The musical journey of Tulu

Alva Kuuto, a Bengaluru-based band, aims to take the 2,500-year- old Tulu language on to the world stage. NT BUZZ chats with the group which is all set to perform in Goa today

KALYANI JHA | NT BUZZ

In 2022, four boys in Bengaluru came together to form Alva Kuuto, an eclectic Tulu folk band.

A language spoken in the western and south-western coast belt of Karnataka, Tulu has a rich history spanning over 2,500 years. “Tulu is a vulnerable language and very few people speak this. So we thought we would like to contribute to this by writing songs in Tulu,” says founding member Praveen Alva.

The only Tulu speaking person in the band, Alva has slowly built his team over the years. “I was getting opportunities to perform in a singer-songwriter setup, but I thought we should give Tulu a bigger sound and that is when I reached out to Anshuman (Upadhyay) and Abhilash (Shet),” says Alva. Shashank Kandachar, the lead guitarist, performs with the group on session basis.

Alva is a surname with a lineage tracing back to the Alupa Dynasty. “The name of the band is a tribute to the history of the land,” says Alva. The band logo is a fish, inspired by the coast.

The band doesn’t call itself a folk-based band but an eclectic folk one. “Our basic effort is to represent this ancient language in the sound of now. Once we evolve, we feel that our music also should evolve with us. We are not here to create only a rock or only a heavy folk band. We want to blend genres. So that is what the eclectic stands for,” says Alva.

Their first album ‘Alva Kuuto’ was released recently in April with eight tracks.

“We are at the right time and right place because the world is looking for unique voices and we stand out as we write only in Tulu. We have a genuine story and a genuine cause that we are putting forward,” says Alva, adding that in their 90-minute sets they usually present around 14 to 15 songs. “Apart from this, we tell people about stories of the land, a bit of the background, and the status quo of the language.”

He adds that from their performances so far over the past two and half years, the response has been positive. “If you have a good intent behind your art, there is a space for everything,”
says Alva.

( Alva Kuuto will be performing at Beno, Benaulim at 8 p.m.)