Banger
An oral history of Mundian To Bach Ke by Panjabi MC, an iconic song that put Bhangra on the global map.
Fifty Two / February 2021
Freelance culture writer
An oral history of Mundian To Bach Ke by Panjabi MC, an iconic song that put Bhangra on the global map.
Fifty Two / February 2021
A profile of the ridiculously popular singer-songwriter Prateek Kuhad - the music isn't quite for me, but it was a joy to talk to him about his approach to art, performance, life.
Open Magazine / March 2020
A profile of Kashmiri rapper Ahmer, around the time he released his spectacular debut album. We met for a sombre chat on the very day that the special status of Kashmir under Article 370 was scrapped.
Caravan / August 2019
Understanding the bizarre, thrilling, electric world of TikTok - the explosive, now-banned medium, through the eyes of one of its stars, Nagma Mirajkar.
Verve Magazine / September 2019
An essay on being moved by music in ways we don't understand yet, in a period of uncertainty and gloom caused by coronavirus and the lockdown. How we're re-learning how to process that feeling through the disquiet of the pandemic.
Open Magazine / May 2020
How the founders of Delhi's famous roomali roll institution, Khan Chacha, lost the iconic brand they'd built, only to set off on a brand new journey.
Scroll.in / April 2019
Trying to understand this incredible global movement of pop music through its die-hard obsessive fans - K-Pop stans, if you will - in India.
Open Magazine / November 2019
Baba Sehgal was on top of the world in the '90s - a breakout star from the Indipop movement. Today, he's trying to recapture some of that magic.
Verve Magazine / February 2019
Video games are the future. A wandering visit to one of the biggest gaming conventions in India - a peek into one of the most fascinating and exciting subcultures around.
Open Magazine / February 2020
A profile of Sez, the young hip-hop producer indelibly linked to the explosion of underground street rap in India, and responsible for some of its biggest hits.
Scroll.in / February 2019
A look at the underground experimental scene in India, and how the Listening Room by Reproduce has created a self-contained, DIY culture for a deeply fringe movement.
Bandcamp / August 2018
Does satire today - in the age of deliberate disinformation - have any purpose beyond creative indulgence? Does it do more harm than good?
The Hindu / December 2019
A tortured essay on my discomfort with music streaming, and what it means today.
Open Magazine / June 2018
A story on the emergence of JioSaavn, a coming together of two existing streaming services - Saavn and JioMusic.
Billboard / February 2019
The Demonstealer, aka Sahil Makhija, has dedicated his life to the niche world of extreme metal that exists in India only on the fringes. A profile of his life and works, which - incidentally - include being a badass chef as well.
Noisey / March 2018
How, important as the live setting is, the most joyous experiences I've had in life have been while listening to recorded music alone.
Open Magazine / October 2018
As awareness grows, music festivals in India understand the value of "going green" and being conscious of the environment. We've come a long way, but there's a long way still to go.
Verve Magazine / June 2019
A profile of Rishu Singh, the deeply flawed figurehead of punk rock in India, as we trace the many mistakes he's made through the years, all the while retaining an undying love for the form. (Rishu sadly passed away in 2019.)
Verve Magazine / October 2018
A profile of the elusive Babloo Babylon, an anonymous artist - purportedly from Jhumri Telaiya - who samples ancient Bollywood songs in his works.
Scroll / November 2018
Profile of noise artist Ruhail Kaizer.
Noisey / May 2017
On Azadi Records, a young rap label with an admirable vision and an exciting roster of artists.
Verve Magazine / September 2018
A belated goodbye - and good riddance - to the troubling sex, drugs, and rock 'n' roll stereotypes of a bygone era.
Open Magazine / August 2018
A profile Therea Stroetges, the hyper-prolific German musician/sound artist visiting India for a residency.
Border Movement / December 2018
A profile of Prabh Deep, the young Delhi-based rapper.
Open Magazine / May 2017
A straight male's perspective on the piece de resistance that is Hannah Gadsby's Nanette isn't strictly required. But here it is nevertheless - a reminder that men need to pull their socks up.
The Hindu - Sunday Magazine / July 2018
Each year, the pollution crisis in Delhi intensifies around the winter months. We wring our hands, act out of a misplaced sense of defiance or apathy, and on we move - until the next year.
The Hindu - Sunday Magazine / November 2018
2018 was a year in which I discovered the expansive Iranian experimental underground. A profile of one of my favourite artists from the scene, Siavash Amini.
Border Movement / October 2018
A profile of Mr. India: musician, satirist, parodist.
Open Magazine / September 2017
Discussing 'Junun' with Shye Ben Tzur.
The Quietus / November 2015
A profile of Plastic Parvati, aka Suyasha Sengupta of the Ganesh Talkies, and tales of depression and female sexuality.
