriter Sidd Coutto (Tough on Tobacco) puts it, "We send out socially relevant messages like 'don't drink and drive' and 'don't start smoking'. I know it's a strange message coming from a pop-rock-reggae band, but it's more like 'like look at us we're all addicted, so learn from our mistakes and don't start smoking!'"

Along the same lines, Krishna calls Shor Bazaar an ‘educated band of radical thinkers’. “We write about serious issues like ragging/school bullying, the notoriety of Savita Bhabhi and use a lot of Indian mythological analogies," he says.

Similarly, apart from penning songs inspired by Lord Voldemort, Spiked Crib writes about all the issues that society loves to deny. Lyricist Gareth Mankoo reveals, "We sing about abortion, suicide and infidelity. Our song 'The Butcher's Prayer' is about the mindset of a rapist."

A lot of these songs on prevalent issues stem from personal experiences. Siddharth Basrur, songwriter for Dog Ate Disco,confides, "I used to be in a drug rehabilitation centre, so I write about my journey. I also write about current themes like item girls, the saas-bahu TV culture and the need to vote for the right politician."

Art imitates life

It comes as no surprise that the 26/11 terror attacks have become a common topic for bands to be vocal about. Mayank Sharma, drummer, Zygnema, shares, "We have a song called '59' which tells the story of those 59 gruelling hours faced by hostages at the Taj during the 26/11 attack. The song addresses the way the goverment reacted, how politicians resigned and how it became a political issue instead of a national one." Zygnema also sings about the North Indian-Maharashtrian divide, the Indian economy and encourages national unity.

Coshish has songs like 'Rehne Do' about the Godhra riots, 'Woh Kho Gaye' which addresses alcohol and rehabilitation and 'Raaste' strives to encourage secularism, religious tolerance and humanity. Meanwhile, Urdu band The Ghalat Family also sings about terrorism, 26/11, materialism, government manipulation and blind faith in country and religion.

Attributing his own creativity to today's unsteady times, songwriter Ankur Tewari, The Ghalat Family, says, "The country is full of crises today and there's a lot of meaningful stuff to write about. It's no longer about rhyming random words; lyrics are crucial."

Clearly, rock bands today are emerging as an excellent medium for one to gauge the ethos of the prevailing era.

Thanks to Mumbai Mirror and Ashwini!

(Article courtesy Mumbai Mirror.com)

(* Apologies for the typo which is now corrected)

Tonight on Radio Mirchi 98.3 FM with Jeeturaj RJ

Shor Bazaar will be on air with Jeeturaj on Radio Mirchi's Klub Mirchi show from 9 pm. What can you expect? A wacky interview, a few of our songs, a couple of special songs as requested on air by Jeeturaj (including a Ganapati song) etc.

This is part of the 'band banaao jeeturaj ko sunao' contest which airs every Saturday from 9 pm onwards Radio Mirchi in the Klub Mirchi show. Tune in and let us know what you think. Did we sound good? Did we sound foolish but entertaining? Did we strike up a controversy? We'd love to hear from you!

We would like to thank Vaibhav Wavikar (Filter Coffee) for joining us on tabla and percussions for this gig!

Time: 9 pm onwards
Where: Radio Mirchi 98.3 FM
With: Jeeturaaj, India's most wanted RJ

Savita Bhabhi video preview!

It's here! The "Savita Bhabhi" video directed by Varun Agarwal (from Last Minute films) has just been uploaded on FaceBook. We don't yet know how to upload it on YouTube. Until then, here's the link.

http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=234123750370

We love it! What do you think?

Shor-Reel from Kyra Theatre Bangalore - 8th Aug, 2009

Shor Bazaar's "Savita Bhabhi" in a documentary film on internet censorship

During our visit to Bangalore, we had the opportunity to catch up with Namita Malhotra, a legal researcher and media practitioner at the Alternative Law Forum in Bangalore, India. She is making a film on internet censorship and surveillance across Asia, along with Subasri Krishnan - an independent documentary filmmaker in New Delhi, as part of the Open Net Initiative project (http://opennet.net).

This film looks at the dynamics of internet censorship and surveillance across different parts of Asia - whether the struggle of people like Tibetans and Burmese, the turmoil of individuals whose privacy is violated online, the closing down of spaces of free sexual expression and the anger of those whose freedom to blog, to e-mail, to express themselves is taken away in both repressive or democratic regimes.

This is what she has to say

As activists and filmmakers we are against censorship and in the case of Savita Bhabhi it is clear that the blocking of the website is unwarranted. The irony is also that Savita Bhabhi - a playful, inventive comic - is banned, at a time when finally the Indian courts have decided to decrminalise homosexuality. It seems that in terms of personal freedom and privacy, we have gone one step forward and two steps back -- and our losing precious spaces of expressing ourselves, especially on the internet. This is the story that we would like to explore

Namita is using the song "Savita Bhabhi" in this documentary film. Along with the song, she has recorded an interview with us and has taken some footage of our gig at Kyra which will be used in the documentary. We are extremely pleased and honored to be a part of this venture. We confess that it was OUR pleasure working with them. Here's a little bit more about the film.

It is supported by Open Net Initiative (ONI). ONI does research on internet censorship and surveillance across the world. Through this film, she wants to examine internet censorship by various governments in Asia, but particularly India where there is a lot of sex, sexuality and pornography related regulation. The film will be directed by Namita A. Malhotra and Subasri Krishnan.

