Bhayanak Maut: Being a Metal Band in India Is ‘an Uphill Struggle’

India -- known by some Westerners as the land of Bollywood and tech support -- is also home to a burgeoning metal scene. Bhayanak Maut are forereunners of said scene. They're a hybrid death metal/hardcore band based on the west coast of India in the city of Mumbai. "As a metal band in India, it has been a little bit of an uphill struggle, but it's all paid off beautifully," drummer Rahul Hariharan told Noisecreep. "The metal scene, as well as the general music scene in India, has gone from strength to strength and has been possible only because of the people who drive the scene."

As an indication of the band's popularity in their home country, Bhayanak Maut -- which means 'terrible death' in Hindi -- have opened for out-of-country bands like Textures, Sahg, Enslaved, Satyricon and Intronaut. They recently opened for Meshuggah during a multi-city music festival, appropriately named the Great Indian Rock Festival. "It truly was a surreal experience for the band, and we're all still coming to terms with what just happened," Hariharan admitted.

Bhayanak Maut started in 2003 and went through a number of member changes until finally settling on their current lineup, which features two vocalists. In a culture not entirely accommodating to the lifestyle and needs of rock 'n' roll in general, there were some hurdles to jump over. Harihahan mentioned that a "big issue that bands faced was finding a jam room to practice in, which has been resolved now with a bunch of 'rent-a-jam' rooms that have opened up all over the country."

With a full-length album and an EP under their belt, Bhayank Maut will be recording again soon.