DJ Ravin, your host at the original Buddha Bar in Paris, discusses his Indian roots with Shana Maria Verghis and how he wound up playing at the venue, now baptised as B-Bar
Tell us about your roots. Does it influence your music. What’s your real nameIJ
Ravindra... but I guess its too long and difficult... especially for people in Paris... so Ravin stuck. My father moved to Mauritius from India long back. My mother, a Mauritian, brought me up as per traditional Hindu teachings. later we moved to Paris and studied in a school there for sometime but it wasn’t a good experience. Yes, my roots have an influence on my music... I listen to Kishore Kumar and lata Mangeshkar.
Your music, from the diaspora perspective...
When I come to perform in the country is different from what is followed by the diaspora. It adapts to what they have around them locally... to be blatantly honest... I am not exactly in sync with the culture, rather far removed from everything else... I feel more of a global citizen than someone bound by nationalities and cultures. And you can get a sense of it in my music. The only place where the Indian origin or being a Hindu has an influence on my music is my inclination, somewhat if not majorly, towards Asian underground music which may have a mix of everything including vedic chants, Punjabi music with the dominant dhol to certain select Bollywood beats.
How long have you been playing at Paris, Buddha Bar, and how did you wind up thereIJ
When I moved to France as a teenager I focussed on mixing, playing and producing. I got a chance to play at famous celebrity haunts such as the Rex or les Bains Douches. In 1997, I met the Buddha Bar owner and played my first sets there that contributed to the concept’s musical signature. I was offered the assistant’s job to the resident DJ. Now I am resident DJ. My fusion style has become an integral part of compilations — the Siddharta and Buddha Bar CD collections — by George V Records.
pWhat is the format thereIJ And what tends to be the annual calendar likeIJ
No there is no typical format... there are no seasons... no calendars... we play throughout the year. In Paris, it is international tourists who come to Buddha Bar... drawn by the repute the place has earned for its music and food. While in Delhi... it is primarily the elite of the city who come to B-Bar.
Tell us about bizarre concerts....
I was recently at a product launch of an international truck brand and was playing in their factory surrounded by employees. We had a good time as usual... but when I come to think of it, I really don’t know what was the connect or what I was doing there at the first place... but work is work!
What’s been inspiring you latelyIJ
I love to travel and listen to local music to draw inspiration. If I am in China, I would love to listen to local music fused with electronic. I strive to discover new talents and share them through the Buddha Bar collection or my live DJ sets, in Buddha Bar Paris and at 45 other locations around the world. In India, I like Midivial Punditz. I played with them and they are friends. I would like to do something with the likes of lata Mangeshkar and AR Rahman. You can expect an album inspired by Indian music.
What Delhi heard...
Since I was launching the new music CD — Buddha Bar XV, a chill wind from Russia — people heard tracks from this album and hits from previous ones. Along with me percussionist and trumpet player loic from Buddha Bar, Paris played. So, it was sweet sounds of Russian traditional instruments and vocals. It’ll include Bliss, Yasmine Hamdan, Thor… besides fusion with the electronic music that could immerse you in Russia’s warm nights. With artists like Dim Vach or Seanbay.