Music is food for the soul and we absolutely agree with it. Imagine, a life without music. Nah, can’t do! While we are surrounded by great world music, you’ve got to agree that indie music has a charm of its own. It’s raw, it’s fresh and it definitely reaches straight for the heart. And if you too are a fan, then you must check out the secret indie music gigs which happen in Gurgaon. Yes, it’s true! Called the ‘Basement Takeover’, the initiative has been introduced by Gurgaon-based music lover Astaaq Ahmed. It offers a space where you get to witness indie bands perform and mingle with like-minded music lovers. Scroll down to know more about this secret space.
What’s it All About?
Image Source: YouTube
An initiative by Astaaq Ahmed, Basement Takeover is an intimate space where all the musicians and music lovers can mingle. Being a full-time consultant at Ernst & Young (EY), Astaaq’s true passions lies in arts. We spoke to him recently and got some interesting insights from him,
“Since the age of 5, I had been dabbling in a variety of instruments, playing with a plethora of musicians, and releasing tons of music. I decided to start Basement Takeover as a rebellion against the current – frankly monopolized and largely inaccessible – music scene in Delhi”.
On weekends, Astaaq hosts parties at his basement and all the music lovers are welcomed with open arms. We know you must be thinking why in a basement? After seeing how difficult it gets to get gigs in Delhi-NCR, Astaaq took his parents’ basement and started this project. Isn’t that super cool? He also spoke to us about how it all began,
“I make music under the moniker ‘The Earflower Experiment.’ After recording my first EP and practising for months, I was ready to take my music live. However, since my music isn’t mainstream or traditionally marketable, it was very hard for me to get gigs. Promoters didn’t want to take the risk. After many months of trying to get a date at a venue, I decided to hold my own concert in my basement for a few friends. That was the first installment of Basement Takeover. Things just spiraled out since”.
A lot of amazing bands, singers, and songwriters like Zenguin, Dhruv Visvanath, Zokova, Submarine in Space have played here. The people here are usually upcoming bands and singer-songwriters from Delhi-NCR. Yes, if you are an aspiring singer or a musician, then this place is a total yes for you. And yes performing here is absolutely FREE!
Events To Check Out
They host indie bands on Saturdays, whereas Sundays are meant for new and emerging singer-songwriters. Their events are BYOB, so you know what to do! Talking about the capacity of the basement, he said, “The basement can hold quite a few people. In fact, at our most crowded show, we had an audience of over 160 people. That said, on average we rake in a crowd of around 100 people”.
For more information about Basement Takeover and how to attend the concerts, you can reach them through their Instagram.
(Featured Image Source: pexels)