Namita is a researcher/media practitioner who works at the Alternative Law Forum, Bangalore (www.altlawforum.org). She is a graduate of the National Law School and has a keen interest in pushing the relationship between law and media to look at the critical and aesthetic possibilities. Subasri Krishnan is an independent documentary film-maker who has been working independently for 5 years on films that deal with questions of gender and economy. This will be the first time that the two of them will be collaborating on a project.

The Kyra Theatre experience

Yesterday was the first time ever that Shor Bazaar played down in the South. Bangalore, Kyra theatre, and the amazing crowd that had gathered made us feel really special. It was the first time in a long long time that we played our entire set. The occasion was made extra-special by the mercurial Jai Row Kavi on the drums.

As always, we had a blast performing and going berserk on stage. "The electric set was the loudest that Kyra had heard" said Shimrei (the sound engineer) at the end of our performance and we don't think he was kidding. That kinda explains why our first-ever five-piece 'unplugged' set got an overwhelming response from the crowd. That included a new version of "La Ilaj" and a mellower version of "Pagli Ladki." We also debuted a couple of new songs - "Chandramukhi" and a version of "Rehen De."

The most endearing memory of our performance was the standing ovation and applause after the rendition of "Pagli Ladki". Quite honestly, we were astounded to see so many people standing up and giving kind smiles and the applause of our lives! There have already been getting quite a few requests for the song and we are thinking of recording it!

The sound was excellent - probably the best that we have played in an indoor setup. It is incredible to realize that Kyra is just 3 months old and already has a fantastic list of artists/bands who have had a blast playing there. We applaud the managment at Kyra for providing another brilliant destination for performing and enjoying live music.

Apart from the performance, we had a great time in Bangalore, away from the grind of a busy city like Mumbai. The folks at Kyra took wonderful care of us and put us up in this wonderful guest house which made us feel like staying back for a couple of weeks more at the least. Barring a couple of cab-related coordination problems, we couldn't have asked for anything better.

We also managed to catch up with Namita Malhotra who's making a documentary film on internet censorship. We are being featured in the documentary. More details later. Lastly, we would also like to thank our friends who turned up and gave us wonderful support!

Kyra Theatre - Aug 8th, 2009 - Shor Bazaar set list

• Electric Set (I): Rasli, School, Chuppi, Savita Bhabhi, Nahin Accha, Mumbhai (cover), Jaisalmer Express
• Acoustic Set: Chandramukhi, La Ilaj, Pagli Ladki, Rehn De (cover), Laal
• Electric Set (II): Madhushaala, Yaar Bina (cover), Wada Shikan, Savita Barbie, Apsara
• Encore: Rasili, Pagli Ladki
  

Bangalore, here we come!

In under a day's time, we'll be performing at Kyra Theatre, Bangalore. It's our first extended performance with Jai Row Kavi on drums. We're excited!

Those of you in and around Bangalore - we'll be expecting you. The gates open at 7 pm and we'll be on stage a little after 8 pm. Entry - Rs. 250/-

We have a few copies of our Savita Bhabhi single left and those will be available for you to pick up.

Come on, let's bring Kyra down!

Partners in Crime

Any list of excuses would not be sufficient enough to explain why we haven't posted a 'Thank you!' note to all of those special people who helped us to make 'Savita Bhabhi' such a remarkable success. So here goes!

As much as we would like to proclaim that Savita was an indigenous Shor Bazaar produce, any mention of the concept and implementation of the song would be utterly deficient without the mention of the following fine gentlemen:

• Varun Agarwal - The fine gentleman from Last Minute Films. Varun was the "visionary" who came out with the concept in the first place. He pitched the idea to us, 'cause quite frankly, we are the only band that is puerile enough to consider making a song related to a porn comic strip. The final product had him grinning from ear to ear and we are honored to work with him the for a video.
  
• Chinmay Harshe - The fine gentleman from Empire studios. We tried our best to make the song sound crappy - tracked the guitars at home, did the vocals at the C room of a studio for about 300 bucks per hour and gave him a track with a loaded-up, tweaked dhik-chack duppoom-duppoom Reason 4 auto-rickshaw beat. And after all that hard work we delegated it to Chinmay to mix it up. It took him two months to clean up the mess. We are sooo glad he did. Anyone want the original auto-rickshaw version for kicks? ;)
  
• Rajat Nagpal - The fine gentleman of Rahim Murge Pe Mat Ro fame. We were pretty much a Rahim Murga when we met him. On the chopping block and ready to go under. The album we had recorded was going nowhere, our finances were in a mess and we were desperately seeking a lifeboat to sail us away from the wreckage. Rajat offered us a truck- of ideas and he was the one who suggested us to release singles. He has also consistently helped us get in touch with people who can assist our growth as a band. We owe him big time.
  
• Sameer Malhotra - The fine gentleman a.k.a Daddy. He brings up platform after platform for musicians to showcase their work (Daddy's Windsong Wednesdays and Ce'st la vie Swimsong Sundays). Back in February, he was the one of the very few hosts who would let us play in his backyard. Since then, he has helped us in every possible way and we cannot even attempt to list it all. His events are like a magician's top hat, having an endless stream of quirky musicians leaping out at every given opportunity. He offered us a space to launch the single! :) Daddy - WE LOVE YOU!!
• Jai Row Kavi and Jonathan Shewts Layers - The fine gentlemen who love to beat the skins out every moment of their lives. Jai (ToT, ex-PDV and Helga's Fun Castle) and Jonathon (Reverse Polarity) lent us their precious time, patience, and energy - and helped us obliterate the 'Reason 4' drum tracks. They really saved our asses and embarrasment and made the song ... ahem ... songs sound so cool! Jai has also done us a huge favor by willing to to sit on the Shor Bazaar drum throne! Needless to mention, we are honored to have him!
  
