Pune: Music band Hertzz turned FC Road into an open air concert space, playing for four hours on Wednesday evening as a prelude to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s Chhatron Ki Goonj campaign to be held on Saturday.The band’s peppy, upbeat performance was designed to catch the attention of people — particularly Gen Z — and invite students to Gandhi’s programme at AISSMS College Ground. The event is part of the party’s nationwide movement to engage with students and understand their concerns on paper leaks, exam irregularities and rising fees. The campaign began in June in Kota and traveled to Dehradun (July), Prayagraj (August) and now Pune, among other cities.In Pune, the campaign has adopted an all-girls theme — a departure from its format in other cities. Maharashtra State Youth Congress president Shivraj More said, “Political narrative is changing. Young people do not necessarily respond to typical rallies and speeches. We are trying to take up issues in ways to which they can relate.”It is a different kind of politics emerging in India, More said. “Digital platforms have already changed political communication. Over the next few years, we believe traditional rallies will have to evolve further. We have to adapt to the new generation,” he said.Maharashtra State Youth Congress media cell chairperson Akshay Jain said, “The theme is symbolic of Pune’s connection with Savitribai Phule, who started the first school for girls in Maharashtra in the city. In other cities, the campaign is open to everyone.”Meanwhile, on stage, Hertzz confronted the tokenism the campaign sought to challenge. The band’s line-up featured Mansi Kate on lead guitar, Savnee Varma on rhythm guitar, Renu Kharbas on bass, Sayali Rubdi on keyboard and Drishti Balani on vocals. The drummer fell ill before the show, prompting mentor Manish Rubdi’s son Kevin to step in.The musicians, who came together after learning at the same music academy, said women are often invited to perform around Women’s Day. “We are musicians and want to be recognised,” they said.“We started around 2013 when there were very few women bands and, besides being vocalists, girls were rarely encouraged to play instruments ,” said Kharbas. It is then that Rubdi, who runs a music academy in Akurdi, felt they should form an all-girls band.Hertzz members balance music with careers, studies and family expectations. Their mentor encourages them to treat music as a continuous process of learning.“Getting here was not easy. Women have many things to deal with, including doubts about a musical career, convincing parents and finding time to rehearse,” Kharbas said.The band has stayed put for 15 years now. Balani said attitudes towards women musicians were changing. “It was a refreshing change to be invited for something other than a Women’s Day event,” she said. Music may still be viewed as an uncertain career, but the band continued on the path they’d set out on and eventually found its way to the stage, she added.Hertzz’s work extends beyond music. Whatever the band earns from shows, it tries to contribute to social causes, including helping children with educational material and working on menstrual hygiene awareness in rural areas. “We became more involved in this work during Covid 19,” she said.The FC Road performance was Hertzz’s first street show. The musicians said the organisers found the band through Instagram and explained that the campaign was specifically for girls and intended to reach those who might lack access to education or opportunities. “We felt the theme was something we should support,” Kharbas said.The show included songs in Hindi, English, Bollywood numbers, motivational and patriotic ones. “We wanted to motivate the audience. We could see many girls there and were trying to connect and make them enjoy themselves,” said Kharbas.The unpredictability of the street audience made the performance different from usual closed events for Balani. “At some points, the entire road was crowded and police had to clear people. We had to respond to the energy and choose songs accordingly.”“Even though it was a political stage, once our show began, we were simply enjoying the music and watching the audience groove with us,” said Balani.The most meaningful part for Varma was seeing girls in the audience. “If we had not been performers, we would probably have been standing there as part of the audience. Being part of this gave us confidence and made us feel stronger,” she said.
