Indian rock band Parikrama turns 23 this coming Tuesday, 17 June. First established in 1991, the band has come a long way from being classic rock-loving college goers in Delhi to a name that is popular among music fans all over the country today. Perhaps one of the oldest bands in India, Parikrama has pretty much witnessed the evolution of the Indian independent scene. In this week’s Musical Rendezvous, Parikrama’s lead vocalist- Nitin Malik talks to Radioandmusic.com’s Sanchea D’Souza about the band’s history, music and celebrations for its 23rd birthday.

What do you have planned for the big day?

We will celebrate it like we do every year. Call every one over and have open jam sessions with different musicians and friends; have some beer and a lot of fun. Our birthday is on 17 June, but we usually do it a day before, so that by the time the cake comes out at 12, everyone is so plastered that it ends up on people’s faces instead of in their mouths.

We also have a whole tour planned, which will be divided into two parts. There will be fifteen shows in 15 different cities. The first part of the tour will start after the birthday and the second part will happen in November this year.

Are you doing anything special for the tour?

We just released a limited edition of t-shirts ‘Parikrama at 23’. I thought being a band member, I should probably buy my own t-shirt but when I went onto the site to buy it, they were already sold out. We were not really expecting something like this, but we will be getting some more out, because many people have been asking for the t-shirts. It was not a marketing gimmick or anything. The plan was to keep it really exclusive, so the initial numbers were quite low. The lesser the quantity, the more privileged the product becomes. Now we are getting more done because people really want it.

What about releasing music to commemorate 23 years?

We do not really release physical albums, instead we usually put it online, on our Facebook page for free downloads for anyone who wants it. Many of our songs have been released like that. The reason we put our music online for everyone is that for 23 years people have given us so much. They have loved us because of the music, and the least we can do is give it back to them. To commemorate the birthday, we might just release something new. We have a lot of tracks that are sort of done; some are 95 per cent finished, some 40 per cent finished. So we might complete a few of them before the birthday.

Tell us some of the best moments the band has had

In 2007 we were opening for Iron Maiden in Bangalore, and I remember we were half way through the first song, when the Iron Maiden guys came running out of their green rooms and stood in the wings. They started cheering us on; giving us the ‘thumbs up’ sign and ‘metal’ signs. We could not believe what was happening. They seemed happy and chirpy, and looked like they were really enjoying the music. The fans could not see them, but when I realised who it was standing in the wings, for a second I forgot I was supposed to be singing. But I did recover from that initial shock. I later learnt I had messed up some of the song, because I was so distracted. They liked the set so much that they invited us to come and play at the Download Festival in England. It was a huge deal for us because we opened for them on the main stage on the last day, after which we had a whole tour in England. That was professionally the most advantageous moment for us. What was pretty memorable was that after the show, we had a band as big as Iron Maiden waiting for us, and actually appreciating our music.

Sum up the journey of the last 23 years

When we had started the band, Subhir was senior most, and our manager. I remember him saying we will only keep it running for a few months and after that we look for some serious jobs. The band was not considered serious work at the time. The thought behind Parikrama was that we could play the kind of music we liked and wanted on stage. We grew up listening to classic rock like Deep Purple and AC/DC. At that time in Delhi, everything was more heavy metal or pop. But it so happened that wherever we went and whatever we played, we kind of encouraged people to listen to classic rock.

Think about it, in 1991, there is no internet or anything. Even buying a decent guitar was difficult and expensive. Initially, we borrowed equipment from friends to practice and play. A funny incident I remember was that in the beginning, we did not have a guitar amp for our rhythm guitarist who was playing an electric guitar. We really did not know what he was playing, and everyone else was nice and loud and clear. The first time I heard him play on stage at our first gig, I remember telling him later “Yaar, Tushar, tu to bahut accha bajata hai”. He was completely stunned and asked me if I was on anything. It was fun, but it was really difficult to source equipment and instruments. We had little choice in terms of sound companies, equipment, instruments or infrastructure. It was tough in the beginning. And then things started to change within a year or year and a half since we started. We did not have to wait for the big music stores to open up to get our equipment. We had done enough to be able to afford our own gear and were self sufficient by then.

What has changed since you started with Parikrama?

What I think happens is that your music influence, and tastes in music keep on changing. It might not be a big change, but will be a slight difference that happens which you realise after you compose a song. If you hear a song that you composed 20 years ago, it would be very different from a song that you have composed yesterday. It comes across not only in music, but in anything you create. Our sound, now, is definitely much more mature, and I think it keeps on happening. The only thing that has affected the music we make or songs we write are real life experiences and things that we strongly believe in. It is all about things that you believe in, or which inspire you to actually say “I need to write about this”. From the time we started, it was all about what we believed in, and a lot of this music is some of our best work.

Will we see a 25th or 30th birthday as well?

I am looking at going for a number of years more; at least 33 or 35. I guess we will play as long as we can.