‘RUDE’: A Documentary on The Ska Vengers By Wanphrang Diengdoh

Wanphrang K Diengdoh (documentary filmmaker/one third of “Matrilineal punk” band Tarik) collaborates with The Urban Beat Project and Stiff Kittens for a 30-minute documentary called ‘RUDE’ about one of the country’s most influential bands – The Ska Vengers.

It’s a widely acknowledged fact that few bands in the country can even hold a candle to the kind of charisma and energy that the Ska Vengers hold on stage. And then of course there’s the political side to the band – second to the music but a defining characteristic nevertheless, this is one band that has never shied away from expressing their opinions on the socio-political status quo in India through hard hitting, left-leaning lyrics (normally articulated by Delhi Sultanate).

Their last album ‘XX’ saw the motley bunch create one of the catchiest releases this year, which – while still heavily political – never for a second sacrificed quality of music in favour of promoting a message (despite ‘The Late’ Nikhil Vasudevan referring to their music as ‘bastardised Bhajan rhythms’).

Listen to and read about ‘XX’ in greater detail here.

Fellow musician Wanphrang K Diengdoh goes behind the scenes to interview and follow some of the most interesting faces in the Indian scene in ‘RUDE’, a documentary style short film that gives us insight into the bands daily lives, creative processes and opinions with honesty and humour. We learnt a lot about the band – for example - Stefan is an (excellent) voice over artist for “usually very dry, academic e-leaning modules”, Taru seems to enjoy swinging wildly (upside-down) from on a rope in his backyard during his free time and that Nikhil Vasudevan has some fervent opinions on India’s unappreciated "horn section culture".

The Ska Vengers comprises ‘The Late’ Nikhil Vasudevan, Begum X, Stefan Flexi Kaye, Chaz Bhalla, Tony Bass and Delhi Sultanate; along with Kishore Sodha on trumpet. Watch it (and we strongly suggest you do) below and follow the Ska Vengers on Facebook for updates.