Over 45,000 fans witnessed incredible performances by Steve Vai, CAS, The Dillinger Escape Plan, Textures, Marky Ramone,  TM Krishna, The Ram Sampath Experience, Indian Ocean, Pentagram and more over three days.

[caption id="attachment_2844" align="aligncenter" width="919"] Captured By Madhurjya Saikia[/caption]

December 2017: One of the most anticipated live music experiences in India, BACARDÍ NH7 Weekender came to a close last Sunday, with the third day of its annual edition in Pune, the city where the festival started. BACARDÍ NH7 Weekender’s journey began in the city in 2010 and it has since then grown to become one of the most anticipated and loved events on India’s events and music calendars. The 2017 season of the festival began with the Meghalaya edition (27-28 October), several one-day ‘Express’ Editions in Kolkata, Bangalore, Jaipur, Puducherry, Indore, Kochi and now culminated in the Pune edition (8-10 December). There will be an Express Edition in Goa on Dec 23. This weekend was the festival’s eighth edition in Pune,  and one that was held at a new venue - Mahalakshmi Lawns, Nagar Road.

Highlights of the Pune 2017 Edition

[caption id="attachment_2840" align="aligncenter" width="737"] Textures On Stage Captured By Manas Singh[/caption]

While each day had its own vibe, and mood to offer, Loudest's pick would undoubtedly be Day 1, we slightly are more inclined to rock music some days!!

Steve Vai played a highly-anticipated set in Pune, following his India debut in the festival’s Meghalaya edition in October. The American guitar virtuoso set showcased his technical wizardry on the guitar and even included jams with pre-recorded videos featuring legendary guitarists Brian May (Queen), Joe Satriani and John Petrucci (Dream Theater). American dream pop quartet Cigarettes After Sex who have a massive India following, had fans at the festival singing along to all of their tracks. Dutch metal icons Textures ended their 17-year career with an emotional two-hour-long set which saw several highlights from the band’s career. Also playing their final tour, American mathcore band The Dillinger Escape Plan played their last show outside America. Punk legend Marky Ramone (of the legendary The Ramones) played several of his former band’s iconic tracks.

[caption id="attachment_2843" align="alignleft" width="300"] AsWeKeepSearching Curated A Unique Set At NH7 Weekender This Year , Captured by Madhurjya Saikia[/caption]

While it was Vishal Bharadwaj's first ever live performance, in our opinion, he didn't quite do it for a live set!

The Ram Sampath Experience (led by Bollywood composer Ram Sampath, played hit tracks from films such as Talaash, Delhi Belly and more). Day 3 was special for fans of Indian rock music as electro-rock band Pentagram (led by Vishal Dadlani) made a fiery, emotional return to the stage after 3 years. Also reuniting at the festival were metalcore act Scribe and indie rock act Indigo Children. Festival favorites such as the Indian Ocean and The Raghu Dixit Project played to massive crowds humming each of their songs. This edition had a big focus on hip-hop, with the Bombay Bassment-curated NH7 Hip-Hop Collective, British singer-activist Madame Gandhi, Prabh Deep, Ritviz and Divine. Bringing Carnatic music to the festival for the first time was TM Krishna.

[caption id="attachment_2842" align="alignright" width="225"] Captured by Prashin Jagger[/caption]

The festival also had notable performances by Urdu rock band Parvaaz, a curated special set Blackstratblues All Stars (led by Indian guitar hero Warren Mendonsa), and many other popular artists including Hindi pop band Ankur Tewari & The Ghalat Family, comedy rock band Vir Das’ Alien Chutney, alternative rock act aswekeepsearching and Hindi rock band The Local Train. The international roster was completed with Canadian acts Youngblood and Bad Pop, Belfast rock band Bad Pop, British a capella sensation The Magnets and French rock band Colt Silvers.

BACARDÍ NH7 Weekender Pune also added an exciting new element to the festival with performances by India’s top comedians including Biswa Kalyan Rath, Kanan Gill, Rohan Joshi, Ashish Shakya, Anuvab Pal, Kaneez Surka, Azeem Banatwalla, Aisi Taisi Democracy, Kunal Kamra, Kunal Rao, Atul Khatri, Sumukhi Suresh and Vaibhav Sethia.

Vijay Nair, CEO, Only Much Louder said "It’s been another fantastic homecoming in Pune, this year for our eighth time. We've grown not just in terms of audiences but in the sheer diversity of artists at the festival. Legends alongside breakthrough artists alongside comedians alongside regional music artists alongside classical artists, and fans simply embracing all of it - this is the dream.”

Continuing the green initiative the festival successfully launched in Pune last year, BACARDÍ NH7 Weekender successfully used and deployed a responsible waste management system. The festival’s aim is to ensure minimum waste is generated and the bulk of it is sent for recycling. Fans are urged to follow instructions at the time of disposing waste to aid the efforts of the festival team. Last year, with the help of partner Skrap, the Pune edition of the festival successfully managed to recycle 80% of the 6.8 tons of trash generated.

Stay tuned to the BACARDI? NH7 Weekender website for more information on the festival, along with more details on the artists.