With three set stages, 27-plus artistes and a bunch of associated activities, the Mandala Music Festival nailed it with their sixth edition this year. The premises of Café Ekante at Eco Park was swarming with music lovers of all genres on December 3, as they came dressed in their best to groove all night.
The sixth edition, which was hosted by Decible Events, saw the three stages — Mantra, Tantra and Yantra. While the Mantra stage covered music genres like hip-hop, commercial, electro, rap, psytrance and more, the Tantra stage was all about underground and house music. The newly added stage, Yantra, was all about old school and live hip-hop where artistes rapped, danced, beatboxed and even held freestyle rapping sessions. While three stages played music simultaneously, VJ Philip Gordon did the visuals for all of them.
My Kolkata brings you the lowdown from the festival…
Mantra stage
The Mantra stage was too lit to handle
The main stage – Mantra – took the audience on a journey through different kinds of music. The stage began at 2pm and went on till 1am. The acts that got the best of the audience were Chester Young, Mihir Chandan, General Zooz and Teri Miko.
While Mihir Chandan played a live set with his hand pans, mini drum set and more, General Zooz got the reggae vibe going while rapping and performing an energy-filled playlist. Teri Miko, of course, took an electronic turn as she played a mixed set of house, electro, hip-hop, trap and more and Chester Young from Chicago played dance and electronic music.
Other names that made a lasting impression were Ivan with his house music, Xavier with hip-hop, Aaditya with EDM and Outlaw with psytrance. Other DJs and artistes who kept the audience lively and active were Gourav, Kunal Shaw, Man-You, rapper RVD, Steve and Sumit Pradhan.
Tantra stage
Citizen Kain during his set on the Tantra stage
This stage was all about underground music and its sub-genres. The lineup was designed in a manner that it started with chill groovy vibes and then ended with more upbeat and melodic grooves. Some of the names that stood out on this lineup were Citizen Kain, Tash and the much-loved Ankytrixx.
Tash played a tight progressive house set, which had hints of melodic techno that kept it going and French artiste Citizen Kain went a little harder with melodic techno with an edgy and groovy rhythm. Ankytrixx closed the Tantra stage with his hard-hitting, but happy melodic set.
We spotted Ankytrixx and Kunal G in a fun mood at the festival
Other attractions on the same lineup included Arpan and Dharmalogy. Kunal G and Devaa went back-to-back. Others who kept the vibe alive were Antidote, Cmyk, In Between, Sohail, Unheard and Tanishq.
Yantra stage
Valentino during his performance on the Yantra stage Decible Events
The third and newest stage addition to Mandala was Yantra. This stage was a freestyle place for all who wanted to show off their hip-hop skills. Beatboxers, dancers, rappers and more gathered here to show off their talents and build their community. Rappers like Hype Brothers, Pachas Tola, Rishi, Skid, Spill Freak, Talah, Utsav and Venom performed on the mic while Funkfuture Crew put together a dance performance. While Valentino and Sibtain did live rap and acoustic performances, beatboxers Kunfu, Yaman and Marvel were also present.
Food and flea market
The food stalls offered items like momos, biryani, coffee, rolls and more
All that revelry had the audience in need of refreshments, and Mandala had it covered. Minus the large Bacardi bars on the Tantra and Mantra stages, the festival also had a bunch of food stalls with names like Barista, Cafe Ekante, Mandala Oriental Kitchen, Stun the Sun, Extra Cheese Bistro, Chai Suttaa, Fiesta Royale, Pizza Centre and Baked & Fried Hub.
The flea market had a mix of fun brands that sold t-shirts, bling and more. But what people had most fun trying was caricature. Carry the Caricature made sure people knew how to laugh at themselves by making caricatures of different friend groups. Not only did they make people laugh, but also attracted more customers with their laughter.
Organiser speaks
“Gratitude flows from the heart to the City of Joy, and to all who came from other cities to contribute to the success of our sixth edition. Their support, love and participation have been instrumental in turning our dream into a reality. We promise more extraordinary editions to come,” said Mohanish Lama, founder of Decible Events.
