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India Currents gave me a voice in days I was very lost. Having my articles selected for publishing was very validating – Shailaja Dixit, Executive Director, Narika, Fremont
Popular Indian rock band Euphoria will perform live to benefit the Association for India’s Development (AID), a charity supporting social development in India. California fans, or “Dhoomers,” and other music lovers will revel in the band’s celebratory musical style. Euphoria never fails to get the heart racing in its high-energy tracks, such as “Dhoom Pichak Dhoom,” or to evoke nationalistic nostalgia in more soulful tunes like “Maaeri.” Its heart-rending ballads and hard-rock tracks incorporate traditional and contemporary musical instruments, creating sounds that are deeply entrenched in Indian musical roots.
The band has played in its current incarnation since 1998, with lead vocalist Palash Sen (a.k.a. “Polly”), Debajyoti Bhaduri (a.k.a. “DJ”) on bass guitar, Ashwani Verma on drums, Rakesh Bhardwaj on the dholak, Prashant Trivedi on the tabla, Amorbish Saikia on guitars, Vinayak Gupta on keyboards, and Vaishali Barua and Krutika Muralidharan on backing vocals. Over the years the band has been described as “seminal” in establishing an Indian rock culture and its music has been prolific and widely influential with the release of six albums to date. Euphoria has performed at over 1,000 venues worldwide and its music has appeared in Bollywood films, earning the band cult status amongst movie buffs and music lovers alike.
Most recently, the band was chosen to compose the anthem to the 2010 Commonwealth Games held in Delhi. Lead singer Polly describes the thrill of being involved in such an historical occasion, “The (chief minister) of Delhi, Sheila Dikshit, called me to speak about a song,” he says. “I sang out ‘Dilli Meri Jaan’ to her and I think she was adequately charmed. She even agreed to speak out the first four lines.”
Euphoria’s shows will be its first performances in the U.S. in nine years and the band is eager to please its devoted fans with familiar renditions of classic tracks. Crowds will also get a teaser of what’s to come in Euporia’s latest album in the making, due to be released around Christmas. “Expect the expected and some more. I guess what you’ll hear is an explosion that goes DHOOM, shake shake shake the room!”
Sunday, Nov. 14, 6 p.m. Heritage Forum, 201 E. Broadway Ave., Anaheim. $25, $40, $50; children under 6 free. Tickets: http://la.aidindia.org/Euphoria2010.php. Venue: (714) 269-3081. Info: (714) 269-3081. (310) 963-3510. aidlachapter@gmail.com. http://la.aidindia.org.
Saturday, Nov. 20, 5 p.m. Chabot College Performing Arts Center, 25555 Hesperian Blvd., Hayward. $25, $35, $50, $75, $100. Tickets: tickets@roobaroo.org; (415) 320-8243, (510) 371 5010. http://roobaroo.org.