Adland’s rockstars

Shephali Bhatt speaks to the young breed of rockstars from adland who rocked the Black Rock Arena at Bacardi NH7 Weekender 2011. Watch out for these music maestros-to-be from BBH, CLA, Ogilvy, and more

by Shephali Bhatt | 09/12/2011

 

Venky BBH
R Venkatraman (Venky), brand partner, BBH India, Lead Guitar, Bhayanak Maut 
 
 How was the overall experience of the weekender? High-points and low-points? 
Speaking from the experience I had last year, Weekender this time was way bigger than last time. And it was so much fun, because the crowd this year had easily beaten last year’s attendence. There were more buffoons to laugh at and way too many people in blue hair, but I don’ t know if it was because of all the alcohol they had consumed. The artists were fantastic, but I think last year’s artists were better. The low point was definitely the poor cellphone connectivity that gave many a headaches and heartburns. 
 
Which day had the best line up of bands? 
I wasn’ t there for all three days, but the Pepsi dub station was banging some awesome music and so was Eristoff Wolves Den. I was really looking forward to the Imogen Heap show, but that was kind of ruined with so many drunk people talking to themselves while the show was on, in effect making sure I did not hear a single thing. That’s when I understood what my math teacher felt like! 
 
Who were the other adlanders you bumped into, at the event? 
Most of them were from the other bands so hanging out with them is always fun. It was fun meeting people who you worked with and getting to hang out with them like they are friends rather than colleagues was a breath of fresh methanolated air. Also it was stupid fun seeing everyone drunk and passed out, not that they are not when they are at work. Honestly, 
I don’t remember (hic). 
 
Which gigs did you like?
Skyharbor was fantastic, although they are not from advertising. Bay Beat Collective was fun as always. Scribe with Akshay from Creativeland kicked ass with their quasi-bollywood metal. Totally worth it. 
 
Any senior adlanders whose love for music inspires you? 
Subhash Kamath from BBH, of course. I have seen him play a couple of times and he is so knowledgeable of his Blues. Fantastic guy overall. Akshay, from Scribe, is an inspirational guitarist and an inspirational clown-type-person for the rest of the day. 
 
When did you begin pursuing music? 
It’s been eight years and out of those eight years, five have been with me working in advertising. Also, those five years have given me more than my share of acidity problems. It has also made me an expert juggler.
 
Venky BBH

 

 

Vishwesh K

Vishwesh Krishnamoorthy, director, The Dewarists (independent ad-film maker)
Lead Vocals, Scribe  

How long have you been pursuing music now?
I was the founding member of the band which was formed six years ago. I have been pursuing music for almost 11 years now. Music has always been a part of me and so is the band now. The Scribe members are some of my best friends.

How was the overall experience of the weekender?
High-point was that we turned the stage into a courtroom, had put up our own pav-bhaji stall, got our first set of T-shirts out, had a fabulous gig; lots of people bought our T-shirts and loved our pav-bhaji.

Of all the stages where various bands were playing, which one had the best line up of bands?
I think Pepsi dub station had some great stuff to watch out for and so did The Dewarists stage.

Any adlanders you bumped into, at the event?
One of the advantages of being in advertising is that it allows you to stay associated with music as well. It involves visual art in the form of your album cover which you are already trained in, by virtue of your profession. I have made 10 documentaries with musicians so far, so the direction skills have helped me as well. At NH7 I bumped into Venky from BBH, Mudra’s Shirin Johri, Jetesh from SapientNitro and a couple of friends from Leo Burnett, JWT and Grey.

Gigs that were worth their ‘string’?
Bhayanak Maut, hands down. That’s like my buddy band. Other than that, I really liked Reggai Rajahs and Midival Punditz though they didn’t have any adlanders. 

Seniors in the adland whose love for music you would admire?
Not really a senior, so to speak, but one person I would love to work with some day is Venky (R Venkatraman). 

