The winner of Big Blues Hunt - one of the most-awaited features of Asia’s largest blues music festival, the Mahindra Blues Festival (MBF) - is finally out and unveiling them is our most-loved Blues musicians and judges of band hunt - Ehsaan Noorani and Loy Mendonsa. What makes this accolade all the more prestigious is that the selected band gets to share the stage with legendary blue bands across the globe.

As winners of the band hunt, The Karan Mahajan Band will have the golden opportunity to perform on both days, i.e., on the 11th and 12th of February, alongside renowned blues artists, including Buddy Guy - one of blues music’s all-time greats, as well as Arinjoy Sarkar and the Arinjoy Trio, Ivan Singh, Christone “Kingfish” Ingram, and Grammy Award Winner Taj Mahal, truly making this year’s edition a celebration of the past, present and the future legacy of blues music.

Keeping the tradition of discovering, encouraging and providing a platform to emerging blues artists alive, the MBF had opened entries for its digitally-run ‘Big Blues Band Hunt’ contest. The initiative helps rising blues acts share the stage with global music legends across borders digitally via the world’s largest blues community, The Mahindra Blues community, with a following of more than 2,00,000 people.

This year’s online contest saw aspirants from across the various nooks and corners of the country participate by uploading videos of their acts. The top 3 bands from among them were chosen to perform live for the final round, which took place at antiSOCIAL, Lower Parel, on 16th January 2023. Here, the bands were to prove their mettle to popular musicians Ehsaan Noorani and Loy Mendonsa, who made up the esteemed panel of judges.

Talking about the performances, Ehsaan Nooranisaid, “Blues is a beautiful genre and requires finesse when it comes to strumming the strings. As a Blues musician, you create masterpieces by just manipulating strings to bring out true emotions with impeccable songwriting. It was indeed riveting to see aspiring Blues bands perform and showcase the culmination of their writing, playing and singing skills in the final round. And, of course, the winner is one who managed to ace on all three fronts.”

Loy Mendonsa mentioned, “It was surreal to witness bands from across the country perform live to win the coveted Blues Band Hunt contest, and I was only too happy to be a part of it as a judge. While what makes this win memorable for The Karan Mahajan Band is the chance to share the same stage with legends like Buddy Guy, I am looking forward to their future performances and hope they can keep the legacy of Blues alive!”

VG Jairam - Founder, Hyperlink Brand Solutions added, “Mahindra Blues Festival brings the best of Blues music and musicians under one roof. And this year, the Blues Band Hunt saw an astounding participation from aspiring bands from all over India. Each performance was praiseworthy, and it was indeed tough to pick the best among the best. The winning band managed to impress the judges with their stellar performance and stage confidence. We look forward to seeing them perform at the main event!”

Over the last decade, the Mahindra Blues Festival has been celebrated as a cultural movement that anchors blues music in India, attracting audiences from across the country and the world. A mainstay of the Indian blues music scene, the festival’s stage often witnesses a convergence of established and rising international and homegrown blues acts.

MBF returns to Mumbai’s iconic Mehboob Studio for its eleventh edition on the 11th and 12th of February, 2023.