Montey Massey, one of the co-founders of band Trishna talks about music, Bollywood, Guzarishein, their new single, the journey from Lucknow to Mumbai and other stories with Swar Aalap.

On asking about how they came up with their band name Trishna, Monty narrated an instance when Kailash Kher curiously inquired about the band name – (formerly known as) Tashna, an Arabic word for ‘thirst’. He thought that the name didn’t have an Indian ring to it. It was Kailash Kher who suggested the name Trishna and that’s how they came into being. The band has toured over 500 shows, both in India and abroad. Montey elucidated on how the audience is pre divided depending upon the setting and occasion but the crowd abroad are true desis, they crave for it.  Indian audience is divided into 3 categories. “College is where you get the cream crowd, second comes corporate, it’s a mix of both modern music and Desi Bollywood, third is weddings – they only want to dance and that’s all they care about.” Trishna is a bolly band and they need to include all genres. Audience type is a vital factor to consider but it’s something they’ve figured out with experience.

On asking how he views reality shows as launchpads for new talents, Monty opened up about how Indian bands and musicians are not given the same platform as singers, vocalists, and dancers. Channels should come out and stand in support of musicians and provide them with equal opportunities. “Indians don’t have a clear understanding of what a music band is,” Montey remarked.

Their first peak hit in Idea Rocks India, but because there was a decline in the TRP, the show later got discontinued. India’s got talent was another stage that put Trishna under the spotlight but because there was no category-based entry, the process was challenging. He hopes shows are being made based on bands and relevant categories for better exploration. Trishna’s journey from Lucknow to Mumbai has been tough but very memorable. Coming from a small town and stepping into a city of dreams and possibilities, to level up with the current standards in music and explore simultaneously takes up a lot of work.

With the COVID-19 pandemic, the responsible choice is to go digital. Metropolitan cities have a pre-installed setup for recording and artists are ready to explore this new space — going digital. Montey Massey also enumerates the gradual downfall in the originality of songs and the unexplainable dread from experimenting something new. Trishna with its new, young, and independent vibe attempts to break the wall of monotony. Monty and the band members have a bank of original and promising content in the pipeline to share. They’ve curated music which is true and resonates with them. Guzarishein composed by Max Massey is Trishna’s recent single and has been well received by the audience. The production of Guzarishein took about 3 years, there was a lot of writing and rewriting to produce music that straightaway touches your heart. Their hunt to find the right voice ended when they found out their very own programmer became the voice of the song. When asked what would be that one piece of advice he could have given to his younger self, Monty replied, “I wish I was told I should focus on my music, a true artist is one who can produce his/her music.”

Composing and creating your own music is a true test and one of the most satisfying experience to have. “Focus on music and try to compose and write, if you continue, it will secure your future.” Monty Massey