 

Vishwesh K

 

Vinay Venkatesh

Vinay Venkatesh, creative director, OgilvyOne Worldwide, Mumbai
Lead vocals, Bhayanak Maut

How would you sum up your experience of the NH7 weekender?
Great experience. It felt like an international festival. There were positive vibes and happy people around you and that includes the musicians as well. The event was managed quite professionally too. It was indeed the happiest place on earth for three days. There was not a single negative experience for me.

Which day  had the best line up of bands?
Everyday was a party. Every stage had a fantastic line-up. The audience was never starved for entertainment - if you personally didn’t like a particular artist, all you had to do was walk a short distance and move on to  another gig at another stage. You were always bound to find some stage that would grab your attention.

How long have you been pursuing music (singing)?
I’ve been a vocalist with ‘Bhayanak Maut’ for eight  years now.

 

Vinay Venkatesh

 

Akshay Rajpurohit

Akshay Rajpurohit, young creative partner, Creativeland Asia
Lead Guitar, Scribe

How did the three days at NH7 Weekender go for you?
Weekender was a blast. It’s amazing to see so many artists play, collaborate, chat and get piss drunk under one roof. Actually, it was open air gig, sorry. My high point was throughout the festival and went southside when it all got ever.


Which day, according to you, had the best line up of bands?
I enjoyed the second and third day. But I’ll pick the third  day as some of my favourite artists played on that day. And of course last days are always special. I don’t know why I said that!

Who were the other adlanders you bumped into at the event?
Venky from BBH, Vinit and Viraaj from Creativeland Asia and some ZooZoos trying to kidnap a pug.

Which gigs (that had some people from advertising as well) did you like?
Venky was the only one I knew who was in a band and an adman. That kinda rhymes. He played a killer set with Bhayanak Maut.

There are quite a few seniors in the adland who are known for their inclination towards music and have been associated with bands. Anyone that catches your attention?
I really wouldn’t know. Maybe someday I’ll become a senior inside a question and pose as a ‘Hmmm’.
Since how long have you been associated with Scribe?
Since 2005. We’ve released two studio albums and are working on the third as we speak. We did a mini-tour of Norway including the Inferno Festival and also got nominated for an MTV Europe Music Awards. 

 

Akshay Rajpurohit

 

Jetesh Mephisto Menon

Jetesh ‘Mephisto’ Menon, Idea engineer, SapientNitro
Keyboards, Demonic Resurrection

When did your journey with music begin?
I started learning Hindustani Classical music way before I started schooling. For about 10 years I did mostly classical singing and Harmonium performances. In college I was introduced to heavy metal and since then there’s been no looking back. I joined Demonic Resurrection in 2003 and have released two full-length albums and an EP (Extended Play)with them so far. Music for me is a never-ending pursuit.

What were the high-points and low-points of NH7 Weekender?
Whoever came up with the happiest fest tag for the fest deserves a big thumbs up. It truly was one.  The overall feeling of euphoria that hit as soon as we entered the festival grounds was amazing. I was happy just to be there and watch all these phenomenal acts perform. Low-point : I wasn’t very pleased with our performance considering we had technical glitches all through our set. But hey, what’s a show without tech goof-ups?

Which day had the best line up of bands?
Day three, of course, Scribe, Bhayanak Maut and DR makes for a great line up any day.

Did you get to meet any other adlanders at the event?
I bumped into several people who had quit advertising. They seriously outnumbered the adlanders at the fest. Is this a sign? Maybe I just don’t know enough.  Met ex-colleagues from Ogilvy, Leo Burnett, Rediffusion and of course, the Bhayanak Maut Scribe brat pack of Ogilvy & Creative Land Asia. Most of us are from the same batch and the same college too – SIES. That place seems to have a knack of churning out metal heads.  

Your favourite gig?
Bones were broken and blood was shed during the Bhayanak Maut set. They owned that stage. Enuff said.

Seniors in the adland whose love for music cathes your attention?
I’ve only got requests from seniors to “turn that $hit down” or “can I buy you earphones?” Don’t really know many apart from the one’s I’ve already mentioned.

 

Jetesh Mephisto Menon