BOLLYRAVE AT THE INDUS

Bhangra fans, start your engines for DJ MixtaBishi

Desi clubbers are in for a treat tomorrow when superstar Bollywood DJ MixtaBishi uproots the dance floor at Indus. Widely regarded as Australia's top Indian DJ, he basically owns bhangra and urban Desi music, making him the hottest property in a massive scene.

In a career spanning nearly a decade MixtaBishi has performed in clubs not only in Australia and the motherland but also Dubai, Malaysia, Kenya and, of course, Thailand. It was en route here this time that he chipped out a few replies via e-mail.

What's on the old job list?

I'm mainly DJing and almost every week I come up with new bootleg remixes to use in my sets. There's so much new good electro house music out there, and it sounds even better when incorporated with Bollywood music.

Australia's a big country. Where do you call home?

I'm the resident DJ for a few different events like Urban Desi and Planet Bollywood, which I host in my home city of Perth. I also run a four-city Vaisakhi tour alongside Tigerstyle every April. And I'll be touring with the RDB team across Australia and Southeast Asia in August.

How did all of this start?

Luck, by chance! I was a massive music fan as a teenager, and it just so happened that all the Indian DJs in Perth seemed to retire at the same time. That gave me a perfect chance to launch my career, first as a private DJ. And the rest is history.

DJing is the act of mixing music and Bishi is short for Bishen, which is my real name. And MixtaBishi, of course, is a play on words on Mitsubishi. So after years of being known as DJ Bishi, I changed it to MixtaBishi in 2005.

What music did you grow up with?

Absolutely everything: I grew up before the digital age, so every CD that we owned at home was listened to 100 times over. A lot of hip-hop and R&B initially, followed by trance when I was in my teens. Add to this the stock of Indian music that my parents had, and that's a great reflection of the sort of sound I incorporate in my sets.

Describe one of those sets.

My sets feature the top 30 or 40 Bollywood and bhangra tracks in the world, mixed live and in key with my favourite electro house, dubstep and hip-hop beats. No two sets will sound exactly the same - it's very much dependent on the crowd in front of me. I have a music page where you can download a few of our party tricks: "mixtabishimofolactic" on Facebook.

What's the latest track you've added to your set?

I just downloaded "Zero Hour Mashup", a four-minute track with snippets of every Bollywood hit from 2011. I might have to drop it into my Bangkok set.

Is Bollywood massive in Australia?

It's quite different from the rest of the world. Given that a lot of the immigrants are of Punjabi background, we usually have a fair bit more bhangra music at our desi nights. I host one show a month in Perth, and the bigger cities like Sydney and Melbourne have something or other every fortnight. Numbers-wise, we usually entertain 400 or 500 people for our regular events.

And is the scene expanding?

I feel that 2012 will have more of a South Indian influence, similar to the way it had been dominated by hit tracks with Punjabi vocals in the recent past. I also think that with more international artists featuring on Bollywood tracks, like Akon and Ludacris recently, the Bollywood sound will appeal to a larger audience, not just those with an Indian background.

I think the global Bollywood party scene is evolving and eventually will be considered part of the mainstream.

What would your ideal party be like?

It would have an equal ratio of guys and girls who are glued to the dance floor and know the words to every song. I'd also want a digitised system that displays requests on a screen for a DJ so you can track what people want to hear the most. Interactive partying is definitely the best!

Where do you hang out when you're not working?

Mostly I spend my free time with friends and family - life is nothing without them - especially as I live in the most isolated city in the world. I much prefer to be out on the road travelling.

What's the plan for Bangkok this time?

I'll be showcasing some of my original production and remixes and of course mixing up the latest Bollywood and bhangra tracks. It should be an absolutely fantastic night and I'm really looking forward to performing there again - the first time since 2007.

DESI DESIRE

See MixtaBishi at Indus on Sukhumvit Soi 26 tomorrow.

Admission with two drinks is Bt800, but get your ticket today and it's only Bt600.

Call (083) 815 2135 or (02) 204 2449 or e-mail info@riseproductions.com.