Why Techno and Abandoned Warehouse Parties are on the Rise in Mumbai

Photo credit: Regenerate Music

This week I interviewed two very cool local siblings immersed in Bombay’s growing techno community. I connected with these guys on a dance floor at a house and techno festival abroad, and we stayed in touch ever since.

As we discussed a few topics that are subjective or potentially sensitive to the local scene, I’m keeping their identities anonymous.

Read on to learn how the Bombay techno scene was born; some of the challenges the community faces, and what kind of abandoned spaces make for the best raves in the city.

Hey guys! So how did the techno community start out in Mumbai?

Raver-x: Well psytrance has been going for quite a bit longer, and the shift to techno came when a lot of the psytrance parties were being shut down.

This one club Blue Frog was a particularly revolutionary space, which used to have more deep house and tech house and psytrance. It was also shut down, due to landlord issues I think, and other clubs opened up with more of a focus towards alternative music. 

We also started having festivals near Bombay like EVC (Enchanted Valley Carnival) and Magnetic Fields. EVC for example focused only towards the niche market. It had 3 stages, including a techno stage and a commercial EDM stage. 

The techno stage had a smaller crowd but that’s when people started to get attracted to that sort of music, and it was around the same time that Blue Frog shut down.

It’s a shame all those psytrance clubs got shut down, but exciting that Bombay’s techno community seemed to emerge out of that! Does the techno scene face similar challenges?

Ronic: Bombay has some strange rules. Things start closing down at 1, which is usually when techno parties pick up! They made this rule on the pretext for security measures. 

After the communal riots in 1993, they changed a lot of things in Bombay. But that was in 93, you know? People have moved on. There’s been a huge push to reclaim Bombay’s nightlife, it used to happen all through the night.

“The real underground parties are usually illegal or semi-legal. The organisers have some kind of agreement with the cops, they pay them off or whatever. They have them in industrial warehouses, which go on ‘til like 7 or 8am”.

Where are these parties being held?

Raver-x: One of my favourites was an acid techno rave inside a 180 year old textile mill. It's got this interior of a building to walk through, so you're really far away from the main road. So you don't hear the traffic or anything, and it had a big pond next to it with swans over there. That party carried on until 8am.

Which Bombay labels are pushing the really underground techno scene?

Raver-x: The trendsetters are called ‘Regenerate'. These guys are the ones who introduced Mumbai to techno. 

Ronic: They encourage a lot of homegrown artists with some very experimental music. The crowd’s really sophisticated, but there’s still not many people who’re into this kind of alternative sound.

Why do you think there’s not much awareness for techno in Bombay?

Ronic: Mumbai lacks places for live gigs and alternative music. It’s dominated by cocktail bars, restro-bars and gastro pubs.

“The nightlife is still predominantly Bollywood, I would probably say that most people prefer to go”. 

Raver-x: You can always tell if it's that person’s first time at a techno gig. I meet all these people that are new to the scene and they say, ‘is this what techno music actually is’? And I look at them and I’m like ‘Yeah this is techno.’ And they are like, ‘Oh interesting, it sounds quite nice’, haha.

I think that’s what makes this scene even more exciting! Do you think Bombay has developed its own sound?

Raver-x: We do have a lot of local artists who are emerging, but they tend to support international headliners and follow their trends. 

“We have a lot of deep techno, deep house and acid techno, which is huge right now. Acid techno is evolving right now, I was introduced earlier this year to the sound”.

I have multiple groups that listen to different kinds of techno. So it's like I have a group who listens to deep house, a group who listens to techno. And there’s another kind of scene which is kind of spacey. I still don't know where to put them. I have a lot of different groups in this small community.

Most of the top Indian techno artists come from New Delhi. They are completely different and have a very unique sound. It’s more reggae and hip-hop influenced, mixed with techno, and they have these really cool secret location gigs.

What other derelict spaces do you think would make a great techno party?

Ronic: Being one of the densest places in the world, Mumbai has evolved to become a highly adaptive city. People are constantly negotiating and recycling the space.

“The city’s industrial infrastructure and large-span colonial structures already provide the bones to host the perfect raves!”

The raw and grungy nature of these spaces would lend powerful character and authenticity to techno parties as opposed to nightclubs. 

Because these areas aren’t inhabited throughout the day, they could offer great relief for party goers to rave loud and until late. Unlike venues located in the busy neighbourhoods that are usually crammed for space. 

Where would you like to see the Bombay techno scene go in the future?

Raver-x: We definitely need better venues. We need the proper infrastructure for these venues to have these kind of techno events. Especially in the Bombay weather, because it’s so hot and humid throughout the year. 

“I would love an open air event, like something by the beach, or something isolated, maybe in the mountains. because we do have mountain range near Bombay. The cops are a problem though”.

Still, our underground scene has evolved so much in the last few years. Before people were listening to a lot of deep house and deep tech. Then it became really techno, and now it’s moving towards super experimental electronic music and acid house and techno.

Seeing how much trends have shifted in such a short space of time, I’m so excited to see what the local artists have in store for us!

Want to learn more about Mumbai's growing techno community? 

Check out this minimal, industrial techno mix and interview on Red Bull Radio, with homegrown Regenerate resident DJs Chhabb and Bhish.