India's Own Woodstock; Sneha Yatra '71
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"If you remember Woodstock, you weren't there." This quote pretty much sums up an event that shaped an entire era. Woodstock wasn't just a festival; it was an embodiment of love, music, freedom, peace and drugs.
Back in the '60s, the world was changing fast, and music was leading the way. Icons like Jimi Hendrix, The Beatles, CCR, Velvet Underground and many others shook up the scene.
Similar shifts were happening in India, as traditions mingled with new ideas.
In 1971, a local festival called Sneha Yatra emerged in Malavli, a village near Mumbai. It was like a kaleidoscope of sounds, with bands from Calcutta, Mumbai, and Pune such as Country Funk Revival, Atomic Forest, Twilight Zone, and Brief Encounter playing together.
Bands like The Savages (Bombay), Windfall, Inventions of Mothers, Odyssey (Pune), Human Bondage (Delhi), Mara (Bangalore), and High Noon (Calcutta) also participated, blending Indian classical and western music.
The intricacies of the lyrics sung by Mohammad Rashid Khan and Mohammad Sayeed Khan, a tribute to Tansen, were bewitching, though cryptic. Panna Mehta's guitar spoke in ragas, Kumari Mangala's sitar whispered stories, and Shekhar's sarod conversed with Ashok Bellare's santoor, as Uday Raikar's tabla accompanied.
Some embraced the psychedelic culture of the seventies, dancing on the edges of altered reality.
Sneha Yatra attracted attendees from all walks of life – artists, intellectuals, filmmakers, writers, engineers, music enthusiasts, and radicals. There were more foreigners than usual, and interestingly it was them adding colour and spice to a purely local happening.
Many of the bands that played at Sneha Yatra faded into obscurity. Nevertheless, the festival ignited the flame of indie music in India, which continues to burn brightly today.
Following Sneha Yatra, more special concerts came. From The Police rocking Mumbai in 1980 to Led Zeppelin's stars jamming with locals in Mumbai's Slip Disc 1972.
Finding Sneha Yatra’s details online is tough, but attendee stories paint a picture. While we can't turn back time, hope for a return remains.
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