Rab Raakha, Roz Roz, Dil Challeya Ve, Marz — songs that feel less like tracks and more like memories. Those familiar notes found their way back at Jim Beam Jams in Onegolf Brewery with The Yellow Diary (TYD), a band the city now greets like its own. With Rajan Batra on vocals, Himanshu Parikh on keys, Harshvardhan Gadhvi on guitar, Sahil Shah on drums, and Stuart DaCosta on bass, the night unfolded like a song everyone already knew by heart.
In conversation with CE, the band warmly speaks about returning to the city — a connection that has only grown stronger over time. “It’s always so much fun. We have come here quite a few times. We love the food, city and people. It’s always fun to come back,” shares Rajan.
Their memories of Hyderabad go beyond venues and into moments. Recalling an early performance, Himanshu shares, “I think for us, it was the second or third time we had played here, and it was like an open gig. We hadn’t realised people in Hyderabad were listening to our music. But when we came, the place was completely packed, everyone was singing and dancing. It was really surprising, and since then, it has been awesome coming and performing in Hyderabad.”
When it comes to their live shows, there is a method to the madness. The band carefully designs its setlists to take the audience on a journey. Sahil explains, “It’s mostly an energy graph. That’s how we choose the music so the set flows smoothly, from one song into another. It also showcases that as a band we have very different kinds of songs. At the end, it all has a TYD flavour. We graph it into a tight 90-minute set. We keep the bangers towards the end so people stay. It’s an unspoken rule of live music.” (laughs)
Their songwriting process, much like their music, is collaborative and instinctive. Rajan explains how songs take shape, “We write together. Usually, someone is playing something on their instrument, and I am heavily dependent on some sort of movement of notes to create a melody that I can write lyrics on. Lyrics come from personal experiences, something I have seen around me, or a bit of both. We have written songs on scripts too. There are many points of view, and I am still figuring out what works.”
Touring together, Stuart admits, it is as much about friendship as it is about music. He further says, “There’s no joy that can be compared to having your audience sing your music with you. But the highlight is being on stage with these guys because every gig feels like a holiday. Even the most exhausting days feel lighter. Even when we’re sleep deprived or exhausted, it’s still always fun.” (smiles)
For a band whose music often touches vulnerability, the connection with listeners remains deeply personal. Harshvardhan notes, “Art was never for the artist; it is an expression by the artist for the people. When people hear our music and come back to tell us what it did for them, that is what gives it meaning. You can sit in a room and make music, but if nobody listens or feels it, it means nothing. We enjoy making music; it is a pure expression of what we feel at that moment. We are not thinking about impact while creating it. But when people say it helped them through difficult times, it feels rewarding, like we did something right.”
In Case We Forget, their recently released nine-track album, unfolds like one continuous emotional journey still in motion. While the music is yet to be fully experienced by audiences, it has already sparked creative momentum towards new writing. Work on the next album has begun from scratch, and with an upcoming first international tour to Australia in a month, it marks the beginning of a much larger road ahead.