Nine years of hard work and rock band Indian Ocean has come up with the album Tu Hai. The members talk about their journey of music…

A mother gives birth to a child after nine months; for us, this baby has been nine years of wait. INDIAN OCEAN

(Clockwise from left) Himanshu Joshi, Amit Kilam, Tuheen Chakravorty, Nikhil Rao and Rahul Ram

Mona

ndia’s oldest fusion rock band, Indian Ocean, is back with an album titled Tu Hai after almost a decade, and their fans have lapped it up. Six tracks bring together what the band stands for - eclectic vibes, nature and nurture, consumerism challenged by spirituality, and animation juxtaposed with affirmation for a better world.

The band members joining the interview are jovial; Rahul Ram is with his pet pooches, Nikhil Rao sipping black coffee and Himanshu Joshi is too keen on details!

The album is the result of nine years of work. “The album gave us a sense of completeness; it was a long wait but worth it,” says Nikhil. Himanshu pitches in, “A mother gives birth to a child after nine months; for us, this baby has been nine years of wait,” he laughs. Covid played spoilsport with Tu Hai too, as plans for video shoots went for a toss.

Magic of six

The six songs, however, are there for their listeners finally. The song Rebirth is about how we have to rethink as life is under threat due to climate change; Iss Tann Dhan is about consumerism and impermanence of life; Jaadu Maaya, which has been picturised in animation, underlines how we are frittering away time in meaningless rubbish, while missing the big picture; Tu Hai questions the Gods as to why we landed up here in this sorry plight! “One thing leads to another and it all kind of gels together,” shares Rahul.

The band is on the move to promote the album and is getting a great response. Having started with a 10-city plan, they have also covered Guwahati, Chandigarh, Jalandhar, Dehradun, Jaipur, Bhopal, while many more cities are lined up.

Great bonding

The band has given memorable music in Masaan and Black Friday and couple of others films. It recently composed for the film Bhagwan Bharose that’s doing well in the festival circuit. “We are now making another track for this film’s trailer for Indian theatrical release,” shares Rahul. Three more films and music for a series on MX Player are also in the pipeline.

Indian Ocean has already planned its next album too. “In fact, Nikhil has planned our next six albums,” says Himanshu.

Together, they love different aspects of their music making. “We enjoy making film music as also our own work equally,” shares Nikhil. However, their biggest high is to travel and play live in front of a live audience. “We get to visit so many places and meet lovely people,” shares Himanshu.

The band will make a stop at a club in Chandigarh on May 27. “Come listen to us and chill in this summer heat,” they say in unison.