• Nishant Vats - The fine gentleman of DogTheDog fame. Nishant designed the fabulous artwork for the Savita single. We absolutely love love LOVE the artwork. I'm sure we'll be doing a lot of work together going forward and we're really excited to be working with him. You can blame him if our website starts to look slick and funky!

Thanks you all for making 'Savita Bhabhi' a success.

(Joy & The Doc)

Collaboration, citations etc.

Shor Bazaar, as a band, has always wanted to pursue something new. We usually like off-beat, whacky stuff that tickles your senses in just the right way and we are pretty darned certain that there are others who feel likewise. Yes, we want to meet people from different niches of the art world - people with vibrant, tangential ideas so we can work with them to create something interesting and worthwhile.

Since posting about this on FaceBook and Twitter, we've already received a number of responses from across the nation. We are thrilled! Honestly. That's the reason I'm writing about this on our blog. So, if you think that you would like to work with us, or if you know someone who might fit the bill, please let us know. We'd be more than happy to hear from you.

Apart from that, we still continue to be amazed by the fantastic coverage we are getting. These are the new pieces. The rest of the stories can be viewed here.

• The Telgraph (Calcutta - 1st of August, 2009)
• Buzz 18 - Tribute to India's first toon porn
  
• Hindustan Times (Chandigarh - 31st July, 2009

We have also stumbled on a YouTube video of our CNN-IBN interview. Thanks to baboonlogic.


If you stumble on any such stories, please let us know - as a comment, e-mail, or the various social networking options.

Lastly - for only those in Mumbai - you can catch us performing live (with Tough on Tobacco) tomorrow (Sunday) at the Ce'st la Vie Swimsong Sundays brunch. 12 pm onwards. Cover is 1200 Rs./- per person. We have at least one surprise for you!!

Here's the FB event listing.

:)

Gracias, albeit with a disclaimer

We are astounded by the response to our single! Almost every single reaction has been positive. We are absolutely honored!

Here are a couple of extremely amorous, kind responses. We'd like to say 'Thank you!'

"... Savita Bhabhi is one hell of a song. Shor Bazaar's Savita Bhabhi does not not sound like any of that synthesized shit we started to hear post-90s. They sound like one of them - the elite league. The music from the era when dope was cheap and the sex was free. And THAT alone is enough for me." - Athiran

"The musical maestros of Shor Bazar, have given the followers of Savita Bhabhi, their very own anthem. The lyrics are cheeky and chock-full of sexual innuendos, coupled with some great guitar play and arrangements."

We've been covered in almost every form of media.

• CNN-IBN - Entertainment Tonight (30th of July, 2009 - 10.30 pm)
  
• Asian Age (Mumbai Edition - 30th July, 2009)
• Hindustan Times (Mumbai; HT Cafe - 30th July, 2009)
• Red 93.5 FM (Jigar's show, Mumbai - 29th of July, 2009)
  
• Times Of India (Mumbai Edition - 29th of July, 2009)
• Hindustan Times (Delhi; HT City - 29th of July, 2009)
• Radio City 94.3 FM (Malini's show, Mumbai - 28th July, 2009)
• Indian Express (Mumbai edition - 27th of July, 2009)
• DNA Sunday (Mumbai - 26th of July, 2009)

We, and our song, have been doing the rounds on various platform of internet discussion (Twitter, FaceBook etc.). We have had people like Pritish Nandy offering support, albeit vicariously, on such forums. We thank all of them too.

However, we are acutely aware of the possibility of misinterpretation of the song and its message. Especially, vis-a-vis newspaper articles, where our words, after extensive pruning, could transform into vicious political statements.

We would like to clarify one thing - we are not here to promote pornography. Instead, we believe in letting the masses decide what's appropriate for them - freedom in art and various ways of expression.

Please support us in this honest, humble venture.

(Our disclaimer is put up on our blog (*right-sided bar) and FB pages. We do COME in peace!)

The Launch Gig...that almost never was...

Well...well...well...it almost was the perfect anti-climax. The cops came in when K*N*A*P were midway through their set....and it was announced that the party was over... We were terribly disappointed, and started giving away our cd's...played the song over the PA...and were ready to scoot out...when...when....Sameer appeared out of nowhere....looked at us and said - "Fuck it - lets do this.." 

7 minutes of chaos followed....3 minutes of which weere spent looking for Robin who had left to see off his friends. The rest of the 4 were the maniacal rendition of our debut number...as usual we could not hear ourselves on stage...Aggie was super on drums....and JD...well....he even screamed at the Sound Guy in the middle of the song... :)

It was a fun gig! 

A million thanks to Sameer for making this happen!!

And an extra special thank you to all those who came to support us....

See ya'll next time!!

- Joy

We thank you!

We sincerely thank EVERYONE who have helped us promote our own "Savita Bhabhi"! We can't be indebted for the wonderful articles/coverage our friends in the media have come up with. And freedom for all!

