Reaching out with musical talent

The song - 'Shades of Spring'- is about the spring season which signifies new hopes, aspirations, renewal and growth. It embodies the colours, sights, sounds, and smells of the season and is aptly based on Raag Basant

Meet Aaryan Banthia, who is a guitarist cum composer and a singer he released his fifth single song 'Shades of Spring' recently. Aaryan was introduced to 'Progressive Rock' very early in his life and is now exploring it as a guitarist-composer for the very first time in Shades of Spring. The song has been composed, produced, and performed by Aaryan.

Joining him on the drums is drummer Sambit Chatterjee. This song has been recorded at The Bombay Gramophone Company (TBGC) studios.

When asked about his journey Aaryan said, "Music was my passion but I was not actively pursuing it. So, when I went to UK to study sports-management I started exploring music, here I started with performing in pubs. Performing on stage gave me confidence as well as a new high, let's put it this way I found my musical awakening.

Once I was back in Kolkata, I started a band with my friends called 'The Bombay Gramophone Company'. Later we disbanded the band because I wanted to explore more as an artist-composer and I realise I had bigger dreams like working with accomplished musicians and explore lot more of my potential."

Speaking about the song he said, "Shades of Spring is a powerful blend of 'Progressive Rock and Fusion. The composition came to me when I sat down on my Riyaz (music practice) and was working on Raag Basant ''a Raag for the spring season''. Almost instantly the idea for this song struck me and I thought of releasing it around 'Basant Panchami'. I have extensively explored the melodies of the guitar for this song to bring out the essence of the spring season.

This song is about the spring season which signifies new hopes, aspirations, renewal and growth. It embodies the colours, sights, sounds, and smells of the season and is aptly based on Raag Basant.

The best part is that it is an amalgamation of two different musical genres and based on Raag Basant, one of my favourites as well. I hope that everyone will enjoy listening to the song."

Aaryan has been steadily climbing the popularity charts ever since he released his first single Yaadein and went on to score a hit with all his other songs. Aaryan's fan base is global including from countries like Germany, UK, and even Ukraine, etc. Aaryan's debut Hindi track 'Yaadein' was a rock ballad with a subtle touch of blues and was released by Zee Music. His second number called 'Back in the Day' is an English track, which resonated with the young and elderly alike. Both his singles crossed the one million mark on YouTube in a short span of time. His third single called 'Hey Betty' depicted old school love and romance and crossed half a million views within just eight days of release. The more recent and fourth Paar spoke of the struggles of people from different strata of society during the pandemic.

Having grown up looking up to renowned guitarists like Mark Knopler, John Mayer, BB King, and Paul Gilbert, Aaryan has immense passion for the instrument. In times to come post the pandemic, Aaryan plans to rewrite live shows and bring forth his musical style through various musical compositions and performances.

"Music has been a passion of mine and from a very young age I have been intrigued by all these artists like - Mark Knophler, John Mayer, BB King, Bon Jovi. They were people who took up music professionally and have made a place for themselves in this industry." he added

"I am hoping to create a lot of new exciting music and explore new genres to increase my versatility as an artist. I also want to show my contribution towards my country with my musical skills while maintaining my authenticity and originality." he concludes.