Making It Happen: In Conversation With Tejas

Don't have an account?
Just enter your email id or mobile no and create your account in two easy steps!

🇮🇳
- 🇮🇳
- 🇳🇿
LOGIN

I am a
looking for
Country

[{"type":"txt","id":"rich_1508844301018","data":"\"The Indie scene in India is dead\", claimed a learned philosopher of all things on a particularly cloudy evening at The Gallery Cafe which was hosting an open mic session that went on to host some of the finest talents from Hyderabad I've had the pleasure to witness.<\/p>\"There is no originality left anymore,\" he continued, before finishing earnestly and sipping coffee that can only be described as Pretentious Grande, \"At least the rock and metal scene is still pretty tight, otherwise all these soft Indie rock and pop-rock songs, there's no future for that.\" And for a while, I believed him. <\/p>That is, until I heard about Tejas. <\/p>Starting in 2011 and having multiple live shows to his name, 28-year old Tejas from Mumbai - although saying he is from Mumbai would be a disservice to the sheer force of will and amount of dedication he has to stay on the road performing across the country - brought about a pop-rock force to be reckoned with in the thriving Indian Indie music scene, a scene which he had discovered after moving here for his studies from Dubai. <\/p>With a show lined up at Tabula Rasa Bar in Hyderabad on the 27th of October, we spoke to Tejas over the phone about his music, the journey so far, lessons from live gigs and more. <\/p>"},{"type":"img","id":"img-uid-1508940380061","data":"59f0cef9edfaf"},{"type":"txt","id":"rich_1508940387877","data":"\"I've always been interested in music,\" says Tejas, responding to my question on what started his journey as an artist and a performer, \"I started learning pretty young and in school. My parents used to move around a lot and I ended up growing up in Dubai until I was 18, which is when I had to return to India. So here I was, back in the country, about to join a college and music as a hobby I was really interested in.\" <\/p>Tejas goes on to talk about how it was never his intention to become a professional performer, \"Can one really plan this sort of thing, or is it more of going along with the flow?\" he laughs, \"When I came to India, it was quickly apparent that there was a thriving indie music scene here, and this was the type of music I really liked. Eventually, I started performing various gigs around the college but I'd never actually intended this to be a career. It just happened.\" <\/p>Tejas established his group in 2011 while continuing to carry on with this life, getting his Masters degree and working. He would go on to work as a host on a radio station as well as in advertising, \"You saw these incredibly creative people come together and just, be creative and you say to yourself that you want to do that too! My time in advertising has introduced me to some incredible, invaluable people.\" <\/p>"},{"type":"img","id":"img-uid-1508950863262","data":"59f0cf80e1d94"},{"type":"txt","id":"rich_1508950865727","data":"Managing the work-life balance when every person who has seen you perform live is talking about you is difficult, as Tejas confirms, \"It was getting incredibly difficult for me to keep my job while still performing and still being on the road. So I quit my job in 2015\", he says, a hint of a smile in his voice, \"Ever since then it has been one gig after another to perform, one story after another to tell.\" <\/p>Talking about his work and the latest album, titled 'Make It Happen', Tejas says, \"These are deeply personal works, and I'm an incredibly slow songwriter, it usually takes me a year to put everything together,\" he laughs, before responding to a question about the thought process behind writing songs, \"To be honest, it is more of letting thoughts flow as they come and seeing what works and what doesn't. I know it sounds tedious, but that is why it takes me so long to put everything together!\"<\/p>\"It's more of a letting your mind wander and gather your thoughts thing, like don't dwell too much on what does not work, just keep pushing forward till you find what you need,\" he continues, \"This has led to the creation of some really diverse tracks.\" <\/p>"},{"type":"img","id":"img-uid-1508951565308","data":"59f0cf8d1549b"},{"type":"txt","id":"rich_1508951569676","data":"Tejas draws inspiration from some of the finest pop-rock musicians over the last few decades, as well as pop-culture and comic books. Speaking of the sound of Tejas and where it is derived from, he says, \"I had a certain type of music I listened to while growing up and I wanted to recreate that and present it to the world to the best of my abilities. I daresay I've more or less done so.\"<\/p>Pop-Rock has been around since the 1950s, originating in a time when Rock music was just beginning to make a mark on the music scene around the world with its hard and heavy tone. Pop-rock adheres to the similar styles of rock music, but instead of going heavy on the snares and the guitar shredding that would eventually evolve into Hard Rock and Metal, Pop-rock focused on using the same principles to produce a softer, gentler style of music, one that would eventually go on to appeal to even the most hardened metalhead - and inspire Tejas to establish his group - years later. <\/p>As our interview draws to a close, I ask Tejas what his advice to students today would be, especially students who are jamming out of rented jam rooms and their rooftop houses in hopes of making it big one day, \"One has to understand that one has to find their own voice to tell a story. I mean, sure, there are artists who have written songs about a particular issue and poured their heart and soul into singing and performing it, but that is their voice, and someone walking this road has to realise that it is their voice that matters,\" Tejas replies earnestly, after pondering the question for a while, \"There's always going to be other artists, what matters is what you can do, what your voice can do.\" <\/p>"},{"type":"img","id":"img-uid-1508952661263","data":"59f0cfede0c6e"},{"type":"txt","id":"rich_1508952663080","data":"\"If there is one thing I've learned from the various gigs around the country, it is gauging the mood of the crowd and how to keep them engaged. I'm not sure if this can be taught, I wish it could be,\" Tejas laughs as he concludes with his final statement, \"You find that some of your work really connects with people, you have folks coming up to you and saying they identify with your songs, then there are gigs where you are demotivated. The important thing to remember from all of that is that you learn and you move on, as simple as that.\" <\/p>I fully intend on inviting the person who very boldly declared that the Indie music scene in India was dead and buried along with me to Tejas's gig on Friday evening. After spending the last few hours listening to Make It Happen on repeat and judging by the many fantastic musicians I've had the opportunity to meet over the course of this year, I'm fairly confident that the future of the Indie music scene is in good hands. <\/p>You can check out Tejas's facebook page by <\/i><a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/musicbytejas\/\" target=\"_blank\">clicking here<\/i><\/a>, don't forget to scroll down and check out the latest album on YouTube! You can also buy his music from his website by <\/i><a href=\"http:\/\/www.musicbytejas.com\/\" target=\"_blank\">clicking here. <\/i><\/a><\/p>"},{"type":"youtube","id":"vid-url-1508954072563","data":"XO6STH6nezM"}]

Message

Experience the best version of stumagz by getting the app.

Get College News, Updates
at just 5 MB

Complete Form

Experience the best version of stumagz by getting the app.

Get College News, Updates at just 5 MB

Complete Form

Responses

Get College News, Updates
at just 5 MB