Tell us about your drumming career. How did it all begin??
I started drumming at the age of 2. My dad Shailesh Doshibeing a drummer, inspired me to take the instrument forward. He runs a music academy in Juhu, Mumbai so there was always music in our house. I would attend his concerts & was always fascinated to watch him on stage playing drums. My initial training then started under him. When I was 8, I joined an all kids band ' Little Wonders ' & ' Little Stars ' that was formed by music directors Kalyanji-Anandji & I got the opportunity to perform all over the world with some talented singers & musicians at a very young age. At the age of 11, my name came into the Limca Books of Records as the Youngest Drummer of India.
Where do you draw inspiration from as a musician?
I have been inspired by all kinds of musicians, I try to learn from everything I see around me, but when it comes to drums there are a lot of drummers that have made me want to push myself. I was lucky to have been trained under my idol- MrRanjit Barot, who is India’ s finest drummer. I ' ve had opportunities to spend time with drummers from around the world like Steve Smith, Terry Bozzio, Antonio Sanchez
& Eric Harland. Recently I attended the world famous Drum Fantasy Camp in Chicago & learn from drummers like Dave Weckl, JojoMayer, Benny Greb & Mike Mangini. For me, learning will never stop!
You ' ve performed with big names in the industry. Tell us a bit about the experience?
I have been really fortunate to play with some amazing singers & music directors of the Bollywood Industry. Its been a great learning experience to perform with artists like Mr A. R. Rahman, Shankar Ehsaan Loy, Salim-Sulaiman, Adnan Sami, Amit Trivedi, Farhan Akhtar & many more. Also thanks to Coke Studio & MTV Unplugged, I got to perform with some amazing folk & classical musicians. We also work together on film projects. I ' ve had great fun recording drums for numerous films like Rock On, Fitoor, Kai Po Che, Black, My Name is Khan, Queen, & Bombay Velvet as well as upcoming films Rock On 2 & Udta Punjab.
You ' re currently with Farhan Akhtar Live Band. Tell us about your best show so far and why??
With Farhan Live it ' s always been fun. We mainly perform at college festivals, so the audience response we get is crazy. It ' s pretty cool to also perform songs that were originally played by me in the film Rock On. Farhan is an amazing live performer- we have to push ourselves to match his energy on stage. The Mumbai show at DJ Sanghvi College Festival in March 2016 was special as I was performing in my college grounds & a home crowd is always great. We even had Ranveer Singh who came specially to check out the concert cheering for us from the side wings!
Which has been your favorite stage you ' ve performed in?
It would be so difficult to pick from over 3000 concerts performed all over the world! But in 2014, I got the opportunity to perform at the prestigious WOMAD Festival in UK with Salim Sulaiman & Karsh
Kale- which to me was a dream stage to be on. We were even lucky enough to bump into Mr Peter Gabriel.
Artists / bands you ' d love to work with and why??
I love playing fusion music & its been a dream to play alongside the amazing Ustad Zakir Hussain. I ' m also a huge fan of composers Clinton Cerejo & Dhruv Ghanekar & would love to perform & record for them someday.
You ' re endorsing Zildjian brand. What ' s your opinion about the product?
I ' ve been associated with Zildjian Cymbals as an endorsee for over 5 years now. I ' ve been using them with my kit since I was a kid, so for me, they are the finest cymbals. Zildjian Cymbals are a part of my music & work for me in any situation.
What makes this brand stand out in your opinion?
They have a wide variety of cymbals that work for different genres of music & happen to be available at a very good price range, making it easier for even a beginner to afford.
Your message to upcoming drummers in the country.
I would like to share with upcoming drummers that there are no shortcuts to success, you have to put hours & hours of practise into your instrument everyday & most importantly listen to all kinds of music!
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