About
The Tapi Project is an Indian band from Surat, Gujarat, formed around 2014, known for a genre-defying sound that blends Indian folk with trip-hop, jazz, funk and ambient textures. Named after the Tapi river that runs through Surat, the band pairs Swati Minaxi's distinctive vocals with Yogendra Saniyawala's songwriting to create introspective, multilingual music.
Formed in Surat, a city better known for business than for the arts, The Tapi Project brought together Yogendra Saniyawala, vocalist Swati Minaxi, drummer Gaurav Kapadia and keyboardist-bassist Biju Nambiar. Their self-titled debut album (2015) drew in guest folk and classical musicians, including a surando player from Kutch, and they found their real calling on stage. Over more than a decade they have released several albums in Hindi, Urdu and English, toured Europe, the UK, Japan and across India, and continued with recent work such as the monsoon song Varsaad, becoming one of the country's most distinctive genre-crossing bands.
The artistry
The Tapi Project refuses a single genre: their songs move from fragile, introspective ballads to wild, jazz-infused pieces, laying Indian folk melody and multilingual lyrics (Hindi, Urdu, Gujarati and English, and occasionally the verse of poets such as Rahat Indori) over a hypnotic, contemporary tribal groove. Swati Minaxi's expressive voice and the band's Bohemian, texture-rich live sound have made them a distinctive presence on India's indie circuit.
[Atlas Perspective] The Tapi Project is a genuinely distinctive band with strong international touring credentials and a singular sound. For festivals and events wanting atmospheric, rooted-yet-contemporary music, they are a strong, differentiated choice.
The Tapi Project shows how Indian folk can be reimagined through global contemporary genres while keeping a rooted, multilingual character, and how a distinctive independent voice can emerge from a non-metro city like Surat. They are among India's most original genre-crossing bands.