Musicians and Artists Pay Tribute to Warhol’s Factory at Zenzi Mills

Last month, we told you how visiting French painter Jean-Baptiste Gaubert, who performed with electronica musician Mayur Narvekar at Blue Frog, was inspired to mix music with art by Andy Warhol’s brief but fruitful collaboration with The Velvet Underground in the 1960s. The venue for Warhol’s and The Velvets’s joint ventures was the infamous Factory, Warhol’s New York City studio where he hosted porn actors and drag queens, among a motley crew of friends and acquaintances. This Thursday, April 22, a group of musicians and artists from Mumbai will pay tribute to the spirit, if not the form, of The Factory at a gig at Zenzi Mills.

The gig is entitled the ‘Exploding Elastic Inevitable’, a play on ‘Exploding Plastic Inevitable’, the name Warhol gave to a series of events he organised at The Factory in the mid-1960s. Warhol’s EPI shows combined the mediums of art, film and music, the last of which was mostly provided by The Velvet Underground. City-based indie rock band The Mavyns, will perform the role of The Velvets in the Mumbai version, and vocalist Suman Sridhar of electro-pop duo Sridhar/Thayil will stand in for Nico, the model and actress turned singer, who co-fronted the group for a short part of their career. Guest musicians include singer-songwriter Imaad Shah and two members of popular garage rock group The Supersonics, vocalist Ananda Sen and guitarist Rohan Ganguly. Visual jockey Dooj Ramchandani’s images will be screened as a backdrop to the performances.

The music won’t be restricted to The Velvet’s tunes, though you will hear favourites such as “I’m Waiting For The Man” “Femme Fatale”, “Candy Says” and “Rock And Roll”. The Mavyns, and Shah, will play an original or three. “We’ll be doing covers of Velvet Undeground songs that we’ve been influenced by, as well as our own tunes that reflect that influence,” the Mavyns guitarist/vocalist Pradeep Mathews said.

The event, which will open and close with sets by indie rock DJ Nu-Bill aka American diplomat Michael Newbill, will also feature screenings of two short films by artist Tejal Shah. As for Warhol, he will be represented through pop art, designed by Mavyns keyboardist/vocalist Vivek Nair. Nair’s work will be displayed throughout the venue, along with that of other local artists who have been inspired by Warhol.

LocationZenzi Mills
Mathuradas Mills Compound
Opposite Kamala Mills
Tulsi Pipe Road
Lower Parel

Phone4345 5455

Relevant DatesApril 22

Hours9.30pm

Ticketing & Price InfoFree