Band Lineup:

Vishal

Randolph

Papal

Shiraz

Pentagram are clearly one of India’s biggest rock act. After all, they’re the only band from India that’s been invited to perform at the UK’s prestigious Glastonbury rock festival. But it’s the lesser known details that have us intrigued. For instance, Pentagram vocalist Vishal Dadlani teamed up with Shekhar Ravjiani – the trained vocalist who produced Vishal’s debut album, First Love – to compose the feature track for Raj Kaushal’s Pyaar Mein Kabhi Kabhi a few years ago.

Not only that, but during the Kargil war, Pentagram recorded and released India’s first exclusive song on the Internet, “The Price of Bullets”, featuring poet Javed Akhtar and classical artist Shankar Mahadevan. The video, directed by Farhan Akhtar, one of India’s most successful young film-makers, was blocked from the airwaves for being “too political”. Refusing to give in, Pentagram added the song as a bonus track on Up, their second album.

The band’s music has evolved over the years from what used to be described as ‘Alternative’ to what is now Progressive Alternative Pop. They use samples, and tweeked electonics, and get a fresh sound that’s remeniscent of RATM, but very much their own.