KOCHI: It was Day one of Heatwave, the one-of- a kind conceptual party that was held at Pepper House last month. After a live performance by the city-based band The Derelicts, a moderately intoxicated, chatty crowd of Kochiites were impatiently waiting for Mumbai-based artist Sanaya Ardeshir.
Better known by her stage name ‘Sandunes’, this 30-something artist is a popular name in the international electronic music scene. Her music can be described as jazz-rooted with elements of progressive electronic music, carrying unique sensations of sound. Be it her 2013 release ‘Ever Bridge’ or the 2019 EP ‘11.11’, Sanaya has experimented with every aspect of electronic music. But this time, she was in town with something new—’Hand of Thought’, a set that showcases a more vulnerable side of this artist.
She enters, accompanied by a grand piano, the dreamy, rustic walls of Pepper House shining behind her as the stage lights pick up. On the dais, with her hands on the keys, Sanaya begins to talk to the audience, about music that lifted her soul and got her through dark times. Ignoring many loud dialogues echoing from the crowd, she begins her set with a beautiful tune—Barefoot steps.
“It’s not like I completely abandoned my old style. But I am hoping this project would eventually take a life of its own. I was nervous about it, but people across the country have been pretty receptive,” she talks over the phone, the morning before the performance. Kerala greeted the artist with heavy rain that delayed her soundcheck, but Sanaya seemed unbothered. “These things happen,” she says in the same unwavering tone she uses on stage.
Hand of Thought was incubated over two years between Mumbai, Berlin and London also features the horn players Rhys Sebastian, Shirish Malhotra, alongside Neil Waters on bass.According to Sanaya, the project draws inspirations from minimalist compositions of artists like Steve Reich and Carl Stone. “At some point, I got bored of playing plastic. A lot of what I end up playing and performing are electronically produced—there isn’t much of a response or soul to it. Hand of Thought is me wanting to go back to why I started playing music in the first place,” she says.
This is quite true. Her upbringing as a keyboardist seems to really guide Sanaya’s sentimentalities that are reflected beautifully on the piano. “It is quite theatrical, much on the arty side of music. There is no dancefloor facility around it,” she says. “This also involves competing with a lot of distractions and ensuring that your audience travels with you. There is no hiding behind the post-production veil. It’s the kind of music that is out there—it is what it is. There is no illusion of performance, as my previous style. It is as real as it gets,” she says. Sanaya moves on to play the tracks ‘Nora’s house’, ‘Clock’, ‘Derailed Trains’, and ‘Between Dreams’—all of them constructing serene waves of raw sound that rise and fall around you.
One of the first few artists to influence the underground electronic scene in India, a lot of her rapport with the music comes from her exposure outside the country. Sanaya has watched India’s electronic aficionados grow in number. “Things have changed a lot. People are more informed these days, there is more exposure, thanks to the internet. They are more aware of what show they want to watch and how to spend their money. It is not just about the three-dimensional effect of watching a band or artist. People are keen to know their story,” she says.
Scheduled to fly out of Kochi immediately after the show, Sanaya suddenly puts yours truly on the hot seat, for some discussion on local food. “I must have a Sadya before flying out of here, and that is a must,” she laughs. I reply, asking her to take a stroll around Fort Kochi, and let the island town surprise her. Sanaya is currently working on an EP that is expected to release in May this year.