Behind The Scenes With The Artists of ‘Electric Desi,’ New York’s First South Asian Electric Music Festival (Exclusive)

New York City saw its first-ever South Asian electric music festival come to life this month at Avant Gardner in East Williamsburg.

With more than 1,500 tickets sold and a waitlist of over 650 music lovers, “Electric Desi” featured music from various genres, both Western and Eastern hits, live singing, and the incorporation of traditional South Asian instruments.

The nearly five-hour event featured four headlining DJs, each known for a different style of music and energy toward the crowd. Some mixed South Asian dance music with Western hip-hop, while others took to remixing popular Hindi love songs with upbeat American pop.

Amsal Valliani’s Life Motto Has Always Been What He Wants Crowds To Take Away From Hearing Music: ‘Life Is Beautiful.’

Organized by Amsal Valliani — known as DJ Amsal — “Electric Desi” is the first music event or rave of its kind. According to Valliani it’s a play on the popular Electric Daisy Carnival and combines electric and South Asian music. 

“I don’t think many people actually combine EDM music with South Asian music,” Valliani said.

“I just hope to open people up to a lot of variety of music in the EDM genres such as trap, EDM, dubstep and have them leave with an open mind. My goal is to fuse EDM music with Desi or South Asian music and this name really combines them.”

Desi is a diaspora term used as both a noun or adjective to identify people of South Asian descent. 

From starting as a DJ at local family parties making $100, DJ Amsal has become a well-known name in the South Asian community, traveling worldwide for gigs. His career took off during the pandemic during which he made DJing his full-time.

The Pakistani-American from Los Angeles, California told The Messenger his life motto has always been what he wants crowds to take away from hearing music: “Life is beautiful.”

“No matter what’s happening, life is always beautiful,” he said. “When people come to my events, they’ll actually see that and experience the beauty of life.”

Speaking of his identity and how he balances being both South Asian and American, Valliani said he has learned to embrace the two over the years, similar to how he sees music come together in “Electric Desi.’”

Despite how many years he has been producing music for and performing on stage, Valliani also shared a secret, that sometimes he still gets the “nerves” before going in front of a crowd. 

But when he sees the crowd he says: “That’s it… the crowd just makes everything feel better. When I see the crowd. I think, ‘Why am I nervous? These are my people.'”

South Asian Professionals Are Breaking the Stereotypes Associated With Their Race

The event comes at a time when South Asians are making strides across the country, especially in the entertainment sector. South Asian professionals are breaking the stereotypes associated with their race and are taking on more creative roles in music and the arts.

In the last 10 years, we have seen a new wave of South Asian talent, especially in the U.S. with those identifying with the diaspora making a name for themselves not only in traditional fields of STEM but music and entertainment.

As we continue to see South Asians represented on the main screen in TV and film, South Asian music has also increased in popularity in the Western world. 

“It [South Asian music] has a huge influence. You have so many mainstream songs sampling South Asian songs and beats. It is a big wave right now and a lot of inspiration is coming from South Asia when it comes to music,” Valliani said.

‘I Love Making People Happy,’ DJ Tribahl Said. He Defines ‘Electric Desi’ as an ‘Experience’ and ‘Movement.’

Rahul Bahl — DJ Tribahl — noted the honor it is to perform fusions of South Asian melodies and instruments into Western music.

He told The Messenger that he believes in pushing different South Asian melodies and instrumentals into music because he wants to create an experience that has people “marching” or “bouncing” to the music of different languages and instrumentals.

From playing piano for years to creating his rap beats, Bahl said he began producing music to create his own “unique sound.” 

He plans to take his DJ career full-time but at the moment uses music as a form of relaxation after work hours. 

He shared his favorite memory with The Messenger noting that one of his most memorable times DJing was at a friend’s graduation party

“I remember I had a laptop and this USB controller connected.” He added that in that moment seeing people “vibing” to what he was playing made him “want to play like this for a lot more people.”

“I love making people happy,” he said. He defined “Electric Desi” as an “experience” and “movement.”

“We’re not just here for the music,” said Bahl. “We’re here about the community.”

He added: We want people to interact and just meet new people, find new friends, and build a community together. I’m excited to see where this movement goes.”

‘We Grew up in an Era Where We Were Dominated by ’90s and 2000s Hip Hop as Well as a Big Explosion of Pop Music.’

Reiterating the emphasis on community and support, Srihari Sritharan — Dr.Srimix — shared his journey with music and how the most important thing to him is “supporting friends and family.”

“We’re finally coming to a point where we see all the bases using music finally able to unite under one vision. And I think this is a great place for us to all bring together.”

Being “deeply involved in dance” with a “love for all sorts of different genres of music” got Sritharan involved in producing music. 

