Music is a language for feelings beyond words. The smile that spreads when someone hums your favourite song, the wandering of eyes when you listen to your favourite singer playing in the vicinity, the lip-sync videos you make for the gram, tapping your hands and feet when the chorus hits just right. Music, without asking, enters and inhabits you.
For Senthil Raj, a musician, music is a vibration. “Everything (sound) is a vibration. It’s all atoms. So music is also a vibration — certain kinds of vibration make you feel good, and the combination of notes makes you react to it. It generally helps you relax and is healthy. And looking at it from the art point of view, leaving science, it is a very beautiful and powerful art form because it attracts everybody.”
Senthil sees his music as a means to attract “beautiful people”. Hence, he created a community of musicians called On the Streets of Chennai (OTS) in January 2019. Before this, he and his friends played at a few open mics, and the response was always “hard-hitting”. Senthil says, “Inside a cafe, if we can make so many people happy, we just thought we should take it to the streets and then do it for the public, the common man who cannot go to a concert or watch live music.”
The jamming journey
Formed as an NGO, OTS works closely with the government, Greater Chennai Corporation (GCC), and Chennai Metro Rail Limited (CMRL). While GCC helps with power supply, CMRL helps with location, such as the Central Metro. Apart from metro stations, the 300-plus members’ music community can be spotted at Tower Park, Perambur Park, Pondy Bazaar, Thiruvanmiyur Beach, Palavakkam Beach, and at a few more places in the evenings on weekends.
At these sites, three-four performing musicians predominantly use the guitar, and include keyboard, percussion, cajon, and large instruments when the audience is in large numbers. One of their shows in December saw 6,000 people gather at Thiruvamiyur Beach, where the Mayor also addressed.
The show is planned for 90 minutes, which on audience response, extends up to two hours. “Nobody is coming only to watch a show. There are shoppers, strollers, commuters, and families — some in a hurry and some at their own pace. In a big schedule, if you can make someone stop, that is a talent people subconsciously pick up here. The greatest advantage is your ability to become street smart. Most of the guys who have performed a lot of shows know how to become a performer. They connect very well with the audience,” explains Senthil.
The team mostly plays cine music with a few originals, written and composed by the community’s musicians, and some classical music by the team ‘Classical on the Street’. “We also want to get other genres of music, say jazz and Western music. We have western singers, but there are no takers for it. Other forms like folk art and Gaana. We want to expand and keep the audience entertained,” he says.
Recalling an incident from a recent performance at Palavakkam beach, Senthil says an auto driver approached him after the musicians packed their instruments. “The driver asked, ‘Can you sing this song?’ after a lot of hesitation. He requested an old song,” he says. The song was MGR’s Rajavin Paarvai. The team obliged, unpacked, and played it for him. “He started sobbing, saying, ‘Nobody respects me. It means a lot to me when you guys unpack and perform this song',” shares Senthil.
These are a few memorable moments when the community knows that they are progressing in what they set out to achieve — for people to smile and express themselves. In this process, the members learn and evolve. “When budding artistes engage with the experienced, they learn. OTS is an open platform. Learning is also easy, since you work with different artists, your knowledge expands,” he notes.
Music meets movement
Additionally, the community engages in teaching music to underprivileged kids. For the coming months of 2025, OTS wants to do more on the education front for the kids and other underprivileged children. “We also do a lot of shows in old age homes and orphanages. We have always been doing it, but we want to consciously do more of it,” expresses Senthil.
With added exposures, the community is looking at becoming a global community. Senthil adds, “We are looking at starting an online community, having a strong presence — to start with in the US, at least one or two shows, this month. Indians indulge in street music there. We want to connect and make the community stronger.”
With plans set in their vision board, OTS’s calendar is currently filled with the Greater Chennai Corporation. They wish to make Chennai ‘The Street Music Capital of the World’. “Currently, we do about 20-25 shows a month. We want to increase it to 125 in a week. It’s like 6,000 shows in a year,” shares the founder.
With musical dreams and zest to bring attention to the streets of the city, OTS is slowly but steadily spreading smiles and happiness with the sundaris and sundarans of Chennai, reminding passersby that the streets are not just for traffic, but for togetherness and transformation.
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