Open Magazine / March 2018
A look at the nutty, obsessive fringe community of football superfans in India.
Nation Of Sport / September 2017
A profile of Natasha Humera Ejaz, and her theory of happiness.
Border Movement / May 2018
A profile of Saba Alizadeh, a kamancheh player and electronic producer from Iran.
Border Movement / August 2018
A profile of Ezzyland, a pissed off young producer in Chennai who's channelling all his rage and resentment at the state of the industry in India into his music.
Border Movement / April 2018
St. Jude Bakery, an experimental artsy-fartsy space in Bandra.
Sunday Magazine - The Hindu / May 2016
The fractured, postmodern tale of Delhi's Turquoise Cottage, or TC, once at the heart of the city's live rock music scene.
Red Bull / August 2017
An underground dance music gig it an abandoned heritage site in Sri Lanka.
Border Movement / August 2016
People being rude to waiters at restaurants has been a particularly irksome pet peeve of mine, so here's an essay about the entitlement that informs said behaviour.
Brown Paper Bag / April 2018
Mangoes are great. What's not so great are the mango wars that invariably start off each time the season kicks in, with insufferable debates about which variety is better.
Brown Paper Bag / April 2018
On the ever-growing nuisance of phone cameras sprouting up at all sorts of gigs. A few months after this, I saw Incubus live in Pune. As they played 'Wish You Were Here', around 40 people raised their phones to take photos and videos, with no regard for t
Brown Paper Bag / December 2017
A look back at the major happenings in the world of music in India and beyond in 2017.
Brown Paper Bag / December 2017
A story about corn on the cob, a timeless streetside snack that much of Delhi has a fondness for.
Brown Paper Bag / June 2018
Looking back at Radiohead's OK Computer.
DailyO / May 2016
Earlier this year, a journalist eating a quiet meal at a restaurant got yelled at by an angry young man. I understand political differences, but can we please let each other eat our food in peace? (Though there's a valid counter-argument to this if the pe
Brown Paper Bag / May 2018
Walking through Hauz Khas Village in times of fear and temporarily heightened security.
Brown Paper Bag / August 2017
Remembering a relic of the not-so-distant past: the banta, and its unbelievably cool Codd-neck bottle.
Brown Paper Bag / July 2018
A visit to Bittoo Tikki Wala, which supplies food to the greatest party on earth.
Brown Paper Bag / March 2018
On the absurd rise of all kinds of beer in Delhi - craft, draught, and otherwise - and how I'm left with no discernible 'favourite beer' anymore.
Brown Paper Bag / October 2018
How standup comedy in Delhi is doing its best to alienate 50% of its prospective audience.
Brown Paper Bag / August 2017
A musician's postcard to the guitar street in Lajpat Nagar.
Brown Paper Bag / June 2017
Looking at notable Indian albums released this year and the concept of the 'album' (a personal obsession).
Open Magazine / April 2017
How hypernationalism is killing one of sports' greatest joys.
Sunday Magazine - The Hindu / June 2017
A profile of Rahul Giri, the founder of Consolidate.
Business Line Ink / March 2017
An obituary.
DailyO / May 2017
...and how it sucks.
Brown Paper Bag / March 2017
From the ground at the Delhi protests.
Brown Paper Bag / June 2017
Collection of attempted humour writing for Arre.
Arre / April 2016
A village in despair, ravaged by demonetisation.
Sunday Magazine - The Hindu / November 2017
An interview with Radiohead's Jonny Greenwood (in Jodhpur, of all places).
The Sunday Guardian / February 2015
The rise of Indian hip hop.
Rolling Stone / August 2016
Notes from a music festival in Jodhpur.
101India / October 2016
The once-upon-a-time decrepit Palika Bazaar, now no more than a pedestrian basement mall.
Sunday Magazine - The Hindu / July 2016
The strange little world of literature festivals.
101India / April 2016
Taher Shah and the tedium of being 'clever' and mean-spirited to gain internet points.
DailyO / April 2016
In anticipation of their (at-the-time) approaching but not certain title victory.
DailyO / February 2016
A glimpse into Delhi's underground live rock music scene from a decade ago.
The Sunday Guardian / May 2015
The high-stakes world of kite-flying and its many intricacies.
The Sunday Guardian / January 2015
Talking to Stuart Braithwaite, the guitar player of Mogwai.
The Sunday Guardian / October 2015
Mike Vennart's sonic leap.
The Sunday Guardian / June 2015
Junun, the stunning documentary by Paul Thomas Anderson.
The Sunday Guardian / October 2015
The PCRC arts mafia in New Delhi.
The Sunday Guardian / June 2015
The time cops busted a DIY gig in Delhi.
Rock Street Journal / March 2014
Chatting about many things with Lee Ranaldo, formerly of Sonic Youth.
Rock Street Journal / September 2013
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