With Shuruaat, the Berklee Indian Ensemble Begins a New Chapter

Depending on how you look at it, the road to the Berklee Indian Ensemble's first album, Shuruaat (Hindi for "beginning"), was either impossible, or it was inevitable.

On the one hand, there were countless hurdles. Take, for instance, the business challenges of a small academic institute working out an international music distribution deal with Sony Music India, or developing fair revenue-sharing contracts with some hundred collaborators. Then there's the sheer unprecedented trajectory of this homegrown college ensemble evolving organically over 10 years into a YouTube phenomenon with close to 300 million views, now ready to enter yet another new stage as a professional 11-piece collective.

But on the other hand, there's the music itself, with all its inevitable charisma. Watching any one of those performances that have attracted so many millions of viewers, seeing how skillfully the ensemble flows through styles, collaborators, languages, and moods, balancing immense talent with serious fun, it's no great mystery how the group, led by Berklee India Exchange Artistic Director Annette Philip B.M. ’09, found the conviction to persevere through those seemingly impossible challenges and arrive at this new beginning.

"The main thing that has always driven us are two questions: what if? and why not?" Philip explains. "We were constantly told by industry professionals, especially those who work in India: This is going to be an uphill task. When we got to the 10-year anniversary [of the ensemble], however, we felt that it being tough was no longer a good reason to hold back. We had to at least try."

From a Blank Canvas to a YouTube Phenomenon

Those two questions—what if? and why not?—have been with the group from the beginning, when Philip was given "a blank canvas" to create a new ensemble or academic offering at Berklee. She knew the answer immediately: "There were these little pockets of Indian music that were being studied on the theory or composition side, but no performing collective that was exploring Indian music in all of its varied forms." So she founded the Berklee Indian Ensemble as a vocal group in 2011, and over its first few years, the ensemble blossomed into a full band that students returned to term after term. 

Part of the group's appeal has always been its inclusive spirit. It's "a porous collective," Philip says, "a space where no matter what your cultural or musical background is, you are able to bring your perspective and your voice into the music, and this flavors the overall sound.... Right from the beginning, the goal was: yes, it is Indian music, but it is a global Indian sound that we are going to create together."

That was a sound that audiences around the world—and across the internet—responded to. The group's second-ever YouTube video, 2014's interpretation of A. R. Rahman's "Jiya Jale," went viral overnight, and within a week had racked up more than a million views. As of today, the song is approaching 53 million views, and is the most popular video on Berklee's YouTube channel. And as the millions of views on subsequent videos have proven, that early success was far from a fluke.

Watch the Berklee Indian Ensemble's viral hit "Jiya Jale":

A New Beginning

Ten years on, much has changed for the ensemble. In 2021, the group, which had organically developed a core lineup of 11 musicians—some of whom had been playing with the ensemble since its inception—transitioned from an academic offering to Berklee's first professional touring outfit. The ensemble will now focus on raising the school's global profile through its own performances, workshops, and outreach. Meanwhile, students will have access to the ensemble's spiritual successor, the South Asian Ensemble, which they can participate in without needing to square the demands of a full-time touring band with the rigors of a Berklee education.

Shuruaat, which collects 10 of the group's most memorable performances into a cohesive musical journey, is a monument to what the ensemble managed to accomplish through its first decade. Featuring four original compositions alongside covers and collaborations with legends including tabla master Zakir Hussain ’19H, singers Shankar Mahadevan and Vijay Prakash, and Bollywood icon Shreya Ghoshal, "it really is a full spectrum of what the ensemble has created as a team, as a family, over the last 10 years," says Philip. "It includes 98 musicians from 39 countries. And this 98 is only a glimpse—a small glimpse—into the almost 500 artists who've been part of the ensemble over the years. We're also excited that Shuruaat is being submitted for the Grammys this year. Another first for Berklee!"

We want our students and our alumni to know that they have rights, and they have to be treated correctly, no matter who their collaborator is.

— Annette Philip, Artistic Director, Berklee India Exchange

The album also marks a milestone in ethical music business practices. "We have set up Berklee's first—and probably one of the world's first—equitable, just, and fair revenue sharing systems," Philip explains. "We've talked to many music supervisors and music rights activists to find a really fair way for everyone who is part of the album—not just the performers, but also the producers, arrangers, and any engineers who are not already paid as a work-for-hire—to share in the album's continued success through a prorated revenue share. For life." It's a radical model that Philip says she hopes sets a precedent for the rest of the music industry. "We want our students and our alumni to know that they have rights, and they have to be treated correctly, no matter who their collaborator is."

Ultimately, these thoughtful business practices are of a piece with the overarching messages of positivity and unity at the core of Shuruaat. "The music we create is first and foremost to share joy," says Philip. "It's very easy to watch the news or go about your daily life, or even coming out of a pandemic, and just feel like the world is a dark and dreary place and that there's so much loss; so much to be sad, concerned, and anxious about. One main thing we want to remind people is that there is also so much good in the world and so many well-meaning people in the world. And positive change is possible when we work together."

Shuruaat Track-by-Track

Below, dig into the tracks and videos from the Berklee Indian Ensemble's (BIE) debut album, Shuruaat, out this week, and read track-by-track commentary from ensemble members.