“It has been a long journey and worth it,” says Ahmed Ebrahim, founder, Pune Jazz Club. Ten years ago, the club started off with just 15 people and today it boasts of 700 members. \"I had just come back from Canada when I discovered jazz. I wanted to connect with other music lovers interested in the genre so I thought of forming an informal jazz club,” Ebrahim reminisces. Back in the cassette days, when the internet was unheard of, music groups were formed for like-minded people to meet and exchange music collections. “I went to Max Muller Bhavan with my idea of the jazz club and they happily asked me to use their premises for the club\'s monthly meeting. So, every third Sunday of the month was fixed,\" he adds.
The celebration of the 10th anniversary will be organised later this month with a live band at Shisha Cafe, Koregaon Park, where club members will listen to their favourite kind of music, chat and party. Artiste Ashok Gulati, well-known in the Mumbai jazz world, will perform and interact with members at Max Mueller Bhavan on August 21 at 11.30 am.
Mahindra Dave, owner of Oceanic Sound and Vision store, off MG Road, has been an active member since its early days. “I enjoyed this type of music and it was only later that I learned it\'s called jazz!” says Dave, who joined the jazz club when he saw an article in a newspaper announcing the formation of the club. Dave has provided the club with a fully equipped sound structure. “A good music club needs a good sound system. To listen to delicate sounds, you need fine speakers,” he explains. “Unfortunately, in our country, only Bollywood, pop and other mainstream music are made popular through television and radio. We require a platform to spread the joy of this music,” he says, adding, \"There is no old and new music, there are only good and bad variations. I have jazz collections from the ’50s and people still walk into my store and buy them.”
For Jahangir Jahangir, his wife Jasmine introduced him to his second love: Jazz. “And I loved it,” he says. The club membership is free for all jazz lovers. “The members are businessmen, professionals, very busy people. They all come together because of their love for music. Each member makes it a point to attend the Sunday meetings,” Jahangir adds.
Anjali Jhangiani,Anjali Jhangiani
