Janaka Selekta

On March 2nd, 2007, Janaka Selekta of the recently defunct Dhamaal Soundsystem will host another installment of the hugely successful 'Worldly' party at San Francisco's super-club, 1015 Folsom.

The event will feature a first-ever performance of Asian Dub Foundation co-founder Dr Das alongside Karsh Kale and Ramjac. In addition, expect a top-notch roster of artists including Cheb i Sabbah with Mitch Hyare, DJ Amar, Dragonfly and many more...

How long has worldly been running?

We celebrated 2 years in December 2006. It hard to believe it has been so long.

How often is it held and who organizes it?

I am the main organizer but of course with shows of this magnitude there is support for many people and groups, big respect to DJ Amar for making things happen on this one. WORLDLY grew out of the members of the Dhamaal Collective. We of course worked together for 8 years during which we learned from each other as well as about the music and event production industries. The best of all these ideas came together at the very first WORLDLY and we drew an audience of 1600 people. It takes months to work out the logistics of one of these shows but on the night it is electric. Six Degrees recording artist Cheb I Sabbah and Karsh Kale are both residents of WORLDLY, people love them.

What can people expect to experience at Worldly?

I am steering things in a more live direction this year. The past shows have focused on bringing different cultural ideas into one space so that you can walk from one room to another and experience a different country. For instance, Sukhawat Ali Khan and Riffat Sultana will be performing live Sufi music while the main stage will have breakdancing and bhangra performances to breakbeat and drum and bass, while the chillout space will have hookas, carpets and places to crash. On the live tip this year though, we are going to bring out State of Bengal and the Visionary Underground as full live bands. The cost is really high but I am used to taking risks and also sometimes losing money. Dhamaal grew in that way, ultimately though people know that you are putting yourself out there to bring important art for them and the audience grows.

You regularly draw crowds of hundreds of people to this event, what effect does this have on the atmosphere at Worldly?

WORLDLY has always drawn over 1200 people. The impact can be very intense when the mainroom has 1000 odd people going mad. Bobby and Nihal killed it last time they were on stage, the place was on fire. They played music across so many different genres and so many different countries. People went with it. It was mad watching the floor and Bobby and Nihal bouncing up and down from the other side of the room.

The event has become a fixture showcasing San Francisco's all-embracing attitude towards culture and music. How does being in San Francisco make Worldly a unique event?

I've lived in many parts of the world and San Francisco is the place I call home. I even missed it when I was hanging with you in London for the Indian Electronica Festival (Big up!). There are so many artists here and that makes it open to so many different things. There is burning man of course too which originated in SF before moving to the desert. San Francisco is the perfect place for WORLDLY but in the coming years we do want to set up WORLDY tours with the show headlines.

Looking back at all the great artists you've worked with on past parties, why are you excited about the line-up on March 2nd?

I cant say this emphatically enough, Dr. Das is more than an artist to me, I have always looked up to him, way before I met him. ADF had such an effect on the perception of Asians in the UK. I grew up in London when it wasn't cool to be Asian. I truly believe their music forced people to look at the wealth of history and art that comes from South Asia. They did it in an incendiary way too - gotta love that. I saw them live in NYC in 1999 and it was the best concert I have ever seen. So much energy. Dr. Das of course is the dub in Asian Dub. His bass playing, programming and arrangements are a significant part of the ADF sound. I cannot wait to see his live set, especially with Karsh Kale and Ramjac joining the proceedings.

After you've had a chance to relax post-Worldly, what can people expect from Janaka Selekta through the rest of 2007?

Dhamaal broke up in 2006. This was really hard for me cos I put blood sweat and tears into it. But in retrospect it had to happen and it was good for me. I am making music for myself at the moment, exploring mostly. I've had some interest from a record label after they heard Podi Menike on myspace but I am not pushing that hard anymore, things break when you push too hard. The timing will be right someday, until then I am working enjoying the search. I'd like to say thanks to Sam State of Bengal for taking the time to chat with me about this, respect. But, if you want to hear what is going on listen into myspace and don't forget to say hello.

More info:
http://www.outerworldly.net/
http://www.myspace.com/janakaselekta