• Times Of India (Mumbai Edition - 29th of July, 2009)
• Hindustan Times (Delhi; HT City - 29th of July, 2009)
• Radio City 94.3 FM (Malini's show, Mumbai - 28th July, 2009)
• Indian Express (Mumbai edition - 27th of July, 2009)
• DNA Sunday (Mumbai - 26th of July, 2009)

Let's just not stop here. If you like us and our luscious "Savita Bhabhi," do spread the message around?

(PS: Don't forget to check us out live. For a start, tonight at 'Daddy's WindSong Wednesdays' - gig dates are posted RIGHT here -->)
(PS2: Don't forget to send in your reviews/comments/amor/criticism. We love to be appreciated!)

Shor Bazaar - Savita Bhabhi released

The wait is over! Shor Bazaar's new single "Savita Bhabhi" is released online. If you have speakers on your computer, you would probably have started 'hearing' by now.

The song is also available at the following links.

• GimmeSound.com
• ReverbNation
• MySpace
• MyBand.co.in
• Chordvine (to be up soon)
• SoundClick.com

Once again, remember that if you want to watch us perform this live in our launch gig at Daddy's WindSong Wednesdays at il terrazzo, del italia tonight, this is all you need to do.

Become a member of Shor Bazaar communities (FB, MySpace, Twitter etc.) Review the song. Send/post it online and send us an e-mail at kk(at)shorbazaar(dot)in. We will let you know if you win the contest! The lyrics can be read here.

Shor Bazaar Live @ Daddy's WindSong Wednesdays - 'Savita Bhabhi' launch performance

Shor Bazaar is back - this time with a brand new single! We are extremely overjoyed to announce the release of "Savita Bhabhi," our first single, on the 29th July, 2009 (Wednesday). The song will be available for free download and streaming all over the web on the 29th.

Even cooler is to drop by at il Terrazzo, del Italia during our first ever performance of the song. We will be closing to Nikhil D'Souza and the K*N*A*P.

What's the big deal? We will be distributing copies of the 'limited edition' Savita single! Now, you wouldn't want to miss out on that. Especially because it's FREE!

Well, we can't reveal everything... but we can assure you that we will be springing some surprises. Maybe you will see something that you would never ever see! So get yourself off your couches and come down to Juhu!

To make things more interesting - here's an offer. We'll be putting "Savita Bhabhi" up for you to listen on Wednesday early morning. If you like it and would like to review the song for us, we'd love hear from you.

First add us as your friend on FaceBook/MySpace/Blogger/Twitter. Then send your review along with your name etc to kk[at]shorbazaar[dot]in. You can also post the review online too at these places (the wall here OR Shor Bazaar fan page on FB OR our blog OR even Myspace). We'll select a chosen few amongs the first few (whose names will be announced) and they will get FREE ENTRY to the gig!

ARE YOU READY?

~SHOR~

Entry: Rs. 500/-

(Why Savita Bhabhi? Why not? We think it's fun to write a song about such a cool website. It's a shame such web-niceties are banned. We have our right to freedom of expression, don't we?)

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=135806976350

"Don't Ban the Bhabhi" - Indian Express, Mumbai 27th July, 2009

Our friend Georgina Maddox at Indian Express did a wonderful job with this article. We heartily thank her and Indian Express for covering us!

"Savita Bhabhi finds a voice" - DNA Mumbai, 26th July, 2009

DNA Mumbai ran a story on us on the 26th of July, 2009. We would like to thank DNA for the publicity and, especially, Suparna Thombare for her excellently written article... and Tanveer Khan for the exuberant photograph.

KK (Ze Doc)

(Article courtesy DNAindia.com)

"Savita Bhabhi" lyrics

Straight forward si baat,
Jab bhi laundon ki jamaat
Sharam aur sperm ki baatein,
Saari saari raat
Ladka ek dum ordinary,
Simply looking for a naari
But sorry! And yeh bas
Opinion hai meri… ke yeh

Ke ye koshish bekaar!
Bekaar bina car!
Hai jo car and money,
They help get honey beta
Dhan-dhan Gopal,
Nehin galni teri daal
Yehan ka tu native –
Society conservative!

Aise in halaat mein
Majboori ke saath mein
Best to go online...
Leke apne haath mein

Jismani pyaar ki chhabi - Savita Bhabhi!
Savita Bhabhi-Bhabi! Oh-oh-oh!
Tere dimaag pe haavi - Savita Bhabhi!
Savita Bhabhi-Bhabi! Oh-oh-oh!

Isko kaun padhta?
Padhke kiska chadhta?
Chadhke jo ragadta hai -
Jab uska jhadta!
Woh pal guldasta.
Happiness sasta.
Recession ke mausam mein
Koi to hansta!!

Isko kaun padhta?
Padhke kiska chadhta?
Chadhke jo ragadta hai -
Jab uska jhadta!
Woh pal guldasta.
Happiness sasta.
Recession ke mausam mein
Koi to hansta!!

Aise maamlaat mein
Computer ke saamne
Don't be all night
Dard hoga baad mein!!!

Jismani pyaar ki chhabi - Savita Bhabhi!
Savita Bhabhi-Bhabi! Oh-oh-oh!
Tere dimaag pe haavi - Savita Bhabhi!
Savita Bhabhi-Bhabi! Oh-oh-oh!

"Savita Bhabhi" single to be released on Wednesday

We hereby announce the release of "Savita Bhabhi," our first single, on the 29th (Wednesday) of this month. The song will be available for free download and streaming at most music-related websites on the 29th. For those who don't believe in downloading, we are coming up with a limited edition "Savita Bhabhi" single CD. We will be distributing copies of it during our upcoming live performances (for FREE!).

