MUMBAI: Neeraj Arya’s Kabir Cafe is definitely an extremely busy band, with multiple projects on their plate at the moment. Fans that have been waiting for new material from the Mumbai-based band will have a lot to look forward to, a few months from now. These projects include an upcoming single supported by a video, collaboration, live shows and a documentary as well.

The new track ‘Bina Chandare’, which has never been played before, is currently in the mixing stage, with an accompanying video expected to release this October. Raman Iyer (Mandolin), talking about the track, explained that it is Rajhastani folk based, with a bit of experimentation in the form of Bass and Dholak jam. The track was recorded in noted percussionist- Viveick Rajagopalan’s studio in Mumbai, with Rajagopalan contributing by playing the Kanjira for the track.

“We generally perform Kabir in Malwa folk style (Madhya Pradesh), but this time we have taken the Rajhastani route, in a way of tribute to Rajhastani folk. Also, our drummer Viren Solanki is a student of Tabla Maestro Ustad Fazal Quareshi, and is an Indian percussionist at heart but often seen on the drums. We thought this was a nice opportunity to bring out the Indian side of his talent,” said Iyer.

On Rajgopalan's contribution to the track, he revealed that the collaboration was not planned. Rajagopalan happened to walk into the studio while the band was there, and they asked if he would like to contribute, which he agreed to. Iyer also hinted an album release, which could probably happen by next April. However, that is still in the planning stage.

Kabir Cafe draws most of its inspiration from renowned folk singer and Padmashree award winner- Prahladji Tipanya and his team. “Prahaldji has been performing Kabir dohas throughout his life. He is a great source of inspiration for us. We learn the meanings of all our songs from him. Apart from Kabir, we are also influenced by poets and saints who used music and literature to reflect on society and not just entertainment. Guru Nanak, Bulle Shah, Meera Bai, Bob Marley our few other inspirations,” Iyer added.

The band has an interesting method of gathering material for its songs. Kabir Cafe is associated with filmmaker Shabnam Virmani’s initiative called The Kabir Project, which studies Kabir in depth. In fact, it was The Kabir Project that triggered Neeraj Arya, the band’s vocalist, to perform Kabir’s Dohas.

Iyer also mentioned that the band visits Malwa every year where folk singers from across the country gather to perform and discuss Kabir’s work. Other musicians like Vasu Dixit (Swarathma), Kailash Kher and Carnatic vocalist Anuradha Sriram also visit. “We have a database of Kabir’s material that keeps adding up. Prahaladji, Devnarayanji and The Kabir Project are always there to help us with new material. Whenever in doubt, we get in touch with them and they willingly guide us”, he said.

When asked if focussing only on Kabir’s work is limiting in any sense, Iyer said on the contrary, it broadens their horizons. “Kabir is relatively unexplored in the contemporary space. Whenever we look at a new Kabir verse, it is a completely different aspect and thought. Content wise Kabir has spoken about honesty, social inequality, superstitions, materialism verus spiritualism, ego and many other topics. We are running out of time to explore more material attributed to him. Genre wise we get the freedom to adapt Kabir in various styles of music,” Iyer explained.

Talking about other projects that the band is working on Iyer confirmed that they have finished work on a documentary titled ‘Saeed Mirza- The Leftist Sufi’. It is directed by Vineet Khurana and Padmakumar, and is based on the legendary filmmaker Saeed Mirza. Kabir Café has worked on the background score, a full length song and few more dohas for the documentary,”

Iyer said, “It was an entirely different experience as we are a live band; making music to a visual was something new. We were fortunate as the directors gave us creative freedom and the time to work at our own pace. We selected dohas that matched the theme of the movie, and though we spent some time cracking the initial theme, once we hit the right note, the rest was a smooth process.” The recording took them about 10 days to complete. The documentary, which also has narrations by Indian film veterans like Kundan Shah and Mahesh Bhatt, does not have a release date as yet.

Kabir Cafe is also active in the live space, having recently performed on a reality TV show, which gave them tremendous exposure on national television. “Initially, it was like any other show, but post the performance people, both nationally and internationally, wrote to us appreciating our music,” Iyer added. They are also playing numerous live gigs, corporate shows etc; notable ones being NH7 Delhi and Kolkata, and a few fund raising shows in Kolkata with an NGO called ‘Friends of Tribal Society’.