What To Expect At The Pune Edition Of Bacardi NH7 Weekender

Das Racist. Photo: Kyle Johnson.

For all practical purposes, the Bacardi NH7 Weekender is considered by many to be a Mumbai music festival. Sure, it’s held in Pune, but in just two short years, the Weekender has become an annual pilgrimage for Mumbai’s indie music fans, one that’s just a short three-and-a-half hour trip from home (it can take longer to get from Andheri East to South Mumbai on a particularly traffic-clogged day). This year, the festival—which will have editions in Delhi and Bangalore as well—will be held in Pune from Friday, November 2 to Sunday, November 4 at the Amanora Park Town (which played host to David Guetta during NH7’s other festival, Eristoff Invasion).

A few weeks ago, the organisers told us that “none of the acts who have performed in Pune” will be playing that city this year, in an effort to keep things fresh. From the line-up announced so far, they seem to have made good on their promise. So save for Indus Creed and Thermal and a Quarter (who will play the Black Rock Arena and The Dewarists Stage respectively), some of the country’s biggest indie rock acts, such as Indian Ocean, Midival Punditz, Pentagram, Bhayanak Maut, Raghu Dixit, and Shaa’ir + Func (each of whom were part of both the 2010 and 2011 line-ups) won’t be taking the Weekender stage in 2012. Instead, the Pune roster is a testimony to just how much talent there is still to be showcased.

Delhi’s Them Clones, Bangalore’s Kryptos, Mumbai-based Kailasa and Kolkata’s The Supersonics are just some of the country’s best known bands that will be making their Weekender debuts. There’s also a bunch of fast-rising acts to catch: from Bangalore metal group Eccentric Pendulum and Chennai folk-fusion fact La Pongal to Adam and the Fish Eyed Poets and Peter Cat Recording Co., the latter two of whom, along with The Supersonics, will perform at what will likely be our favourite stage: the brand-new Fully Fantastic Indie Stage, named after Indian rock pioneer Amit Saigal’s favourite phrase.

The international acts include Australian prog-rock stars Karnivool (look out for more Aussie acts to be add to the list); Nigerian Afro-beat act Seun Kuti and Egypt 80 (the son and former group respectively of the legendary Fela Kuti); popular London-based DJ Nihal (who appeared in 2010 but will now be bringing his Bombay Bronx club night to the festival); and New York indie hip hop heroes Das Racist. Sadly, because the three editions of Weekender are spread over three months—the Delhi edition, which will be headlined by metal heavyweights Megadeth, takes place on Saturday, October 13 and Sunday, October 14 while the Bangalore edition is scheduled for Saturday, December 15 and Sunday, December 16—the same international artists won’t be playing each city. You can buy tickets for and see the Pune and Delhi line-ups here.

Amanora Park Town

LocationHadapsar-Kharadi Bypass
Hadapsar
Pune

Relevant DatesFriday, November 2 to Sunday, November 4

Ticketing & Price InfoThree-day festival pass: Rs3,000; Saturday and Sunday pass: Rs2,000; Friday: Rs1,000; Saturday: Rs1,500; Sunday: Rs1,500

Websitewww.nh7.in/weekender