That union of sound with sound they call fusion music, can it ever be fully known? Tritha Sinha tries her maddest to find. Trained in Indian classical singing for more than 18 years, she established herself as a Bollywood singer in Kolkata, before moving to Delhi in 2009. She says, “I am classical in my roots and believe in branching out into contemporary beats.” She feels it makes it easier to embrace fusion in a band that’s eclectic with members drawn from here and there. There’s Mathias Durand, a psychedelic guitarist, drummer Paul Schneiter, and Tony Guinard, the bassist.
Together, they spin out Krautrock-ish music with Indian classical scales. The capital is where talents hidden in the depths of the country come to blossom, believes Sinha. “After my 16-year-long stint in Chennai and Kolkata, where I learned from gurus of Agra and Patiala gharana, I found a teacher in Santanu Bandhopadhyay, the sixth generation descendent of the Bishnupur gharana,” she says. Just like cosmopolitan cultures in cities, even fusion in music isn’t planned. She perfected her old oral traditions with her guru and found her voice at ease with a variety of contemporary styles. The first song she wrote came to be known as Pagli, also the title of her first album. Here, she imagined herself as a mad woman, who dared to feel free. The lyrics comprised birds and animals on the streets of Kolkata and their desire to fly. She admires Icelandic singer Bjork’s love for the environment, and looks up to Abida Parveen and Susheela Raman.
The 31-year-old singer is back from her Pagli tour of 12 cities in India and 35 concerts across Europe and Africa, released the album last June. It was hailed for its Bengali and French fusion. She is now working on her second album, and her first album with her collective SPACE, where they make music for women empowerment.