His stage name combines his work and personal life, referencing his Ph.D., and passion for making mixes.

“We grew up in an era where we were dominated by ’90s and 2000s hip hop as well as a big explosion of pop music.”

“Finding ways to combine that with South Asian melodies that our parents love, as well things that we’d like to sing in our spare time united us under one umbrella.” He added: “There’s a huge merging of communities that’s happening both on the Indian side and the other side of South Asia.”

Sritharan brought friends alongside him on stage including doctor and singer, Avish Jain and multi-talented Siva Gunasegaram.

Jain, who has been singing since he was five, is currently in his last year of residency. He spoke of the challenges of balancing a full-time career in medicine while being a performing artist.

“The biggest challenge is people not understanding the lifestyle,” he said. “when you’re in music, not understanding the responsibilities that come with being a doctor, and when you’re a doctor not understanding what the lifestyle of a musician is.”

Like the others, Jain mentioned community noting his relationship with Sritharan expanded over 10 years of performing together.

‘The Diaspora…is Filled With Such Immense Talent’

“My world revolves around Cinema and Community,” Gunasegaram said. “My father was one of the first people to bring Tamil cinema to theaters in America over 30 years ago.”

Born in New York, Gunasegaram is a media producer by day and musician by night.

Speaking about his inspiration and what drives him to make music, like others Gunasegaram spoke about culture and community.

“Growing up within a tight-knit Tamil community, I was instilled with values that fostered a strong appreciation for arts and music,” he said.

“India, Sri Lanka, and the diaspora community I’ve grown with is filled with such immense talent that I’m inspired on a daily basis.” 

In total Gunasegaram can play 67 different types of drums, including the Dhol, Thavil, Chenda, and Tabla.

“Rhythm is so important to me,” DJ Sidd Kel said speaking about traditional Indian drums.

Born into a family of dancing and arts, Siddarth Kelam — DJ Sidd Kel — grew up learning Bharatanatyam, Carnatic Vocals, and Mridangam.

From studying the sciences to making music, singer, dancer, and now full-time music producer Kelam, blends South Asian music with popular Atlanta beats.

“I try to keep my sets versatile with different genres of electronic music but sew them together to where it all makes sense,” he said, describing his music as a “way of storytelling.” 

Kelam told The Messenger that, unlike traditional South Asian expectations of being a doctor or engineer, he had the hopes of being a professional dancer.

“I come from a family of artists,” Kelam said noting that he “was a dancer my whole life.”

While the music was always in his life, Kelam shared he had expected to pursue dancing as a career not music, before scumming to injuries.

“Even though I grew into the arts field with dance, music has been my passion the whole time, I realized music is where I really wanted to end up eventually.”

Speaking about his inspiration for creating music, Kelam said he loves the “feeling you get when you hit a certain chord progression in a song.”

“I constantly aim to create that feeling when I’m producing music. I also love how the audience is able to relate to the music I create.”

Kelam told The Messenger that his South Indian identity and background in  Carnatic music make his sets different than others and for him, the “biggest thing is trying to bring both of the cultures he is a part of together.”

“Rhythm is so important to me,” he said speaking about traditional Indian drums. Having been born in India but raised in Atlanta, Kelam emphasized the importance of using different beats to “mash up the two” cultures he identifies with together. 

When asked about pre-performance rituals, Kelam shared that he not only eats Panda Express before every gig but carries a heartfelt note a fan once gave.

“It was the nicest, sweetest message just saying: ‘Hey, I really love your music. You’re really inspiring.’ Since then I just kept it with me. To think somebody thinks that way that my music means so much inspires me,” he said.

“I think ‘Electric Desi’ is filling a small void in the Indian-American club scene,” Kelam said.

“‘Electric Desi’ is making it easier to listen to the fusion of both Eastern and Western music, the audience loves both styles of music, and I think we’ve found a way to fuse them together and share it on one stage.”

‘Don’t stop. Keep going. It sounds simple, but it really isn’t.’

In terms of advice they would give to those following in their footsteps the artists each provided some words, with a similar theme of “not giving up.”

“Try your best to have an original sound and hone in on it,” Bahl said.

Valliani: “I would say reach for the stars and KNOW you will get it. Do not give up hope and don’t think it might happen or it might not. Just know it will happen, try your best, and be patient. Things have a sense of working out if you give them time and energy.”

He added: “Believe in yourself, keep going, and always keep learning and trying new things.”

Kelam: “Don’t stop. Keep going. It sounds simple, but it really isn’t.”

He continued: “Nothing in this journey will make sense but you have to keep pushing towards your passion and goals regardless of what obstacles you face.”

“Pure intentions combined with a strong work ethic leads to incredible opportunities,” said Gunasegaram. “Embrace every opportunity with love and dedication.”