On the same night, in what we would like to call our official "launch" function, we will be performing the song (along with a few others) at Daddy's Windsong Wednesdays at il Terrazzo del Italia near Mocha at Juhu Chowpatty. If you turn up at the gig, not only would you catch us performing the song live for the first time, you can win all-expenses-paid membership passes to maternity clinics in shady government hospitals in Bhubaneshwar, Thiruvananthapuram, Pune, and Kolkata* (along with non-refundable one-way bus tickets).

Why Savita Bhabhi? Why not? We think it's fun to write a song about such a cool website. It's a shame such web-niceties are banned. We have our right to freedom of expression, don't we? There are more surprises on the road leading up to the 29th and we can't wait to announce them. But I know you guys CAN wait. Besides, it will be a wonderful exercise for you to keep track of what we are up to on Facebook, Twitter, MySpace etc.

(*These are the amazing cities where the band members were born.)

Shor tweets are here to stay

Shor Bazaar has decided to shed its taciturnity. Yes, we have recently gotten real and have started tweeting -- that too, like an overweight kiwi. If you too are fond of tweeting, please follow us at Shor Bazaar Twitter page.

If you ain't much of an ornithophile, you really ain't that old and still could become one. At Twitter.com. Then go visit our Twitter page.

Or else, you could just use ole' fashioned FaceBook to keep up with us. Go visit our FB fan page and FB user group.

However, if you figure that blogs kill everything else, just stick around where you are -- at the Shor Bazaar blog.

Or you could unfurl your best Johnny Bravo imitation and call our moms and ask 'Whazzup hot momma?'

Choose wisely. Just take care not to miss out!

And we need you. Quite desperately. So...

(PS: We don't hang out too much on Orkut. But if you want us to, we're game.)

The first single

Ladies and gentlemen, thank you for your kind patience. The wait is finally over!

Our first single is days away from being released online! The date is tentatively fixed for the 29th of July. What's more, we will be doing a couple of mini-launch shows in Mumbai to promote the single. Hopefully, you will be hearing us perform it on radio as well!

Now, we need your help. We want to know where you would want to download/stream the single from. Write back to us here, there, and everywhere!

We all believe in freedom of expression, don't we? Support the freedom of media by supporting us!

(PS: If you are wondering what the song's about, you will have to wait a few more days! All I can say now is that it's about something really hot which has been all over the newspapers recently.

A tour?

You know, sitting on our bums doesn't feel all that great. With monsoons flooding the roads and railway tracks in Mumbai, we are contemplating going to drier places. Like a desert or something. Maybe even performing there. Yeah, it's been a while since we did that.

Coming to the point, Shor Bazaar wants to know if there are gig-places which would like to host some ballsy music. So, if you know of any venue in your city where you think we can perform, just drop us an e-mail or something. If things work out, we promise to make sure that those who help us will get some benefits.*

What say ye?

(*Conditions subject to change. Read the offer document carefully and consult your lawyer and Momma before submission. Please note that meteorological factors and avian migrational routes could affect this offer. Applicants must be of legal age for drinking and consensual sex for their respective states or union territories. All of the aforementioned stipulations are to be taken with the utmost seriosity. Applicants must not lack the slightest trace of the absence of a sense of humour.)

3 down, none to go?

Yesterday, Shor Bazaar was back in the studio for another session. This time around we recorded with Jai Row Kavi. We tracked two more songs. Needless to mention it, Chinmay Harshe (Empire Studios) and Jai together form an amazing duo - It was simply awesome!

What this means is that the tracking of the EP is almost done. We are not yet decided if we want to track one more! We are planning to get it mixed asap and get it out to you guys.

Until then, here are some photos from the session. Watch out for those songs on MySpace soon!

:)

http://www.facebook.com/album.php?aid=2026957&id=1378257351&ref=nf

The first single

Shor Bazaar is recording our first single at Empire Studios. We are collaborating with Chinmay Harshe (engineer) and Jonathon Fernandes (Reverse Polarity, Dream Out Loud) who's on the drums. The song's a bit of a secret and you will have to wait until its ready to know more about it. I can guarantee you one thing, it sounds sinister! Here are a few snaps from the recording session.


The tracking is almost over. Just a few more days to hear it (and download it)!

Cheers,

Krishna (KK)

*******************
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At the studio

After a period of about a year, we are getting into the studio again. The venture is on a much smaller scale though - we are recording a new song which we hope to release on the internet in a few week's time. For this venture, we are collaborating with Jonathon (Reverse Polarity, Dream Out Loud)  who will be on the drums and Chinmay Harshe (Empire Studios) who would be on the console as the engineer. We thank both of them for helping us out. Here's to a wonderful day at the studio.

Single and looking

You heard it right! Shor Bazaar is single and looking. Not just once, but thrice!

• Sumit had to leave the band because of personal issues. It was a memorable year and half with him on board and we will miss him. But things move on. Currently, we are on the hunt for a drummer. Those of you who are interested, or those who know people who might be interested, give us a shout. Those who apply should keep in mind that they need to look as bad or even worse than the rest of the band. For reference, watch out for the upcoming photo post.
• As you might know, we were signed on to Phat Phish. Unfortunately, it didn't work out as planned. A week or so back, we had a meeting with the record label officials and both parties decided to part ways. Although we didn't have to fight the British to be independent again, we are almost as upbeat and optimistic about our future as Gandhiji was, and would like to exercise our freedom by coming out with some new music. Read further, for clarity.
  
