MUMBAI: Excitement levels were high before Dada Life landed in Bangalore in the wee hours of the morning on June 6, but the madness that ensued this past weekend was something no one could've predicted. Thousands of fans turned up braving the heat and humidity, dressed in banana outfits and Dada Life tees, ready to go bananas with the Swedish duo Stefan Engblom and Olle Corneer - who were on their first-ever India tour - and surprised Dada Life, the kings of crazy, with their energy and enthusiasm.
"We had a hint that it would be crazy, because of what we'd heard from other DJs who have been here. So we kind of knew it. But it's one thing knowing it and another thing seeing it with your own eyes. But seriously, to come to a new country and have the crowd sing along to your songs is an amazing feeling. Blew our minds away really," said Dada Life, who were booked by music entrepreneur Nikhil Chinapa, after three packed shows in Bangalore, New Delhi and Mumbai.
With a lineup of chest-thumping songs like Kick Out The Epic Mother****er, Born To Rage, Happy Violence, Rolling Stones T-shirt, Feed The Dada, and their specially-curated visuals, coupled with the giant-size blowups of bananas and bottles of champagne, Dada Life created a party atmosphere never seen before in India.
"Dada Life is one of dance music's most exciting acts to watch and on this Indian tour they showed exactly why. Not only did we have a successful three-city tour, I think we introduced a new experience to dance music fans, young and old. The three shows were like one unending party. Stefan and Olle were really excited about coming to India and took time out to discover a little bit of the country, its' food and markets, and I think they had as much fun being here as we did hosting them. We want to thank Nikhil for partnering with us, and also Shout Drinks, who were our presenting partner, and also our long-standing partner brands like Heineken Experience, MTV, VH1, Smirnoff Music Nights and Jack & Jones, who were also the official merchandise partner," said Hermit Sethi, director, Submerge, after the June 6-8 tour.
Apart from playing sold-out shows, the Swedes also took out time to get a taste of India's varied cuisines and culture. Whether it were dosas, butter chicken or their favourite chicken kathi rolls, there was little they didn't want to try. Olle and Stefan were up and about early every morning to walk around every city that they visited, stopping by at temples and markets. Corneer was on a special quest to buy a Ganesha idol and hunted around Mumbai on Sunday before the gig to find one just right for his vacation home. While he didn't find the Ganesha idol, he did come back with a bag full of bananas after successfully bargaining with a fruit vendor.
Nikhil Chinapa, who has been at the forefront of curating the dance music culture in India, promises to follow up Dada Life with acts that are equally game-changing and exciting.
"At Submerge, we've always believed in pushing boundaries and introducing great artists to music fans in India. We have consistently been doing that since 2001 and the Dada Life tour was yet another example of that. But the best bits are yet to come. We've a variety of artists from a gamut of different genres lined up for the rest of the year, artists that we believe will appeal to different sonic palates. We at Submerge want to build on the great support that dance music has received in India and broaden that musical palate," said Chinapa, music entrepreneur, after the successful completion of Dada Life's debut India tour.