Mohit Chauhan on a generation of musical pioneers, new trend of digitally-made tunes and India’s storytelling traditions

In 1998, it had been just a few years since cable TV arrived in middle-class India’s drawing rooms and the very few private channels would sometimes show a dream-like sequence, dipped in deep hues of blue and some splashes of yellow, with a song and music that was as Indian as it was global.

Silk Route’s debut album, Boondein, and song, Dooba-Dooba, instantly became a hit with the young Indian. The music was unlike anything the nation had heard, the lyrics and the song composition felt fresh, the instruments like acoustic guitar had rarely been used to their full potential like this before. Music bands were unheard of save a few like Euphoria, but they were surely making their presence felt.

“It was a really beautiful time actually,” singer, musician Mohit Chauhan fondly remembers.

One of the founding members of Silk Route, Chauhan recalls the generation of “pioneering musicians” who brought out a melodious rebellion against the set trends of Indian film music and managed to get an equal space and adoration for the music they made.

“I was part of the generation where we came up with our original music which people loved as much as they loved film songs. Our songs received just as much love. We made our own kind of music, it was not influenced by a plot of a film. It was basically our own thought extraction which came out in the form of a song that we made and the sounds that surrounded those songs,” Chauhan said in a conversation with Firstpost.

In the last 20-some years, the music scene changed drastically as new means of marketing were developed and a new generation of listeners influenced musicians to make tunes that were popular but did not always leave a lasting impression.

Chauhan believes the answer lies with the commercial nature of music promotion and a lack of depth in the creation to begin with.

“The kind of songs that are promoted by music companies, radio stations are very commercial or they don’t have the depth, something that we came up with or we thought we could do. So yes, that is required but otherwise India has a whole lot of musicians who are wanting to make good music. That’s what I am looking forward to,” the Masakali singer said.

But, how does one bring depth in their music? Chauhan suggests the younger generation of musicians to make original music that does not mean new lyrics or different tunes.

“…but in terms of sound, in terms of the identity of your expression, in terms of the sound that you have. That comes from your soul, from the influences you have had while growing up and how much courage you have to come up with your own music, your own songs, your own sounds, which I think is there but sometimes is missing,” he said.

Another reason why he feels today’s music lacks the soulful aftertaste of the music from a decade or so ago is the increasing trend of digitally making music without live instruments.

It is one of the major reasons that listeners find the music made by RD Barman and Laxmikant-Pyarelal fresh even today. When music is made with softwares, it lacks the human touch and emotions.

“When we listen to RD Barman songs, or Laxmikant-Pyarelal songs we hear a whole lot of live music, whether it is congas, drums, or percussions, guitar, saxophones. That human touch provides that human feeling to music, which is missing in a whole lot of stuff right now,” 56-year-old singer said.

Chauhan was recently in the national capital for the 14th edition of Kathakar - International Storytellers Festival, which showcased some of the choicest forms of storytelling from the deserts of the world - Rajasthan, Gujarat and Poland.

Talking about India’s oral storytelling tradition, Chauhan said that even though India has different oral traditions of each region, the introduction of digital devices at an early age is hurting the age-old practice.

“Earlier there were fewer means of distraction. Children would come home after playing outside and sit around with their family, their grandparents would tell them folklores, legends, mythologies and so much more. The practice isn’t seen much today with the digital age as children have smartphones or video games. They are distracted more,” he rued.

Chauhan added that with festivals like Kathakar and the kind of response it gets it is evident that we still very much love that part of the culture and there is still hope.

“We have seen people starting asking a month ago about bookings and dates for Kathakar. During the festival, we receive a truly dedicated audience who come with their children and senior members of the house. That shows how much they love that part of our culture.

“Through this tradition of oral story we take the knowledge of our culture, medicine, wellbeing, mythology to the next generations. A lot of things are imparted through these oral traditions. I think we should actively try to keep it alive, it is a very important part of our culture,” Chauhan said.

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