• Quite honestly, we are tired of waiting for our yet unreleased debut album. It has been a long time (about a year, actually) since we visited the studios. Ergo, we have decided to start from scratch, almost. We are writing new material and are planning to record the songs. These songs will be released through the alma mater of music, the Internet. You will get to listen to them and on top of that, will get to download these songs! We are very excited about this. The first single (yes, one more reason why the title has the word) is in the process of being recorded. Watch this space for further details!

Shor Bazaar @coustic Live! on 10th of May

You've heard us loud, you might even have heard us on the radio. But you haven't seen us unplugged! Yes, for the first time ever, Shor Bazaar presents its stripped down version with acoustic guitars and piano. And this time, we're debuting brand new songs and you don't want to miss that!

In this unique promotional event on Mother's day at 'The Club' in association with Furtados, we'll be sharing the stage with Cirkles for an afternoon of acoustic rock.

Entry: ONLY CLUB MEMBERS. NO GUESTS ALLOWED

Date: Sunday, May 10, 2009
Time: 1:00pm - 7:00pm
Location: The Club
Street: 197 D.N. Nagar, Andheri (West)
City/Town: Mumbai, India

Shor Bazaar - School from Aarohi '09 @ VNIT Nagpur

UPDATE! - Lyrics are overlayed on the top portion of the video window!

This song's about a really funny story from JD's school days!



Nu-Hindi-Metal?

Shor Bazaar - Mumbhai (cover) from Aarohi '09 @ VNIT Nagpur

What would you say?

The 'Apsara' lyric

You guys requested for it and now you have it. These are the lyrics to the song 'Apsara' which we performed at Aarohi '09 at VNIT Nagpur. Watch out for this space as more goodies are on your way.

Apsara

chakshya lada kar, lakshya dikhati;
aisa dhooan, aag ho kaisi?
aei apsara... aa ab zara!
do kadam idhar, choom loon tera;
looton aise tujhe teri har maang bhar doon,
aise tujhe teri, har maang, bhar doon....

jab ang mile, besharmi kar,
unmaad mein, mere kaan bhar;
dil gusthak, dil beimaan, dil-e-kasish, dilruba,
dil gusthak, dil beimaan, dil-e-kasish, dilrubaa...

chakshya lada kar, lakshya dikhati;
aisa dhooan, aag ho kaisi?
aei apsara... aa ab zara!
do kadam idhar, choom loon tera;
looton aise tujhe teri har maang bhar doon,
aise tujher teri, har maang, bhar doon....

daanton se tujhpe, kayee naam likhoon,
cheerun khuraeid, dastakhat karoon;
dil gusthak, dil beimaan, dil-e-kasish, dilruba,
dil gusthak, dil beimaan, dil-e-kasish, dilrubaa...

aei apsara... aa ab zara!
do kadam idhar, choom loon tera;
looton aise tujhe teri har maang bhar doon,
aise tujhe teri, har maang, bhar doon....

We demand comments!

The Aarohi '09 Experience

We almost didn’t make it! It was a hastily put together, ill-planned itinerary which meant that three of us had work-related issues to take into consideration. Such journeys necessitate the acquired skills of clowning around to be utilized and the few VNITites we encountered on the train must have been left wondering how such a goofy group of people can perform cohesively as a band. The 13-hour-long journey without reservations in an Indian train’s second class compartment on an intensely hot day didn’t manage to wear four of us down - our guitar gizmo man Joy was flying in.

From the moment that we landed in the Nagpur railway station (along with the guys from Indigo Children who arrived at the same time coincidentally) we were treated with utmost care by the hard-working team at Aarohi ’09. JD’s asthmatic tendencies pre-empted an intense dusting session at the unused hostel rooms which would eventually become our abode for a couple of days - the bunker beds really were reminiscent of boys hostels from our past and the baths without showers reminded me of my own scary days from medical college hostels of the past.

As we walked across the ground through a dust storm which had formed right in front of our eyes to the ‘green room’ behind the stage, we were rather disheartened by the lackadaisical sound people who were running three hours behind schedule. Indigo Children took a couple of hours for their sound check which was marked by incessant delays due to technical snags and more. We tried to do our sound check as fast as we could as the crowd was already assembling and were getting impatient. We had used ‘Rasili’ and ‘School’ as our songs for teasing the crowd and it sure seemed to have worked.

Apparently, there was this viral SMS being sent across the campus about this hindi band playing hair-raising stuff. That surely helped us as a considerable crowd of about 500 had assembled by the time we got on stage after the band competition. Joy and Sumit who did not even have time to freshen up after being the judges of ‘Purple Haze’ (along with Jayen Verma, the fastest percussive bassist in the world) must have been recharged due to the energy rippling off the crowd before them. What followed will best be described in pictures and video.

In the half hour that we were allowed to perform we did six songs – ‘Rasili’, ‘Mumbhai’, ‘Apsara’, ‘Chuppi’, ‘School’ and ‘Jaisalmer’ - and we had a blast on stage. It was one of the only gigs where JD’s famously risqué lines got across to the crowd through the mayhem of cymbals, slap-pop and guitar drones and we saw guffawing teenagers in scores amongst the audience. A gig with Shor Bazaar can’t go on without JD injuring himself in one way or the other and this time he sprained his ankle while jumping off the stage, thereby disrupting the guitar circuitry of Robin, left lost amidst his fitful stage-act.

