To be able to sing one of her favourite songs, Poor Girl’s Dream, the way she does, Maalavika Manoj, must have had to live the experience too. The track reminds her of the time she shifted to Mumbai and was surrounded by uncertainty. At the upcoming music festival, The Gig Week, she revisits her memories of finding her way through unsure times.
Showcasing a mix of genres from India and beyond, is the sixth edition of this musical jamboree. A lot of personal stories will be brought to the stage with through honest, heartfelt music. “There is actually no greater pleasure. You take a feeling, capture it and deliver it to an audience in hope that they will feel the way you did when you wrote it. There is something very cathartic about that,” says Manoj, who sits with her guitar against a bright yellow wall to sing for us.
The festival will travel across the city to a new venue each night, staging over 21 acts. This year’s line up includes Luiza, Raja Kumari, Sharvi Yadav, Gabriel Daniel, Raja Kumari (Grammy Award nominee and BMI Pop Award winner), Sharvi Yadav (Winner, The Stage season 2), Advaita, Revista Do Samba and SkaVengers will be participating. For some, it’ll be their first time performing in Delhi, like Manoj. She’s now a full time musician. “The life of an independent artiste is not for those who prefer routine,” she says, who is popularly known by her stage name, Mali.
It’s all about working hard, harder and hardest for her. Simple as that.
On till December 17. For details log on to thegigweek.in.