“KalaKumbh directly translates to “the pot of arts” and this is what we want the platform to be.” Lubhanshi Garg, CEO and co-founder of the company, told Entrackr.
Coming from strong musical backgrounds, the trio Lubhanshi Garg, Mrityunjay Shende, and Tejaaswini Narendra realized that a majority of those choosing a musical career soon change careers. This was not due to the lack of opportunities but the lack of visibility of the opportunities.
To help bridge this gap and provide a platform for other musicians to get visibility and opportunities, the trio started KalaKumbh in 2023.
This Chhattisgarh music tech platform connects musicians to event managers, gig agents, other musicians, and mentors allowing the artists to apply for music-related gigs, competitions, jobs and collaborations. “Think of it like an ecosystem for musicians where they’re able to fulfill their needs of earning and learning,” Garg said.
Once an opportunity is posted, interested artists have to fill out a form which involves putting in their portfolio for others to see. Once selected for the opportunity, the artists are paid a certain amount in advance before the performance as a booking amount.
The platform has numerous vocalists, rappers, instrumentalists, music producers, composers, and songwriters from several cities like Punjab, Bangalore, Mumbai, Delhi etc. They are mostly from tier 1 cities only, Garg said, because there would be a disparity in demand and supply otherwise.
Having been operational for only a month, the company has around 500 artists signed up on the platform and around 28 opportunities listed by gig agents, event managers, and other bands. Kalakumbh plans on pushing this number to 9 lakh artists and 5 lakh opportunity posts in the next three years. The bootstrapped company has seen a 65% week-on-week growth since the inception of its operations.
It is in talks to raise funds starting next month. We are looking to raise a good amount, Garg said, somewhere around $200k.
Although the business model sounds like it would tap into the gig economy, Garg mentioned that they had no intention of doing so. “We are not focusing on putting out gigs and jobs only. We also list competitions and collaborations with other bands and musicians as well. It’s more about helping artists build a community.”
The company runs on a subscription-based model- artists as well as event managers are required to take up a subscription plan to post and receive opportunity listings.
The Indian music industry was valued at Rs 22 billion in 2022 and is expected to reach Rs 33 billion by the end of 2025 with a growth rate of 15% during the stipulated time.
In the coming years, KalaKumbh plans to introduce arts like poetry, painting, sculpting, and performing arts like dance as well.
