Keep track of concerts with this app

When Mumbai-based engineer Nishant Shah joined the Twitter bandwagon in 2015, it was simply to pass the time and unwind. But it soon became the springboard for a friendship that has evolved into so much more.

He met fellow Hindustani music students and avid listeners Sonal Athnikar, Pushkaraj Apte, and Prasad Sawant on the digital platform. They hit it off instantly, sharing recordings and details of upcoming concerts taking place in Mumbai and Apte’s hometown, Pune. While they bonded over their shared passion, they found something lacking.

“We would constantly hunt for good concerts and found that there was no one platform that had all the details. We’d simply gather details from Facebook or WhatsApp and exchange information with each other,” Shah says.

The four of them would attend 50-60 concerts per year. “We realised we were missing out on so many amazing concerts, especially of musicians who didn’t have the means to advertise or market their events,” Shah adds.

The four friends set out to develop their own website, modelling it after Apte’s own previously-created kumarji.com. While Apte’s website focuses completely on the artistry and life of thelegendary vocalist Pt. Kumar Gandharva, Shah calls this website a ‘one-stop’ for everything Hindustani.

“We wanted to create a database of Hindustani classical music events, that would make it easy for listeners to find and attend quality concerts,” Shah explains.

They launched the venture in April of 2016, and the following year saw the team posting information about 650 events happening across India.

Shah calls the phenomenon a “success” and yet, the friends noticed a flaw that pushed them to take the venture one step further. “When people are out, it’s not convenient to have to scroll through a website for concert information. Most people prefer opening an app and sourcing information .”

The team brainstormed, working with an app developer for six months to finally launch the Sangeetnama Android app in December 2017. The app, available for free download, currently tracks Hindustani music events that take place in Mumbai, Pune, Delhi, Kolkota and Bangalore, although Shah says they hope to expand coverage nationwide.

They hope to add more features, such as a ‘filter’ that allows consumers to view events by city or favorite artiste. For now, though, an iOS version is on the horizon, with many other ideas in the pipeline.

“It began as a passion project, and it still is one,” Shah smiles. “Though of course, our daily riyaaz and learning comes first. The app is a way to give back to the musical community, one that has given and continues to give so much to us, every day.”