Kandara, a folk-pop band based in Pokhara, has entered its 32nd year of making music. To mark the occasion, the band will perform in Kathmandu for the first time since its inception. The concert, entitled Kathmandu Calling Kandara, is scheduled for November 9 at LOD. The band is also embarking on a world tour starting in January.
To discuss various aspects of Kandara, Onlinekhabar recently spoke with Bivek Shrestha, the band’s vocalist
After a long time your band has revived, what are your goals and expectations?
The main problem with our band was the lack of continuity. I am 99 per cent responsible for that. I was abroad but for the last 10 years, I have been staying in Nepal. I am trying to give continuity to the band. When I start to work, the band automatically becomes active. Let’s hope now Kandara will not stay on a long hiatus.
Your latest album Bhedi Ghotaima was released in 2016, now when will we get a new album from the band?
We have two completed albums. These days the trend of making albums is no longer relevant like earlier. Music these days is not merely for listening. We have been working on singles. A couple of songs have been completed. But we have been thinking of making an album. We want to make an album with a purpose. In this regard, we will reveal our relationship with a senior literator. The song will be released immediately after the show in Kathmandu. The song depicts contemporary issues. Currently, there is only hopelessness in the country. But there is hope in hopelessness and the song is about it.
How has Kandara been observing the changes and challenges in the latest Nepali music scene?
The main challenge is a competition to earn overnight popularity. We are not in such competition. In 32 years of journey, we never made a song for money. Rather than listening to our songs to the new generation we shared our experience with them. We should know our responsibilities. We should not do whatever we want. Kandara has always remained focused towards its composition, lyrics and arrangements. We have our style of music and we have remained dedicated to maintaining consistency.
Kandara has been creating music with the aim of promoting tourism. How do music and tourism complement each other?
We have always been creating music of love. In yesteryears, when the country was going through a civil war we created a Ke Pahad, Ke Terai to make the people aware that everyone is equal regardless of geographical differences. Today as well we have been hearing about war and we will make a song about it too.
Nepal has a great tourism potential. Currently, there is war around the world and an economic crisis is going on. In such a situation we should promote internal tourism. There are only a few places where we can see internal tourism but we want to expand it. We should travel all across the country. There are a lot of places to travel. Each place has its specialities. We want to spread this message to everyone and have started the campaign for it. Whether the government will support it or not, we will run this campaign at least for a year.
Why did it take 32 years for Kandara to make a comeback in Kathmandu?
We procrastinated the shows in Kathmandu because it was a nearby destination and also due to various reasons we could not perform in Kathmandu for such a long time.
Most of the band members are based in Pokhara. We named the event Kathmandu Calling Kathmandu because literally, Kathmandu called us for the show. Let’s hope that after this concert we will be frequently doing indoor and outdoor concerts.
What are the plans of Kandara and yours?
The first challenge is to remain updated. We should get connected with Gen-Z. They also need to know about our songs. We are working on it. Our social media is focused on it. We are also equally working on ways to contribute Nepali music fraternity.
Geographically I can live anywhere but technologically we are connected. Currently, I am in Kathmandu. Next week, I might be in Pokhara. Then another month I might be in Australia. But still, we are connected. I was born to create music. I can not do anything else other than music. I am also working in the sector of mental health.