After the performance, as the punk-rock anthems of Indigo Children were being dished out live, we were overwhelmed with requests for photographs and some autographs too. We heard chants of ‘Shor Bazaar’ peppered with high-pitched shrieks when we headed out to watch the Children go amok. We were totally drained and yet we couldn’t help but bask in the adulation poured on us, at least partly due to my own version of couture. This is the first time that we were tagged with a few genres like hindi-metal and hindi-thrash!

It was a wonderful experience and we thank all you guys who helped us pull this off! We thank the talented bands who participated in the contest and Indigo Children for sharing the stage with us. We also would not like to overlook the sponsors ibibo.com and Xion Media Labs for sponsoring this event. It’s no secret that we would like to take centre stage, hopefully not just once more, when we could unleash our entire arsenal at you. We’re waiting for the call!

We would very much appreciate hearing from you about what you liked and what you didn’t about the band and the performance and about our mannerisms on stage and our wardrobe. I already have had many a requests to upload the lyrics of our songs. We are certainly going to be working on that. You could also send in the photos that you guys managed to take to our e-mail or post them on the many platforms for Shor Bazaar fans on the Internet – MySpace, FaceBook Group, FaceBook Arist Page, Orkut Community etc.

Thank you VNIT Nagpur!

We are packing up to leave Nagpur and the memories of yesterday night at Aarohi '09 linger on. We had a wonderful time performing in front of the most responsive of audiences. We'd like to thank everybody for letting us have a wild time on stage - the organizers, the audience, the people who took care of our stay and food, fellow bands (including Indigo Children)! We' love to come back and Shor-ify Nagpur!

Adios!

Daddy's WindSong Wednesday's on 25th Feb, 2009

From Shor Gig

When we started sound-checking at the wonderful il terrazzo at Juhu Chowpatty with the backdrop of the crimson sunset, we could feel the incredible vibe seeping through us – the vibe of something outlandish and unforgettable. It seemed rather selfish to not let the feeling disseminate to the elite audience which would turn up to watch us perform. It is unusual for us to be performing in front of a sensitively fashionable crowd and we did try to do something about ourselves to raise our own style quotient.

Judging by the response that we had, we presume all our efforts did not go in vain. We received bountiful impassioned cheering from most of the present audience even when the night was young. This is astonishing despite the lyrics finding themselves sinking in a boomy-sound-swamp not too dissimilar to the ones found near the infamous Bates motel. The guy at the console must have found it hard to understand what hit him, and since it didn’t kill him, it must have made him stronger. It sure did so for us. Here are some photos.



We got a lot of wonderful comments and constructive criticism about our performance from the enthusiastic crowd assembled by Daddyji and the PR team. We are proud to have been featured in front of an array of brilliant musicians and knowledgeable folk from the entertainment industry. Although it might sound redundant to those who have read our earlier post about our little gig three weeks back, we won’t hesitate to mention that such a platform is indeed rare to find in India.

Smitten by the limelight perhaps we might be, but we won’t forget to mention the terrific performances by three artists who played before and after us. Alisha Pais and Fay Barretto opened for us with a charming set of songs. Shibani Kashyap followed us up with a preview of next Wednesday’s gig. The one-man-jam Ricoloop wound up the show with the most incredible live solo performance we had ever witnessed!

We would like to thank Daddy (Sameer Malhotra) once again for providing this brilliant outlet for original music in Mumbai. We also thank our friends (all of you, I can’t name you all!) who made it to the gig despite it being in the middle of the week. We also thank the documentary team of Human Mirror Project who came in and interviewed us on tape. That’s a first for us! We’d love to hear from all of you about the gig – here, FaceBook, MySpace, Orkut or maybe even by SMS!

)))) SHOR ((((

(PS: We have had phone calls about people turning up and finding that they were not on the guest list. We are sorry to have not clarified that there was an entry charge to the event. We regret the confusion caused.)

A quick blurb at the end of a rather unusually busy week...

We had one hell of an awesome time at Daddys Windsong this wednesday...a detailed blow by blow account of the gig should be up by Monday the 2nd of March...for now we would like to remind you all that we are off to Nagpur for the weekend...hope the gig there is as wild as the one at Daddys this wednesday.

A HUGE ROAR OF APPLAUSE for all the guys who turned up for the gig on Wednesday. Thank You!! :)

Radio Interview - RJ Malini Radio ONE 94.3 FM tonite!

UPDATE - 4 AM, 25th February, 2009

These are the three songs from the unplugged session! Tell us what you think about them!

Shor Bazaar will be featured on RJ Malini's show on Radio One 94.3 FM at 9.30 pm on the 24th of February, 2009. Tune in to catch an interview and a few acoustic versions of our songs!

Facebook event page.

The 'Juhu ka Jugaad' Gig - Wed 25th of Feb, 2009

The 'winter' is a thing of the past and the sweltering days may tiring you down. Like always, Shor Bazaar, your Friendly Neigbhorhood Rock Band (FNRB), will be the there to save the day - or in this case, the night!

You might remember that we were smitten by the experiences at the 4th of February acoustic performance at Daddy's WindSong Wedensdays. The effects for either parties have been elucidated in an earlier post. Tomorrow, that is Wednesday the 25th of February 2009, we are performing as the featured act at the same venue. This gig will henceforth be referred to as the 'Juhu Ka Jugaad' gig, a tag line created by our resourcefulness asset JOYdeep Dasgupta. He has even made a wonderful poster for this.


