My Compelling Story

What better way to tell your story than singing it out loud,'' says Rijo Thomas, Delhi-based percussionist. In his early days, sounds of his church choir and Carnatic music from his dad’s collection drew him closer to the world of sound. Within a year, he was playing the 'ghatam' in percussion-ensembles across Delhi's local temples. Thereafter, he moved on to playing the drum kit, getting his certification from Trinity and eventually imparting his integrated stylistic approach to students preparing for grade examinations at the Trinity Guildhall. Music urged him to explore the finer nuances of acoustic and digital sound production. They also became a technical foundation that steered him to pursue sound engineering in Kerala. Hard work paid off, as he was credited being a part of an esteemed team that engineered sound for the Malayalam movie, Kaliyachan, which won The Kerala State award for music and best director in the year 2012. He has learnt from TR Dhandapany, Manoj Mavely, Agnendra Baugh, Mridul Sehgal, Kunal Netrapal, Rajan Chettan, Ganesh Chettan and Saji Chettan. Presently, he is also on a mission to bring his diverse expertise as a producer for Jobrozzzz, an album with cellist Sangh Prakash, a trio with Olga Andreeva and Nisha, and the much talked-about jazz poetry collaboration with Easterine Kire, a recipient of 'The Hindu Lit for Life 2015' for her novel – When the River Sleeps.