Mid-Day Anniversary: How Mumbai DJ Ria Palkar starts a rager on a rooftop

Ria Palkar

House music, content creation, party curation, and the best DJ set in Mumbai. Most might think these titles belong to different individuals, but you're wrong - it's all Raya or Ria Palkar. Born and brought up in Mumbai, Palkar describes herself not by her BBA degree or her work but by her feelings. "I would describe myself as a very outgoing, ambitious, and friendly person," says Palkar. "I seek adventure and passion and creativity in everything I do, and I'd like to make you feel at home even when you're barely close to that."

Her drive for content, music, and parties pushed her towards forming her own IP called Raya's Roof. At this incredible community-based rooftop party, people get together, play a fresh range of music, record sets, and have beautiful interactions. In her words, this was built to be a space where strangers meet, form dance floor friendships, and Mumbai just becomes a bit safer to let go. Her journey with music began with the radio in the car, her mom playing music in the kitchen, or her uncle's guitar. College became a turning point as she was introduced to house music. So she began, like all of us do - making and sharing playlists and exploring the depths of music.

Mumbai was her first playground, and Palkar mastered it with Raya's Roof! Many Mumbaikars believe the city doesn't know how to party anymore, or that people have forgotten how to get their groove on, but Palkar says, "Mumbai just parties very differently and very smartly. The city isn't built around huge clubs or endless weekends because people work really hard here and commute forever, but they still show up on random Thursdays ready to dance. Music is how they let go. Once people find a space they connect with, they will show up wholeheartedly."

Now, the work that happens behind the scenes, or can we say behind the booth, is not as easy. Palkar states that one can't just press buttons or move one's arms around. A single set takes weeks of preparation, starting with the collection of music for each gig, fine-tuning and practising every mix, segregation of artists and playlists, arranging them according to mood, bpm (beats per minute), and key, trying to figure out the vibe of the room and controlling it simultaneously, and finding that meticulous balance between creative expression for yourself and still playing a sound that the audience loves.

"Mumbai has a tune and a rhythm to it," Palkar also mentions, which doesn't escape her sets. Whether it's the local train doors clattering against the metal frames, the rain pattering against the roofs of our favourite kaali-peelis, vendors shouting over each other in the streets, the sound of the sea hitting the rocks at Marine Drive, or the continuous hum that never stops ringing in our overly acclimatised ears, Mumbai is chaotic wherever you go and Palkar makes it her jam by adding a beat to it.

In a city that is defined by its people and their talents, Palkar stands out as one of many unique younger voices that shape the way the city moves, whether it is to a beat or to the sound of daily traffic, and cements a newer space of curiosity, hope, and a great vibe. She ends by saying, "Bombay has been a city of strangers that became familiar through shared moments, and I am just trying to create one big shared moment with a hundred smaller ones within it. Music just happens to be my way of doing so."