Frozen rhythms of architecture- Siddharth Bhayani’s Mridanga is a fusion of architecture, music, and cultural reverence
Siddharth is now taking delight in the fruits of his recently unveiled North Axis Project track titled Mridanga.
Siddharth Bhayani
CHENNAI: Not many are gifted with a journey quite as artistic as Siddharth Bhayani. His has been a fascinating blend of architecture and music. From being a passionate architect, and being the creative force behind The Architect’s Diary – one of the most visited architecture websites in India committed to featuring the best of architecture and interior design projects, to being an electronic music producer, at 36, has done it all.
Siddharth is now taking delight in the fruits of his recently unveiled North Axis Project track titled Mridanga.
His architectural sensibilities have deeply influenced his music. "Architecture in itself is like frozen music.” The spatial and structural elements of architecture find their way into his compositions – be it the Rajasthani essence in his previously released Haveli, or the courtyard-inspired Aangan.
Mridanga, however is a percussive-driven, bass-infused composition that bridges Kerala’s classical heritage with contemporary electronic music. The inspiration for Mridanga traces back to Siddharth’s visit to Kottayam, Kerala, almost a decade ago in 2010. Invited by a friend, he happened to stay in a traditional Kerala home and had a blissful experience of the region’s rich culture with its backwaters, temple rituals, and the hypnotic rhythms of the mridangam during a jugalbandi (duet) between violin and percussion.
Siddharth Bhayani
"It had a certain vibration to it and that caught my attention so strongly that I stayed for two hours just absorbing it.” Years later, while experimenting with percussive beats in Ahmedabad, where he is originally from, he revisited the mridangam’s resonance, blending it with electronic basslines.
“I wanted to reintroduce the mridangam in a modern context, making it accessible to global audiences. This isn’t about replacing heritage, but about reimagining tradition for a new generation.” The track layers the mridangam with deep bass, atmospheric synths, and hypnotic textures, creating a fusion that resonates with organic house, deep house, and world music enthusiasts.
Looking ahead, Siddharth aims to take his experimental sound to global stages, collaborating with legends like percussionist Sivamani. “AR Rahman and Sivamani are fantastic examples of making a fusion right, which has been entertaining Indian audiences for generations. When I started electronic production, they were my early inspiration.”
His work challenges the dominance of synthesisers in modern music. "In most genres today, be it hip-hop, electronic – percussion is just an add-on. Why can’t it be the hero? I want live performances where mridangam players, tabla artistes, and electronic producers come together for a full, vibrant experience."
It’s safe to say that Siddharth is a sonic architect, crafting compositions where tradition and innovation coexist. Mridanga is not just a song, but a rhythmic pilgrimage which bridges Kerala’s temples and today’s electronic dance floors.
As he puts it, "The mridangam is a storyteller. With Mridanga, we’ve taken that story global."
