Tapan Raj of Midival Punditz talks music and international labels

Gaurav Raina and Tapan Raj of Midival Punditz

Long before electronic or folk fusion music gained mass appeal, Midival Punditz got a generation hooked to their beats. The Delhi-based duo, comprising Gaurav Raina and Tapan Raj, will perform tonight at the equally nostalgic Razzberry Rhinoceros.

Raj promises a dynamic set - a mix of old and new original material, and music by other artistes. We quiz him on whether the new music will be a teaser from a new album. Raj replies, "The new album will be performance-driven; we will stick to what we are good at. It's too early to decide how it will shape up." He adds that they never set deadlines for an album release and believe that making music should be an organic process.

Raj feels that the number of live performance platforms has gone up in the last decade. "However, the sad thing is that many artistes are solely dependent on these shows to earn a living. You either perform or go broke. Also, artistes have no rights to their music. The laws related to publishing licenses are the worst in India. What producers do here is illegal elsewhere in the world," he rues.

Unwilling to succumb to this pattern, Raj has another avenue figured out. An IIT-ian, he runs a mobile technology company. But is the state of affairs responsible for them choosing an international label? "There are two aspects - one is that creative fields in India are run by non-creative people; the biggest example is the advertising industry where MBA graduates head the teams. Also, labels wanted us to make remixes while our original music had no support."

What's working, according to Raj, is that the artiste-audience connect is still honest and will remain so.

On: Tonight, 8.30 pm
At: Razzberry Rhinoceros, Juhu
Call: 7400402604