Five Little Indians

For the 2020 Canadian novel by Michelle Good, see Five Little Indians (novel).
Five Little Indians
OriginKolkata, West Bengal, India
GenresAlternative rock, hardcore punk, hard rock
OccupationMusician
Years active2007–2011
LabelsIndependent
MembersNeel Adhikari
Allan Ao
Arka Das
Sayak Banerjee
Roheet Mukherjee
Past membersSandip Roy
Rabi L. Roy
Sanket Bhattacharya
Websitefivelittleindians.com

Five Little Indians (Bengali: ফাইভ লিটিল ইন্ডিয়নস), (also known as FLI) was an alternative rock band based in Kolkata. The band was formed in January 2007. Five Little Indians merged melodic rock and a heavier sound with singer-songwriter sensibilities. The band used Hindustani classical vocals and often mixed ragas with a rock sound.

History

Five Little Indians played its debut show at the Eastwind Festival '08.[1][2] The band had formed only a few months before.

Back at Kolkata, the band was featured in The Times of India[3] for its original sound. Simultaneously, FLI was the band in focus for August 2008 on IndianMusicRevolution. The band played the Calcutta leg of the RSJ Pubrockfest '08, taking the stage after Aurora Jane to a full house at Someplace Else. The band played at Star Theatre, Calcutta as part of INTERface '08, an inter-disciplinary arts festival featuring artistes from Korea, Singapore, Switzerland and Japan. In November 2008, FLI's original "Screaming at the Sun" saw a worldwide release as part of Stupidditties 2, a compilation of Indian "un-metal" music from ennui.BOMB, supported by Counter Culture Records.[4]

The November issue of Rolling Stone magazine, India, featured FLI's first single, "Happy Birthday" on its Downloads section, lauding the band's dark, moody sound and offering up a 3½ rating for the song.[5]

In early 2009, FLI co-headlined the east zone finals of Campus Rock Idols with Skinny Alley in January.[6][7] In May, the band, along with Bertie Da Silva and The Supersonics, organised the first chapter of Elektrik Kool Rock Revue, a platform for all-original music showcased in a series of shows.[8] FLI also opened for French chanson-rockers KWAK and was featured as part Littlei's Friday Night Live series at the Big Ben, The Kenilworth. Apart from the 2008 and 2009 editions of the RSJ/Kingfisher Pubrockfest, the band headlined the Autumn Festival 2009 at Shillong and then headlined the Hornbill Festival in Kisama, Kohima.[9] In February 2010, the FLI opened for pop singer Richard Marx at Rock'N'India, Bangalore, along with Swarathma, Jaycee Lewis and Prime Circle from South Africa.[10] FLI also played the Greenpeace Earth Day Fest in May 2010.

In between live performances, Five Little Indians also crafted the soundtrack to Gandu, the critically acclaimed 2010 feature by Kolkata-based director Q.[11] The independent film went on to bag several awards at the South Asian International Film Festival 2010 at New York.[12] Five Little Indians disbanded in 2011.[13]

Members

  • Neel Adhikari: vocals, guitar
  • Allan Temjen Ao: guitar, backing vocals
  • Arka Das: drums/percussion[8]
  • Sayak Banerjee: vocals, guitar
  • Roheet Mukherjee: bass guitar, vocals

Former members

  • Sandip Roy: bass, backing vocals
  • Rabi L. Roy: bass, backing vocals
  • Sanket Bhattacharya: bass guitar, vocals[14]

References

  1. ^ Diya Kohli (25 February 2008). "Blowin' in the Wind". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 26 May 2011. Retrieved 4 March 2011.
  2. ^ Allan Ao (9 March 2008). "Rock Mela". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 26 May 2011. Retrieved 4 March 2011.
  3. ^ "We don't need shelter from any establishment"; Calcutta Times, 24 March 2008.
  4. ^ Arjun S Ravi (5 November 2008). "Meet Stupid Ditties 2: Five Little Indians". Indiecision. Retrieved 4 March 2011.
  5. ^ Neha Sharma (1 November 2008). "Five Little Indians". Rolling Stone India. Retrieved 4 March 2011.[permanent dead link‍]
  6. ^ "Make some noise!". The Times of India. 20 January 2009. Archived from the original on 23 October 2012. Retrieved 4 March 2011.
  7. ^ Malini Banerjee (20 January 2009). "A war out there". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 11 September 2012. Retrieved 4 March 2011.
  8. ^ a b Malini Banerjee (26 May 2009). "Play Me!". The Telegraph. Archived from the original on 4 February 2013. Retrieved 4 March 2011.
  9. ^ "Five Little Indians finds roots in Hornbill fest". The Telegraph. 8 December 2009. Archived from the original on 4 February 2013. Retrieved 4 March 2011.
  10. ^ Taniya Talukdar (22 February 2010). "Backstreet Boys perform in Bangalore". Daily News and Analysis. Retrieved 4 March 2011.
  11. ^ Grishma Rao (15 October 2010). "Five Little Indians Score Film Soundtrack". NH7. Retrieved 5 March 2015.
  12. ^ Meenakshi Shedde (18 February 2011). "'G--- will win over fans exhausted with the tried and true'". Daily News and Analysis. Retrieved 24 February 2011.
  13. ^ "Five Little Indians-Interview(A Conversation)". IndianMusicRevolution. 21 April 2010. Archived from the original on 13 July 2011. Retrieved 4 March 2011.
  14. ^ "Ready to rock you". The Telegraph. 28 May 2009. Archived from the original on 12 September 2012. Retrieved 4 March 2011.