Mumbai, October 2022: ŠKODA AUTO India, along with Ph.D. Media, Laqshya Event Capital, and BToS’ artist management have launched into Phase 2 of ŠKODA Deccan Beats. This musical extravaganza aims to celebrate indigenous musical talent from the heartlands of South India.
The series is divided into 3 distinct phases: Talent Hunt, On The Road Series, and Garage Show.
Phase 1 was the Talent Hunt where 16 finalists were selected – 4 from each language: Tamil, Telugu, Malayalam, and Kannada. They were then mentored by illustrious names from the South Indian music industry – Andrea Jeremiah (Tamil), Geetha Madhuri (Telegu), Sithara Krishnakumar (Malayalam), and Raghu Dixit (Kannada).
Phase 2 is On The Road Series, where these 16 finalists get to be part of a journey on the road, powered by ŠKODA. The music videos are a beautiful mix of music and travel, and the contestants will embark on a journey to the depths of the mainland and discover unexplored sounds and tunes.
These 16 unique songs that were inspired by their travels are ready for you to listen to and are being released on ŠKODA Deccan Beats.’
Here are the names of the finalists and their pairings with South Indian music artists:
Malayalam
Ananthu Gopi – Nikhil Mathew
Keethana KS – Santosh Hariharan
Madhavan Nair – Sithara Krishnakumar
Malvika Suresh – Arunima Venugopalan
Tamil
Arun Naik – Priyanka NK
Gayatri Rajeev – Ajay Krishna
Hemanth Kumar – Vrusha Balu
Uthara Pattathil – Andrea Jeremiah
Kannada
Keerthana – Mythri Iyer
Madhura Balaji – Raghu Dixit
Sunil Nakod – Nivas
Vishal Anand – Pooja Vaidyanath
Telugu
Adviteeya Vojjala – Sony Komanduri
Sainath Kakina – Bhavna Balakrishnan
Soujanya Bhagavatula – Geetha Madhuri
Swathi Bekkera – Anu Anand
Tarun Jha, Head of Marketing – ŠKODA AUTO India said, “Travel and music is a beautiful combination and we at ŠKODA are thrilled to be showcasing exceptional talent and indigenous music. It is inspiring to see the contestants learn from their mentors and surroundings and create something truly unique – and we’re honored to be part of their journey as the driving force.”
Shyam Chhabria, CEO – of Laqshya Event Capital says, “The concept is phenomenal and we at Laqshya Event Capital are thrilled to be a part of a refreshing initiative that amplifies the beauty of Kannada, Malayalam, Tamil, and Telugu music. The music the contestants have created is absolutely incredible. Music has no boundaries, and we’re thrilled to be bringing this musical voyage to life, and to be bringing indigenous music into a more mainstream format.”
Moniz Toddywala, CEO, Ph.D. India said, “South India is one of the key markets for ŠKODA-so it was logical and strategic to nurture the southern connect that drives the brand. As music is synonymous with road travel, we drove this unique concept that celebrates the beauty of South India and its diverse music for the ŠKODA loyalists and the larger consumer base to enjoy. We are elated with the results and are honored to have worked so closely with the inspirational talent of the South.”
Shailja Saraswati, CCO, OMG India said, “Music is a defining content pillar for ŠKODA and over the years we have invested in various music IPs which connect consumer, brand, and cultural truth through building the apt tension. So we embarked on another journey with phase 2 of ŠKODA Deccan Beats to drive the musical repertoire with talented contestants and eminent mentors and leveraged the ŠKODA Deccan Beats’ platform to make unique indigenous sounds and tunes, inspired by the beauty of traveling through the southern Indian landscapes. Such content is great to connect with audiences and has great potential for organic growth also over a period of time”
Witness this musical extravaganza through the lens of their journey like never before.
The next and final round “The Garage Show” will see all these 16 contestants perform with some of the best musicians from the South music industry and get an opportunity to perform their original compositions.