A regular Friday night at a lounge would probably have you listening to the latest by Allan Walker, David Guetta, Martin Garrix with some Rihanna or The Chainsmokers or Maroon 5.
For a very different Friday night, drop into where RDX the band is performing. They bring to you the coolest raciest, paciest songs from the 1960s-1990s. The band is named after maestro R D Burman, – RD and X – explosive. True to their name, they sing only RD Burman’s compositions. It does take a certain amount of courage to perform in front of an audience that is largely in their 20s and sing songs that go back much before some of the audience was even born.
Like they say music knows no barriers and so, the 20-somethings were soon singing and dancing to songs as fun as Mehboba Mehboba, and as poignant as Pyar Hamein Kis Mod Pe Le Aaya, to the captivating Gulabi Ankhein, and the very popular Chura Liya. Helmed by vocalist (deep voice) Rohit Joshi, RDX manages to strike all the right chords.
Just a few months old, the band’s choice of music is Rohit’s idea. An absolute R D Burman fan, 32-year-old Rohit admits that he eats sleeps and drinks R D Burman. Rohit’s tryst with music began in 2008 at a college competition where he sang Yamma Yamma and got booed off stage. He went back the next year, sang the same song and won the competition. Then he got busy organising stage shows, and later with his career. Music took a backseat till early 2016 when a friend convinced him to sing at an open jam. That set the ball rolling. “Through a couple of sessions, I realised that the audience perked up when I sang RD. I found my calling, and RDX was formed. So simply,” he grins. Rohit tells us a little more about RDX and RD Burman
Why R D Burman?
We could have a mixed repertoire but RD Burman’s compositions are like God for me. The effort he put into his compositions by using a variety of traditional instruments and the extent he went to, to record actual sounds like the raindrops to be used in his songs says a lot. His team of musicians were with him all through which shows his commitment. He sang very few songs but the life and the twist he got into them is pure genius. With RD Burman, the audience is sure to go humming back home.
We are moving to western kind of music today but its in electronic form. Pancham Da got Western influences in India and changed the scene by using all native and original instruments, not electronic. He is the only music director known for it. And we are trying to recreate the magic. Present the golden era to the new generation. And take back others to their time of music!
How easy is it to connect with the audience?
It is possible because of the magic of R D Burman’s music. As a vocalist, I want to entertain my audience, and to involve them in my singing so I mingle with them, talk to them and get them to participate, to enjoy and to listen. The youngest member in my band is 17 and he enjoys playing!
Is singing the same songs tedious?
No! Because my band and I love the songs. Also, the audience is different everywhere, so connecting with them is fun. If a large part of the audience is old, they are with you already and where it is a younger audience, they know and enjoy his songs too. RD Burman has some 1200 compositions, we perform a mere percentage of them. We have many songs to learn.
The Band
Gaurav Patil (Neel) on Bass, Sohel Sheikh – rhythm guitar, Umesh Valse – lead guitar and Prajyot Ambekar, (the youngest at 17) on percussion. Rohit is the vocalist. RDX uses no electronic accompaniment. The shakes, scratches, ghungroos and the percussions are all done by them. For Chura liya we tune in a glass with water before the show so that it sounds right.
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