The details are as follows.

Venue: il Terrazzo bar atop del Italia, right next to Mocha at Juhu Chowpatty
Time: 9 pm onwards
Entry Fee: Rs 500/- per head - the proceeds go to the the poverty stricken musicians who are performing there. It's a charitable cause, really!
The Deal: Great music, great liquor and great food with a wonderful crowd to hang out with. Ooh and, we are playing there too!

Check out Facebook (page 1, page 2), Orkut and Myspace pages for event details!

Here are some quotes about our gig! Both are from the Daddy* himself.

"I have yet to come across a band with sooo much talent, chutzpah and lyrical harmony standing at the cliff of destiny, ready to fly!!! The buzzzzzzzz is only growing, boys! Get ready to glow with the flow!!!! Yeeeeeeehaaaaaaaa!!!!"

"If you had one night... one night only... to watch a band on the cusp of achieving super-stardom, then come and wintness 'SHOR BAZAAR' hit the high notes on the 25th of Feb at 'Daddy's WindSong Wednesdays', Il Terrazzo bar, atop del Italia... Galli Galli main shor hai, SHOR BAZAAR ka shor hai!"

"If there is a trigger-moment in every famous band's lifetime that catapults them to instant fame and recognition, then that moment cometh tomorrow night!!! These guys are ripe for the picking so get the wax outta your ears and let the shor begin.....!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!"

(* We didn't use any forceful measures or money to extract such nice comments about us!)

Facebook artist page & upcoming gigs

We apologize for being reticent because of multifarious, questionable reasons. But change is welcome, as always. In an effort to change things around, you can showcase the unbridled affection that was thrown at us at the gigs that we have played at our FaceBook artist page. Click here and be our fan. We need our TLC too!

And by the way, for those of us who have had withdrawal symptoms because of the above mentioned reticence, we have some Colombian Shor-ijuana coming up. Catch us LIVE at

• Daddy's WindSong Wednesdays (Il Terrazzo, Del Italia, Juhu Chowpatty) on the 25th of Feb, 2009
• AAROHI '09 at VNIT Nagpur on the 28th of Feb, 2009

Happy toking! :)

The Daddy's WindSong Wednesdays experience

A couple of weeks back, during one of the musical social events in the 'burbs, we ran into to a friend, an uber-talented individual (that's the easy way to put it - to find out more, check him out with the links given below) who was playing with his rather sprightly band called Ankur Tewari and the Ghalat family. We were a tad late (vide infra) and had missed his performance.

Later on in the evening, we were catching up and talking about gigs amongst other things, he mentioned about the upcoming gig at this new destination of live music - the Il Terrazzo Bar del Italia - right at the Juhu Chowpatty. Ankur's band were playing there and he invited us over to jam with him and his band.

We took that offer up - we didn't want to miss the band another time, with a little bit of indecision I admit, and found ourselves walking up the wooden steps at the venue sans two of our members, sadly due to other commitments. A three piece Shor Bazaar (JD, Rob and yours truly)) would be like the real thing without the zing, or so we thought. It feels nice to have been proven wrong so decisively, especially so by a wonderful and zestful audience!

We opened for Ankur's band with a three song set. The crowd went yowling and yapping and we were left wondering if they were enamored by us or were simply under the influence. After the set, we were thrilled and honored to see people come up and say so many kind, wonderful things about us and our music. It felt really good playing to a discerning, intelligent audience, appreciative of original music.

They were big-hearted enough, and of course with all the ethanol acting as a supreme neural lubricant, to demand an encore peformance and we found ourselves on the stage for the second time in the eveing, after Ankur & the Ghalat Family and Sridhar/Thayil - the lyrical/jazz duo of musician from Bangalore, winded up their sets. We managed to pull off another self-perceived scrawny set of three songs which were received with even louder cries of bewilderment and unhindered fervor. Believe me, it felt good and we did have a lot of fun.

We take this opportunity to thank

• The artists that we got to perform with
  
  
  
  • Ankur Tewari and the Ghalat family – Ankur Tewari, Sidd Coutto, Pozy Dhar and Johan Pais – for inviting us to perform and performing a heart-warming set of original stuff – wonderful!
    
  • Sridhar/Thayil - the lyrical/jazz duo from Banaglore for their delightful performance and
    
  • Anouskha Manchand for her wonderful rendition of broken-hearts-club stories
  
  
• Daddy (Sameer Malhotra) from Daddy's WindSong Wednesdays (he's really not that old!) - for bringing up one of the most promising destinations for original, live music in the city
  
• Il Terrazzo Bar del Italia - a wonderful destination for fans of Juhu Chowpatty
  
• Daddy and Gaurav Kapoor for the wonderful introductions and wisecracks
  
• The wonderful crowd who were appreciative and kind to howl and roar for us and the other bands and made us feel special.

And to two of us who lost out on this remarkable experience – Sumit and Joy, we missed you!

LIVE on Radio City 91.1 FM at 6 pm this evening!

After three months or so, we are back online on the blog! The exile is being broken by a Live acoustic performance and interview on Radio City 91.1 FM's Saturday evening show featuring VJ Vicky at 6pm. It will be an informal chat session sprinkled by some of our songs. We might even play a brand new song on the eve of Republic Day! Don't miss it!

:)