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Where to listen to and buy vinyl in Mumbai
A Mumbai audiophile and a record club founder are fueling a local micro-trend
Both Indian and international record labels plan to release vinyl versions of recordings by Asian artists, such as Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and Shiv Kumar Sharma. In Mumbai all manner of vintage items can be found.
Horn-rimmed spectacles and faded film posters, hand-painted sweet box tins and cool watch fobs just wait to be discovered.
Vinyl records? Not so much.
This isn't San Francisco. Or London.
Over the years, Sushil Anand, a sexagenarian Mumbai audio enthusiast and India distributor of the ProJect brand of turntables, knows this all too well.
An audiophile, Anand once owned 1,900 records, but, sadly, gave them all away.
He now says it was the "biggest mistake of his life," because the demand for vinyl is surging in India.
This year, Anand opened Nova Audio, a vinyl-only record store.
Across town, Arjun Ravi, founder of a young indie music website, has been hosting regular vinyl sessions in Bandra since April.
Nova Audio: Unique audio store
Listener comfort is emphasized at Nova Audio.
Unlike a traditional audio store though, one won’t find endless rows of music here.
“I want this to be a comfort zone where people can spend some time with vinyl," says Anand. "They can listen to the records and buy them if they like."
Some collectors argue that it’s the non-digitized, "real" quality of records that attracts audiophiles.
Others say it’s the physicality of the music that’s attractive.
The store currently has English records from the EMI catalogue, including classic rock albums by Deep Purple, Iron Maiden and The Doors, as well as more modern bands such as Arctic Monkeys.
Depending on the label and availability, an LP can cost anything between Rs 600 to Rs 2,100.
Though the emphasis here is on English music, Anand says the demand for Indian music vinyl is strong.
According to Anand, EMI plans to release records by Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan and Shiv Kumar Sharma. Saregama re-entered the vinyl space with "Jhootha Hi Sahi." T-Series has jumped in with records for blockbuster movie soundtracks such as "Wanted" and "Ready."
The shop also stocks equipment, including turntables, amplifiers and speakers.
A good setup can start at about Rs 17,000 and, depending on the brand and quality, can go up to about Rs 200,000.
Nova Audio, 3 Fairlands, 314 LJ Road, near Sitladevi Road Junction, Mahim (W).
Microgroove India: A new vinyl club
Microgroove club meetings takes place at Bandra bar Zenzi once a month.
Arjun Ravi, founder of NH7, came up with the idea when he started collecting LPs over a year ago.
The only criteria for membership, according to Microgroove’s Facebook page, is being passionate about, and owning or wanting to own, vinyl records.
The club's first meeting was held in April 2011 at Zenzi. Subsequent sessions have followed on a monthly basis.
The club has around 70 dedicated members and each session has attracted at least 40 or 50 new sound seekers.
A jazz session done, plans are now on for indie-rock and hip-hop meetings.
For details on dates for Microgroove sessions at Zenzi, log on to www.facebook.com/microgrooveindia
