Not every evening begins with sound — some begin with a feeling. Be it their version of Agar Tum Mil Jao, Kun Faya Kun, Aate Jaate Jo Milta Hai, Chaand Sitaare or Chaand Chhupa Badal Mein, Tera Hone Laga Hoon and Sufi strains like Halka Halka Suroor — to name a few, Indofuzion has built a soundscape where nostalgia doesn’t just revisit the past, it reshapes it in the moment. When Baithak 2.0 arrived in Hyderabad, it carried that very promise of songs remembered, reimagined, and most importantly, felt.
For Radhika Kumar, female vocalist of the band, the evening marked something long in the making. “I wouldn’t say plan, but definitely a dream,” she begins. Having spent a significant part of their journey performing outside India, particularly in the UAE, the band had seen how deeply their concept resonated with audiences living away from home. Bringing that same experience back to Indian cities came with both anticipation and curiosity. She shares, “We’ve performed in Hyderabad before, but not with this concept. The response was so overwhelming and we look forward to more such events here.”
Hyderabad, she explains, was chosen as much for its temperament as its taste. “When we talk about Hyderabad, it’s always known for its love for music, art — the tehzeeb that Hyderabadi people have,” she shares. That cultural instinct, she believes, aligns seamlessly with what a baithak demands. She adds, “We sit very close to each other. We talk, share stories. It’s a very intimate setting. And we want audiences who have the aptitude to sort of appreciate that rather than just waiting to go crazy.”
At its core, the concept itself is anything but new. “Baithak in itself is a very old concept,” Radhika notes. But what Indofuzion has attempted is a careful reworking of that tradition. She continues, “Our band has been a very Bollywood rock band. We realised that this sort of a setting — where we blend the traditional sittings as well as Bollywood rock — is not being done in a way that we are able to present it.”
The result is a layered musical experience — one that places classical instruments like tabla, harmonium and flute within a modern sonic frame. “We wanted to design something which can be very intimate, which stems from the mehfil and ghazal culture, but then pair it up with modern-day Bollywood rock music,” she says, adding, “Giving the audience the best of both worlds.”
The journey to Baithak 2.0 has been gradual but instinctive. Formed nearly 15 years ago by brothers Suraj and Sanjay Verma, Indofuzion evolved by tapping into something audiences return to again and again — nostalgia. “People always lean towards nostalgia about music. Songs which people don’t think about in today’s time — that’s where we built our community,” she concludes.
