The Sunday Soul Sante 2013 - Bangalore ● Photo Showcase

The Sunday Soul Sante 2013 had almost everything to offer - from food to beverages and music to a flea market. The event was organised by Asha Rao and her team at the Embassy International Riding School promises. Apart from damosels in fine-looking garments appearing totally appealing and attractive, the event also witnessed live music by the band Solder and Avril Quadros with her band Hammer N Thong and a fashion show by Prasad Bidapa Associates. Below are few photos of the event.

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Avril Quadros of Hammer N Thong at Sunday Soul Sante (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Avril Quadros at Sunday Soul Sante 2013, Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Avril Quadros of Hammer N Thong at Sunday Soul Sante (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Models at a fashion show at Sunday Soul Sante (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Models at a fashion show at Sunday Soul Sante (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Models at a fashion show at Sunday Soul Sante (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Hammer N Thong at Sunday Soul Sante (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Vocalist Siddharth Abraham of Solder at Sunday Soul Sante (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Sylvester Pradeep of Solder at Sunday Soul Sante (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Bangalore based band Solder at Solder at Sunday Soul Sante 2013 (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Models at a fashion show at Sunday Soul Sante (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Models at a fashion show at Sunday Soul Sante (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Models at a fashion show at Sunday Soul Sante (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Avril Quadros of Hammer N Thong at Sunday Soul Sante (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Rongali Bihu in Bangalore ● Photo Showcase

The spirit of spring came alive in Bangalore with Bohag Bihu celebrations organized by the Assam Association of Karnataka. The festive occasion amalgamated Assamese people from all corners of Bangalore adorning traditional attires to savor their traditional delicacies. The fête also had Bihu dances, Kanada folk dances, a fashion show displaying mekhela sador and musical performances - including some groovy solos by noted singer Sinchan Manohar Dixit.

Bihu dancers at Rongali Bihu festival in Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Bihu dancer at Rongali Bihu festival in Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Bihu dancer at Rongali Bihu festival in Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Model displaying Assamese 'mekhela sador' at Rongali Bihu festival in Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Singer Sinchan Dixit at Rongali Bihu festival in Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Bihu dancers at Rongali Bihu festival in Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Models displaying Assamese 'mekhela sador' at Rongali Bihu festival in Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy at Idea Rocks India, Bangalore ● Photo Showcase

Musical trio Shankar Mahadevan, Ehsaan Noorani and Loy Mendonsa took Bangalore by storm at the Idea Rocks India concert. Aimed at promoting upcoming musical talents, the Idea Rocks concert is an annual event where Idea goes on a talent hunt across India. Along with the trio, the event also witnessed performances by singer and flutist Rasika Chandrasekhar, Raman Mahadevan and the winner of the Idea Rocks India Talent Hunt, Bangalore, Nishant Kumar. The top five finalists of the Idea Rocks India Talent Hunt, Bangalore were - Antara Baruah, Jitendra Pant, Nishant Kumar, Sai Keshav and Imshan Khan.

Loy Mendonsa at Idea Rocks India, Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Ehsaan Noorani and Shankar Mahadevan at Idea Rocks India, Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Rasika Chandrashekhar at Idea Rocks India, Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Ehsaan Noorani at Idea Rocks India, Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy with Raman Mahadevan at Idea Rocks India, Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Shankar Mahadevan at Idea Rocks India, Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Loy Mendonsa at Idea Rocks India, Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Nishant Kumar and Shankar Mahadevan at Idea Rocks India, Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

- EFNI

Hornbill Festival 2012, Nagaland ● Photo Showcase

Hundreds gathered at the the Hornbill Festival 2012, a week long celebration that showcases Nagaland's rich tribal culture. Launched in the year 2000, this visually extravagant festival is celebrated during the first week of December every year to celebrate Nagaland's socio-cultural heritage.

Named after the bird, Hornbill Festival is one of the largest celebrations of the indigenous warrior tribes of Nagaland and therefore re-enactment of battles is a core part of the performances. Every session at this festival is kicked off with the traditional war cry from the hundreds of performers in their traditional attire. The dance performances have different stories to tell - from harvesting to legends, as spectators sit in open-air ampi-theaters and relish their eyes on the kaleidoscopic view of art and culture.

This annual fete with an orgy of music, dance, traditional games and skills, food, films, beauty pageants and peace rallies forms a meeting ground for the age old traditions and the progressive artists of the state.

Sudeepta Barua shares some of the variegated moments of the Hornbill Festival that he captured though his lens.

