Bhaswar Sen of The Radical Array Project (T.R.A.P.) explains how important it is integrate the audience in any live performance

The idea of a musical ensemble is usually associated with a particular genre, but what happens when six people from six musical schools come together? Well, you get a band that can flow across genres with ease, as well as incorporate instrumental variations when necessary. Kolkata based young ensemble The Radical Array Project, popularly known as T.R.A.P. is one such example as they are trying to not limit themselves within a particular genre, rather utilising the diversity of its team members as a boon. Eight years down the line, they have not only released originals but mashups and covers that went viral on YouTube, alongside a host of instrumental renditions of popular theme songs and a piece featuring songs in sixteen Indian languages. Each of their live performances are exceptional due to their unique ways of audience engagement, and we speak to Bhaswar Sen, founder and violinist of T.R.A.P. to know more about their performances and plans.

How do you try to involve the audience with each of your performances?

We try to comprehend the vibe of a venue and design our performances accordingly before every show. Each of our shows incorporates special acts so as to make it engaging and interactive for the audience, as well as increase the audio-visual appeal. Our drum segment incorporates a clapping section which requires the audience to participate for instance, thus making the audience a part of the performance and not just reducing them to mere spectators. We also have a violin section that usually is a major attraction, and focuses on popular theme songs that range from Satyajit Ray films, to Harry Potter and Wonder Woman to name a few. The kind of music we include in this section is again dependent on the type and age group of audience we are playing for.

You have also included original animated videos as a part of your live performances such as the one based on Satyajit Ray…

This particular animation was created by a dear friend and his team. It is one of the very few animated videos that bring together some of the most famous films of Satyajit Ray, and it is used as a backdrop for our act that pays a tribute to the legendary filmmaker. This particular segment includes the themes of Ghare Baire, Sonar Kella, Goopy Gyne Bagha Byne and Pather Panchali.

Tell us about your multilingual segment

Many people hold a misconception that Hindi is our national language, which is untrue. In a land that is as diverse as India, tagging a particular language as the national language isn’t justified. The multi-lingual segment is an attempt to bring forward the diversity of languages we are blessed with, and so far includes sixteen Indian languages from sixteen states. We wish to further collaborate with orators and presenters who will enhance the act with culinary and tourism facts, and make it more interactive and comprehensible. We hope to include the diversity of all twenty seven states in the near future, and plan a concert particularly based on this.

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