Soliloquy

A couple of weeks ago, I had the great fortune of attending a live performance of Raman Negi, former vocalist of the Hindi rock band The Local Train. Founder of the band that went on to redefine independent music in the country with its heart-touching lyrics, genre-crossing guitar playing and mature drumming, Negi left it at the peak of its popularity to pursue a solo career of his own.

He released his debut solo album ‘Shakhsiyat’ in late 2022, and came to Hyderabad on tour to promote it. An energetic night of eclectic guitar playing backed by Gaurav Chintamani on bass and Shantanu Sudarshan on drums, Negi bawled his heart out with his creations. As was expected, ‘Mastaani’ and ‘Mehroom’ touched hearts throughout the crowd but what stood out was the way he adapted after one of the six strings of his guitar came undone during the rendition of ‘Dastaan-e-Shauq.’

Not one to be bogged down by such trivialities, Negi carried on unhindered and belted out the hit ‘Lullaby for the Anxious Bones’ with just five working strings of his guitar. I was flummoxed by the quick adaptability of the genius, who had barely played the guitar when with The Local Train, and had left most of the engine room work to Paras Thakur. That night, however, Negi hardly batted an eyelid and carried on playing as if it was only normal to play with just five strings in his guitar. And the result was no different had it been played with six strings.

What I learnt that day is that the best never complain about obstacles that come their way; all they do is derive solutions as quickly as they can and adapt to whatever is available on hand at the moment. The show, as they say, must go on.

Complaining and cribbing about things outside of one’s control drains precious mental energy and gives no solutions whatsoever. Adaptability is a skill that all the greats have, along with a positive mindset. The ability to derive solutions quickly is what sets them apart from their ordinary counterparts.

I went backstage to congratulate him, and as is his nature, Negi was nonchalant and humble about what he had done that night. I, for one, was extremely grateful to have witnessed one of the finest musicians in the country perform live and to have reaffirmed this important life lesson. I wish Negi the best with Shakhsiyat, and all his future work.

However, a part of me will be rooting for his reunion with the Local Train!

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