Dhruv Ghanekar: Blue Frog had snowballed into a giant machine

Just across the lane from The Habitat Dhruv Ghanekar is quietly working in his office the quirkilynamed Wah Wah Studio An Andaz Apna Apna reference we wonder The composer laughs ldquoI have not seen the film yet It is actually named after the Wah Pedal of Jimi Hendrixrsquos guitarrdquo Between jamming with musicians and educating a new generation next door at Bay Owl Studios the composer sits down for a chatEarly springGrowing up in Shivaji Park the cultural influence was kaleidoscopic to say the least ldquoMy father Girish Ghanekar was a filmmaker As was my uncle illustratorartistwriter Nandu Ghanekarrdquo he revealsDhruv Ghanekar with Ashutosh PhatakIt was an incidental humming session along with his grandfather a classical music aficionado that led to his discovery Training followed including sessions for twoyears with the illustrious vocalist Jialal Vasant Soon Ghanekar was part of Shyam Benegalrsquos Trikaal where he met a young Ishita Arun now his wife for the first time among others while also singing for composers like Louiz Banks and the late Vanraj Bhatia among othersSmells like teen spiritHis teenage voice change though brought metal music and the guitar into his life ldquoI was in the audience for one of the first metal bands to tour India mdash Europerdquo he says At this time Ghanekar was also helming the band ChakraviewFrom left Anand Subayya Paresh Kamath Dhruv Ghanekar Suraj Jagan and T2 during their Chakraview yearsldquoWe figured out that if you won all the prizes at a college fest you made more moneyrdquo says the guitarist letting us in on the lsquojugaadrsquo This popularity soon gave him a front row seat for the rise of an indie film and MTV generation in India in the early rsquo90sA new ageWhile he has too many projects to boast of one teenage anthem mdash Bombay Boys 1998 mdash stands out The Mumbai street lingo of Jaaved Jafferyrsquos rap was a rage at schools much to every teacherrsquos chagrin ldquoHonestly there is a version of the track that is even more Xrated There is something to be said for youthful irreverencerdquo he laughsGhanekar centre with Kalpana Patowary during the launch of his album Voyage in 2015 File PicsAt the same time advertising was a fertile training ground A new generation has now turned some of those jingles including the Fevicol 60 Years project into reels ldquoThe lyrics inform the music You meet some fantastic creative people in advertising My evolution in music is thanks to these worksrdquo he recalls Ghanekar lets us in on a secret ldquoThese works were led by late Piyush Pandey including a new one that will soon be outrdquo he promisesBlue Frog feverA moment from the last gig at Blue Frog in 2016But when such creative giants meet ideas often bounce from one medium to another It was one such moment that sparked a decision that would shape the cityrsquos music scene In 2007 Ghanekar alongside Ashutosh Pathak Mahesh Mathai among others founded a Mumbai institution mdash Blue Frog ldquoBlue Frog actually began as a place for us as creative people to meetrdquo the producer sharesThe Lower Parel venuersquos iconic podlike seatingFrom Karsh Kale Indian Ocean Soulmate John McLaughlin the late Ustad Zakir Hussain the venue was the place to be ldquoIt snowballed into this giant machine The masterplan was to create a 360degree company with a venue a record label and artist management I think we were earlyrdquo he says almost wistfully While he is not part of the plans for its return Ghanekar admits ldquoNine years later Mumbai still lacks a venue along the same linesrdquoA scene from the Fevicol advertisement Pic CourtesyYouTubeVoyages aheadIn 2024 when he came out with Voyage II Ghanekar promised us something special was coming up As he gives us an exclusive peek at his latest workinprogress Shaukeen the composer says ldquoThis is a return to my singersongwriterartist phase I am going back to the reasons why I started making musicrdquoWith the late Piyush PandeyHaving heard two tracks the album promises a young poprock sound infused with a touch of nostalgia With a release planned in the second half of this year the voyage continues for this OG Bombay boy