Kratex: Taambdi Chaamdi's popularity confirms that music has no language barrier

Krunal Ghorpade’s musical journey has roots in his childhood. His father, a hardcore music lover, would listen to anything from international pop to Indian bhajans. What started from tape recorders and cassettes gradually turned into a full-time gig for Krunal on the DJ and studio consoles. Today, Krunal is better known as Kratex and his name is synonymous with Marathi house music. If you don’t know the guy yet, just ask Alexa to play Taambdi Chaamdi. In a chat, Kratex tells us about the viral hit that has gotten everyone grooving, his plans for Marathi music and more.

Taambdi Chaamdi on a loop
Until a few weeks ago, Krunal was popular in the Pune and Mumbai clubs for his M-House music. Then, Taambdi Chaamdi happened, and it was picked by an international EDM label. Krunal, who composed the track that’s written by Shreyas Sagvekar, says, “Let alone being picked up by an international label, we never expected the song to be this popular domestically even! The song was composed for a different project that eventually didn’t work out. But we’re happy that we released it as a standalone song and thankful for all the love that has come our way.” Ask him what he aims for while composing a song and Krunal replies, “My music has no particular agenda. The only aim is to spread happiness through it. If people are happy, my job is done.”

Why Kratex?
When it came to choosing a stage name, Krunal wanted something that started with the letters K and R, but something that also didn’t restrict his music. “Kratex has no meaning. I think if I’d have selected a name with some meaning attached to it, I would have also had to justify it with a certain direction in my music. I didn’t want to restrict myself to a particular style. That’s how Kratex came to be,” shares Krunal.

What's the buzz around Taambdi Chaamdi?
Along with the ‘Lakalakalakalaka’ catchphrase, it is also the song’s music video that’s become a talking point. The song has now become synonymous to Manish Shetye in a shiny jacket doing the hook step on the streets of Mumbai. “We wanted it to look different from what Marathi music videos generally are. Interestingly, for almost the entire team, including me, this is our first shot at creating a music video. Tejas Shetye and Aakash Salunkhe have conceptualised it and Karan Hanskar and Omkar Kanerkar directed the video. Of course, the star of the video is Manish kaka, who brought a different level of energy to the shoot and pulled off that shiny jacket with such style,” shares Krunal. About the meaning of the song, he adds, “The song speaks about middle-class struggles, hard work, brown skin and how we are proud of all of this.”

From corporate life to music production
Krunal is a self-taught music producer. In fact, he only started making music full-time post the pandemic. “I am not a trained musician. Whatever I have learned is from online tutorials and practice. That said, I am passionate about what I create. I believe in doing something different and breaking barriers rather than following established trends. EDM is a genre I love, and I wanted to create EDM music with a strong Marathi base. Until a few years ago, clubs would blatantly refuse to play Marathi music on the dance floor. We strived to change that. Of course, it is a work in progress but at least with my songs, people are getting exposed to M-House music,” says Krunal, who had a corporate job until a few years ago. “It’s been only a few years since I started making music. Social media has played a big role in taking it to the masses. I feel music is universal. It doesn’t have a language barrier. If the music is good, people will listen to it,” he adds.

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