Mid-Day Anniversary: Meet Krunal Ghorpade aka DJ Kratex, Mumbai's Marathi DJ

DJ Kartex explains the art of music and sound production at his studio. pic/satej shinde

When this writer headed to Virar to meet Krunal Ghorpade at home which also happens to be his studio, better known as DJ Kratex, the first thing that struck us was that DJ-ing was never part of his long-term plan. "I would credit my father for making me a melophile," says 32-year-old Ghorpade. "He travelled a lot for work and always kept a Walkman handy as music was his only companion during those journeys. I grew up surrounded by audio cassettes and countless albums, which, in hindsight, were probably a little too much," he laughs.

As our conversation drifts towards the Black Eyed Peas, David Guetta and old-school Marathi music, Ghorpade recalls the moment everything changed. "The first time I saw a proper DJ set was at my college freshers' party; it was completely alien to me. I couldn't fathom that this was music. That's when I was introduced to techno and house music. Around the same time, I watched a David Guetta documentary, and from that day I realised this was something I'd actually like to do. The output would be entirely mine, something I had created from scratch."

Back in 2012, as he was taking his first steps into music production, Ghorpade had the same ambition shared by many aspiring DJs: creating original music. Not remixes, not adding beats to a popular Bollywood track, and certainly not stitching together songs that already existed.

"While researching the profession, I came across DJ Mag's Top 100 list, which ranks the world's biggest DJs. That's also when I discovered Spinnin' Records, the Dutch electronic music label founded in 1999 that releases music by some of the biggest names in the industry," he says. After years of trial-and-error, progress remained slow. Then COVID-19 pandemic hit. While the world shut down, it opened avenues for Ghorpade. "I realised this was it. It was the perfect time to switch," he says. Soon, he began producing tracks more seriously. During the pandemic, he found unexpected success with his remix of Mamachya Gavala Jauya (Let's Go to Uncle's Village), a beloved Marathi children's song originally sung by the legendary late Asha Bhosle in 1963. His version quickly gained traction, with celebrities reposting it across social media. "That's when my actual music journey began. Or rather, it was the rebirth of DJ Kratex," he says. "That's also when I realised, "Marathi Vajlach Pahije" (Marathi should definitely be played).

By 2024, he had fully embraced Marathi as his musical identity. Around then, he and a few collaborators, including Shreyas Sagvekar, recorded a track without expecting what would follow. While they were still working on the music video, shortly after the song's release, Spinnin' Records discovered the track and expressed interest to feature it on the label. For Ghorpade, who had spent years looking up to the label and the artistes associated with it, it felt surreal.

The collaboration eventually gave the song a much larger platform, helping Taambdi Chaambdi find listeners far beyond Maharashtra, thereby turning it into a phenomenon. Life had come full circle. "Other than that, the rest is history," Ghorpade laughs, before returning to the studio, where new melodies - and perhaps the next viral hit - await.

Global cool

By late 2024, Taambdi Chaamdi had gone from an earworm to a full-blown phenomenon, clocking 4.2 million Spotify streams, 53 lakh-plus YouTube views, inspiring 37000+ Instagram Reels, and landing on Spotify's Daily Viral Songs India, Rap 91, and Hot Hits Marathi playlists. The Marathi banger's reach extended well beyond home, even earning an official remix by internationally acclaimed producer KSHMR, cementing its global appeal