It's a rap in the 'burbs

There is a moment at a rap openmic event we are attending when one of the participants says to the others in Bambaiyya Hindi Brothers our time isnt far now February 2019 Gully Boy We are all going to watch it in the theatre and then on television YeahWe are at Clap a cultural venue inside a Malad highrise The expansive room has a stage built in one corner A gathering of rappers has assembled in front of it when one of them mdash MC Hitler mdash makes the statement about the upcoming Bollywood film based on breakthrough hiphop artistes DIVINE and Naezy But his exclamation of Yeah doesnt generate an overtly enthusiastic reaction No cheering no wooting is forthcoming from the rest Thats surprising we tell ourselves But then the reason becomes clearer when we later speak to some of the others present thereA crew from Dharavi at the openmic event held at Clap in Malad on July 27PICSDatta KumbharHeres the thing Ever since hiphop went mainstream in India around four years ago the spotlight has been on hitherto unknown artistes from one particular locality in Mumbai mdash Dharavi The crews that have consequently made it big such as Slumgods and Dopeadelicz have started giving back to the community that nurtured them in the form of elementary recording studios where budding rappers can improve their production skills Its given the youth there the confidence that they too can one day see their names in shining lights And that has helped build what in street lingo is called a sceneBut over time this scene has expanded beyond just the gullies of Dharavi The gospel of hiphop has now reached even the farflung northern suburbs Yes the nucleus of the movement remains where it started But a trickledown effect has led to a contingent of youngsters spitting rhymes in places like Goregaon Powai and KandivaliA rising voiceSalman PatelTwentytwoyearold Salman Patel is one of them He is there at the openmic event and performs a tight track with lines like Main nahin Bin Laden Hu main tera beradir Mera naam hain Salman Hu ek sachha Musalman Hiphop the Goregaon resident says gave him an expression to vent his feelings during a troubled phase My interest in the genre started after Mere Gully Mein a seminal 2014 track about life in Dharavi Earlier rappers in India pretended as if they were from the West But after this track and DIVINEs Jungli Sher we realised that we too could write words that are relatable in our own country And that helped alleviate the anguish I was feeling back then he tells us adding that though he hasnt performed professionally yet people in his locality have broached the topic of him rapping at weddings and Independence Day events Some people here might make fun dismissing me as Arre woh toh rapper hain But at least they know about me now And they know that I have something to say Those who dont understand hiphop will never really understand it anyway But the overall negative perception about the genre that uncles and aunties had is starting to disappearHelp at handSiddhesh Anand Upkare echoes that sentiment The 23yearold who also stays in Goregaon feels When I rap in English people dont enjoy it that much My message reaches them much faster when I rap in Hindi And that works for me since my main motive is to awaken people through my musicSiddhesh Anand UpkareFor that to happen though he needs a platform to chisel his craft further This is where Aakash Singh steps in Singh is a Kandivali resident whos been organising openmic events for the past few years including the one we are in at Malad with another one slated in Goregaon on August 5 The entry fee for such events is from zero to nominal depending on whether hes been able to rope in sponsors And he stresses that even if the numbers are still small mdash I know about 10 to 15 rappers in Kandivali mdash all the movement needs is a push in the right direction though he confesses that hes still figuring out a roadmap towards that endBut most crucially the focus needs to shift beyond just Dharavi he says And thats why Singh has an issue with the movie Gully Boy It is based only on Naezy and DIVINE But what about the rest of Mumbai Dont we exist What we need is something like Straight Outta Compton a 2015 film that documents the rise and fall of American gangsta rap group NWA But talking about all this is like getting into a deep jungle I dont want to enter he says though he does reveal one more thing The reason why MC Hitler was playing up Gully Boy is because his crew is from Dharavi and some of them are in the filmIts just that unfortunately for him Malad isnt the best place to blow that trumpetCatch up on all the latest Crime National International and Hatke news here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates