How would clubbing enthusiasts describe a perfect weekend getaway? A two-night bender listening to their favourite music artistes. And that is exactly what happened a few weeks ago at Hello Calcutta, in association with t2. People turned up at Ibiza The Fern Resort & Spa for an underground and techno music experience. Hosted by Nikhil Chinapa, M Bar x Offline CCU and the resort, the event was spread across two stages — the main stage and the Jager stage. The main stage had subgenres of techno while Jager also had a mix of hip-hop and house.
The two-day festival had many international names on the lineup who had their debut gig in the city, besides local talents who have lifted the scene to where it is now. The first-day lineup on the main stage featured Rahul Indoria, Arcane b2b Rudra, Vikrant, Maxxim, Nils Hoffmann, Anyasa, Gheist, Blot! and Tim Engelhardt while the Jager stage had Jweather, Rik, Cmyk, Distort, Houdini, Warrior G, Modd, Tash and Tuhin Mehta.
On the second day of the event, the main stage had Antimatter, Pratik, Techdrone, Kounterpart, Devaa b2b Dharmalogy, Space Motion, Browncoat b2b Nikhil Chinapa, Yotto, Arjun Vagale and 8-Bit Culprit while the Jager stage featured Tatrix, Animesh, PhreshPrince, Spade, Rishiboy, Anshe, Bahaar, Avantika, Arpan and Dualist Inquiry.
While different basslines flowed through the two stages, revellers enjoyed dishes from food stalls like The Green House, Kareem’s, The Canteen and more.
The Telegraph dropped in for the second day.
MAIN STAGE
On till the small hours, 8-Bit Culprit gave the scene an acid, breakbeat state of mind where the BPM had come down and was layered by squelching sounds. Arpeggiators were prominent in his set (like acid house should be) and party animals vibed till morning to the fun set.
Space Motion is a familiar face among the city’s music lovers. His progressive and techno sets have a pull factor with melodies and samples that always catch the listener’s attention. He keeps his drops groovy and engages the audience with easy-to-understand vocals. During his set, he kept the audience in a fun state of mind as the set was easy to understand and, of course, packed with energy.
While Browncoat mixed tracks with Nikhil Chinapa, the latter picked up the mic and assured that the crowd would have a good time. Their set was nothing short of “happy melodies” which, at the same time, did not tire out the audience since the night was long.
After Yotto gave the audience a night to remember, Arjun Vagale was up next to make them utilise the rest of the energy. The artiste played a hardstyle set which pushed the audience to dance faster. Hardstyle is a hardcore subgenre of techno which is at a more rapid BPM. Once Arjun started his set the audience couldn’t help but stomp.
JAGER STAGE
Avantika is known for a mix of subgenres. She put together a house, disco, progressive and melodic techno set for her audience, which had an intimate vibe. Maintaining a soulful yet energetic sound she performed her set with a wave of sounds which all made sense when put together.
Dualist Inquiry was the closing act of the night and he too kept it easy, vibey and cosy. He connected well with his audience as he continuously tried to read the vibe, smile at them occasionally and even groove to his exciting melodies, which had a certain surprise factor
After Avantika, Arpan took charge of the console, presenting a melodic vibe. Since Jager was a smaller stage, Arpan did not blast the audience away rather kept an energy level that matched the ambience.
THE SETUP
When there is a techno festival on such a massive scale, you just know VJ Philip Gordon has something to do with the production. While he did some pixel- mapping on the smaller Jager stage, on the main stage he used lights which defined a techno vibe with huge LED walls. He also customised a boiler-room experience where revellers and friends of the artistes could dance alongside them.
VJ Philip Gordon
There were enough food stalls at both the stages with spots like The Green House, Kareem’s, The Canteen and more, serving biryani to Maggi, fries to chicken crisps
Although the audience had filled up the lawn, there was ample space to dance
If people need a break they could rest under Red Bull tents... just to re-energise
While premium and international beverages were available aplenty, one of the biggest hits was the Caldera counter, which was available on tap
ORGANISER SPEAK
“Hello Calcutta is something that Calcutta had never witnessed before. Our attempt was to introduce a music festival on this scale to the city and get people to enjoy this culture which is growing. The response we got has been phenomenal considering it was our first edition with people travelling from other cities for this. We are extremely happy to receive so much love from everyone. The immense popularity of Hello Calcutta is a motivating factor for future editions. Looking forward to creating memories again with more artistes, range of music genres, fun engagements and people from across the globe,” said Aditya Mehta and Varun Mimani, directors, M Bar Kitchen & Cocktails.
“Hello Calcutta is a vibe! If you attended the festival, you know what we are talking about. Earlier, considering Calcutta was never a priority for most Indian and international touring artistes; we think we have put a strong foot in the door and paved the way for future festivals and bigger acts for the city. We have received a lot of love and appreciation from across the country and this just means bigger and better shows in the future,” said Sonu Agarwal, Offline.
Pictures: Ibiza The Fern Resort & Spa, Instagram