New York-based fusion artiste Rini is in Hyderabad with her blend of Carnatic music and contemporary sounds
From Chennai to New York and ensembles to Netflix, Harini Raghavan, aka Rini, a singer, composer and violinist, brings The Moon Drops Tour to enchant audiences across six cities in India. This tour promises a magical atmosphere, combining live performances with ambient synths and pads. Rini expresses her excitement about returning to Hyderabad, where she previously performed in March, saying, “It was amazing engaging with audiences here the last time, and I can’t wait to play some of our newer songs for Hyderabad.” The tour will feature the talented singer Damini for the opening act.
Rini’s setlist includes beloved classics such as Mango Showers, Spirit of the String, and Raghuvamsa Sudha, alongside new compositions like Moon Thuli, which metaphorically represents love across space and time.
Other new tracks include Telisi Rama, a playful arrangement of a Thyagaraja krithi, and Kapi in Rio, which fuses Carnatic and Latin influences. On being asked about the unique fusion of sounds in her music, Rini gives us an insight into bringing together different types of music and weaving a coherent story with them. Describing the Jazztronica genre as a blend of synthesizers with jazz improvisational elements, she explains, “Indian Jazztronica is aesthetically blending Jazz and electronic Carnatic music and Indian folk music. Bringing in Carnatic ragas, swaram-based improvisations, synth ostinatos within the ragam.”
Growing up in Chennai has profoundly influenced Rini’s musical identity. With 15 years of training in vocal and violin performance, her foundation in Carnatic music shapes her improvisational style even when collaborating in diverse settings like New Jersey. “I hear all music in swarams,” she notes, adding, “When I learnt jazz harmony in Berklee, my perspective was always from my base, Carnatic music. This also helped me bring my own style of improv in other styles I was exposed to there — like Middle Eastern music ensembles and Afro pop ensembles. It’s interesting to find space for Carnatic music within different styles and have a dialogue through music across cultures.”
On her endeavours in India besides touring, she shares her experience with working on Netflix’s show, Fame Game. “We worked closely with show creator Sri Rao to create a unique soundscape for themes and characters. It was fascinating to go through the whole editing process, place the cues, and to see all the artistic considerations that go into it. And of course the fact that my voice was the voice of Madhuri Dixit in parts of the show was so exciting!” she concludes.
Tickets at ₹499 onwards. September 29, 7 pm. At EXT Moonshine Project, Jubilee Hills.
Story by Anshula Dhulekar