- Edited by Parmita Borah

Hornbill Festival 2012, Nagaland (photo - Sudeepta Barua)

Hornbill Festival 2012, Nagaland (photo - Sudeepta Barua)

Hornbill Festival 2012, Nagaland (photo - Sudeepta Barua)

Hornbill Festival 2012, Nagaland (photo - Sudeepta Barua)

Hornbill Festival 2012, Nagaland (photo - Sudeepta Barua)

Hornbill Festival 2012, Nagaland (photo - Sudeepta Barua)

Hornbill Festival 2012, Nagaland (photo - Sudeepta Barua)

Hornbill Festival 2012, Nagaland (photo - Sudeepta Barua)

Psychedelic evening with Deep Forest at Deep India concert

Electronica may be the flavor of the hour, but certainly not my first choice. Therefore a day before The Deep India Concert at Vivanta by Taj on December 13, 2012, I decided to chat up with Eric Mouquet, the front man of Grammy Award winning Deep Forest, and learn a thing or two about his music. (Click here to read Eric Moquet's interview). He clarified my doubt that although elctronica has become synonymous with mash-ups, club and dance music for my generation, his music has a wider scope to it. Deep Forest strives to create a synergy between technologies like sampling with deep rooted folk elements and even organic sound effects. Deep India is a spin off of that very concept.

Deep India Concert at Vivanta by Taj

For those who didn't know 'The Deep India concert' is a brief musical tour to promote the project 'Deep India', a collaboration between Deep Forest and Indian santoor player Rahul Sharma. The event was on the breezy evening of December 13, at Vivanta by Taj. Our moods pretty much in sync with psychedelic lights emitted by busy traffic, we reached an hour early for the concert and binged on yummy tidbits, standing next to an open bar.

I may still not be a trance/elctronica fan, but in all honesty, it was one hell of a show. Deep Forest kicked off the evening with some unhurried dreamy tracks, with David Fall on the drums, Alune Wade on the bass, Olyza Zamati - the vocalist, and the master himself Eric Mouquet on the keys (both on the keyboard and the laptop).

The highlight of the show has got to be composition 'Viva Madikere,' an ode to the enchanting hill station town Madikere. There's an interesting story behind this song. It so happened that Indian santoor player had recorded some drum beats, vocals and natural sound effects during his stay at Madikere and send them to Eric to get a flavor of the land. Inspired by the flavors of the place, Deep Forest worked on the song and named it 'Viva Madikere', which later paved way for the complete musical collaboration - Deep India. The audience were equally thrilled to groove to a Bihu song (traditional folk song of Assam) that Eric had fused with techno beats!

- by Parmita Borah                5HUE2USGAHPQ

Eric Mouquet of Deep Forest at Deep India Concert (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Olyza Zamati at Vivanta by Taj, Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Alune Wade of Deep Forest at Deep India Concert, Bangalore, India  (photo - Parmita Borah)

Olyza Zamati at Deep India Concert, Vivanta by Taj, Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

David Fall at Deep India Concert, Vivanta by Taj, Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Eric Mouquet of Deep Forest at Vivanta by Taj, Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Olyza Zamati of Deep Forest at Vivanta by Taj, Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Eric Mouquet at Deep India Concert, Vivanta by Taj, India (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Harley Rock Riders Season 3, Bangalore ● Photo Showcase

Harley Rock Riders Season III turned out to be a godfather of all events with an assemblage of thousands of music and motorbike aficionados in Bangalore at the Clarks Exotica bringing the best of both worlds - Harley-Davidson’s classic bikes and rock music. The event marked the unveiling of Harley Davidson’s newest progeny FAT BOB. Priced at Rs 12.8 lac, Fat Bob is a wide, blacked-out Dyna with Twin Cam 96 engine, 'Tommy Gun' 2-1-2 exhaust and helical-cut fifth gear.

The historic association of Harley-Davidson with rock music and its legends gave birth to the annual music property - Harley Rock Riders in India in 2012. The focus of this initiative is to revolutionize the rock music culture in India by encouraging promising indigenous rock bands and providing them a unique platform to showcase their talent.

This mega carnival in association with Rolling Stone, offered a myriad of national and international rocks bands to mark with ‘Budweiser Band Hunt’ winners kicking off a prelude to an evening of roar of V- engines and overdriven guitars. The Indian repertoire of powerhouse performances included Albatros, Light Years, Solder, The News, Frank Got The Funk, Galeej Gurus , Boomerang,, Kryptos, and Soulmate. The finale had the folks of Bengaluru head banging to the Swedish metal band ‘Wolf’. Harley Davidson India managing director Anoop Prakash was also seen giving away one of the models for free!

Kryptos at Harley Rock Riders, Bangalore, India (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Soulmate from Shillong, Meghalaya at Harley Rock Riders, Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Wolf from Sweden at Harley Rock Riders, Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Niklas Stålvind of Wolf at Harley Rock Riders, Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Nolan Lewis of Kryptos at Harley Rock Riders, Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Joshua of Boomerang from Mizoram at Harley Rock Riders (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Boomerang at Harley Rock Riders, Bangalore, India (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Boomerang rock band from Mizoram at Harley Rock Riders, Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Boomerang, band from Mizoram at Harley Rock Riders, Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Wolf, Swedish metal band at Harley Rock Riders, Bangalore, India (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Tipriti K Bangar of Soulmate at Harley Rock Riders, Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Atea of Boomerang at Harley Rock Riders, Bangalore (photo - Jim Ankan Deka)

Harley Rock Riders Season 3, Bangalore, India (photo - Parmita Borah)

- by Parmita Borah & Jim Ankan Deka