December definitely came with a bang in Pune as the city hosted one of the most popular music festivals, NH7 Weekender this year. The 14th edition of the 2023 BACARDÍ NH7 Weekender, which concluded on December 3, not only created an immersive cultural experience for the audiences but also introduced new talents and artists at this three-day event.
Featuring a lineup of over 45 homegrown and international artists, this year's festival provided fans with an unforgettable weekend of music. On the first day, Monuments, Ezra Collective, Arch Echo, and Romare set the perfect tempo, while the second day saw M.I.A., Jai Wolf, Cartel Madras, and MEMBA steal the show. The festival wrapped up with YG, Daler Mehndi, MC Stan, and Euphoria leaving the audience on a high note on the last day.
The final day also featured Bollywood actors Ananya Panday, Siddhant Chaturvedi, and Gourav Adarsh, who joined OAFF x Savera's evening set to premiere the first track from their upcoming film, Kho Gaye Hum Kahan, live for the very first time.
Rock enthusiasts were thrilled by a lineup of high-energy performances by I Built The Sky, BEAR, Komodo Jane, The Lightyears Explode, and Naalayak. Hindi music lovers enjoyed the earworm sets by Sunny M.R., Lisa Mishra, and Hanita Bhambri. Hip-hop and R&B enthusiasts were kept on their toes for hours with sets by Tricksingh, Gully Gang, Priya Ragu, Spindoctor, and MadStarBase. While Gurbax and Alo Wala impressed electronic music fans with their exceptional deck skills. Gaming fanatics were treated to an exciting intersection of music and gaming with AV sets by Elle Shimada, SPRYK, and Skipster, which were projected onto the iconic Ferris wheel.
Also read: NH7 Weekender witnesses a full house for an all-women-led line-up
“This edition not only celebrated the discovery of new artists but also the exploration of a diverse range of genres, innovative experiences, and thematic elements—all set in an expansive new venue,” said Akshat Rathee, co-founder and Managing Director of NODWIN Gaming.
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Beyond the electrifying music performances, this year's festival curated a diverse range of activities and engagements with fun-filled gaming lounges to interactive CASA BACARDÍ container with slushies, popsicles and custom-curated cocktails, the NODWIN Gaming Lounge, and the iconic Ferris Wheel, alongside new food, drink, and shopping offerings.
Festival goers were treated to a delicious palate on all of the days with multiple food stalls while fashion-loving attendees also had a wide variety of merchandise stores to choose from, which offered intricately crafted jewellery to quirky clothing and giftables, and official artist and festival merchandise to a dedicated thrift shop.
The pet-friendly venue also had multiple aesthetically crafted mammoth installations in pop neon colours and photo booths placed across different corners of the fest ground for the selfie fanatics that did full justice to this year’s theme of #ItsAMood. During the early evening hours, young gaming enthusiasts were spotted competing in games like FIFA, Street Fighter, Tekken, Super Mario, Super Contra, Tetris, Pacman and CS:GO, Just Dance at the Gaming Arena. Whilst supporting themes of diversity and empowerment with an all-female led line up, the festival also supported several initiatives like ‘MIST LGBTQ Foundation’ the inclusivity partners for the LGBTQIA+ community.
Sameeksha Uniyal, Brand Lead, BACARDÍ India said, “The core philosophy behind BACARDÍ NH7 Weekender is to create a festival that brings people together to celebrate music and discover a sense of community, and in that regard, this has been one of our most successful editions yet.”
Starting as a home for indie musicians to connect with their fans, the festival has observed exponential growth over the last decade, both sonically and as a community.