Subodh , Bhumit , and Austin of the band ‘ Last Minute India ’ shed a light on how the group comes together to work on music . Despite having a spontaneous approach to music creation , the band has had a strategic growth . This mixture of fun and sincerity makes the group unique . The dynamics band members have with each other plays a huge part in its success .
When was the band formed and how has it evolved ?
Subodh : I met Bhumit ( guitarist ) when we were studying engineering in college . Around the same time , I met Austin at a church where I saw him play . I saw Yash and Abdul play at different gigs from which I offered them to be a part of the band . And if you look back there isn ’ t much difference between the band formed back then , and the ‘ Last Minute India ’ it is right now . The line-up that our listeners have been hearing in our releases has been in place since the last five years .
Being in a band is not like being in a company . In a company , there is a hierarchy system which keeps a group of people organised . In a band you have a handful of people who have completely different personalities with no organised way to handle them , so it can be difficult to be managed . For example , Bhumit brings his own character , and Austin ( lead guitarist ) is completely different . If we are attending a party then you ’ ll find Austin drinking a protein shake . Abdul ( Singer ) is different , and so is our Drummer ( Yash ). It ’ s not really a difficulty , it is just that we are five different individuals with five different ways of communicating . It ’ s basically a ride .
Our line-up has not changed much . We had to replace our lead singer because during COVID he had to move back to his home state . Other than that , we have basically evolved together .
You mentioned how everyone in the band is different from each other . Does diverse thinking help you in making music ?
Subodh : Diversity surely helps . For example , I have grown up listening to Bollywood and Indian bands . Bhumit has grown up listening to metal . Austin had Gospel influence , though he pretty much listens to all sorts of music . Our drummer is also a metal fan , he used to play for a metal band . And Abdul comes from a heavy classical and Sufi background . All of this shapes our production process . It has happened that I introduce everyone with a poppy melody and Austin will add another version of chord progression to it . Bhumit will add his style of finger-picking to it . Abdul will add classical elements like ‘ alaap ’ to it even if the composition did not originally have them . The end of our upcoming song ‘ Jaane Anjaane ’ has metal chops that our drummer has added , although the song is fully a pop song . We see a song grow from its start to the end . Diversity adds flavour to the music . It ’ s like biriyani , mix up all the good ingredients and you will get something awesome .
You play a lot of Bollywood covers at your gigs , what ’ s the reason behind it ?
Subodh : In India Cricket and Bollywood are two things that always work . In a country like India , you will end up listening to Bollywood music even if you don ’ t want to .
I had a discussion with Abdul a few years back about the indie scene in India takingoff , and if Bollywood music will still hold its ground even then . And at this moment in time , we can confirm that Bollywood music and Indie music can parallelly be successful . We want to create and play music that resonates with everyone . We want to play that music which most of the population of our country is going to enjoy .
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