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Time of India
9 hours ago
- Entertainment
- Time of India
From shots to chai shots: Rave culture gets a clean makeover
Is 8 am the new 2 am? In the national capital, the answer is yes. Rave parties for millennials and boomers have long been associated with pulsing lights, midnight crowds and the hush-hush presence of alcohol or drugs. But now, a cultural flip is underway, taking the sober movement even further. In Delhi and Mumbai and beyond, a new kind of rave is taking over: chai rave , coffee rave , matcha rave, run rave . No intoxicants, no hangovers—just endorphins, caffeine, community and a steady stream of beats. In Delhi, young professionals lace up their sneakers at 6.45 am for a 5-km jog. On June 15, the Delhi Run Collective hosted its second run rave at the Arun Jaitley Park near Siri Fort. 'People may arrive sleepy, but that changes the moment we begin,' says Bhavya Choudhary, an engineer at an oil and gas firm, who took part in the run. 'By 8 am, there was music, dancing, laughter—it felt less like a fitness event and more like a celebration of movement and community.' Manraj Singh, cofounder of Delhi Run Collective, says, 'Post-Covid, people started valuing cardiovascular health and community in ways they didn't before. You don't need alcohol. A run, music and good company can create the same high— if not better.' Run raves begin early in the morning in a park, followed by team activities like tug-ofwar and finally a cool-down at a cafe—with tea, coffee or smoothie, along with DJ and dancing. 'It's the kind of party where you make real connections. You wake up early, push yourself, dance hard and go home by 10 am, feeling amazing,' says Singh. 'It's a new ritual.' If you thought a chai party couldn't be cool, beauty and wellness brand inde wild would disagree. It had a chai rave, featuring 'Kulhad, Corset and Kundan', for the launch of a lip tint product in masala chai flavour. Says Diipa Büller-Khosla, founder of inde wild: 'The chai rave was a love letter to dual identities. It was about wearing a corset and kundan, drinking masala chai in a kulhad and dancing under a disco ball.' Why chai? 'It's bold, layered and unapologetically complex, just like the women who drink it. We didn't pair chai with rave culture to modernise it, but to celebrate it in a new context. Why not let it live at the heart of a rave?' she says. This is a clean and cost-effective branding exercise. It's also a sign of how Gen Z and young millennials are reclaiming cultural rituals and giving them a new twist. The cafe chain Chaayos , too, held a chai rave in Greater Noida recently. Vaibhav Bhatia, a Delhi-based food vlogger, who attended it, says, 'It had EDM and desi chai—what more do you want? You get the same buzz without the crash. It's clean, social and enjoyable.' It isn't just chai. Starbucks Reserve hosted a coffee rave in Mumbai in May, followed by Araku Coffee's party on June 13. Raashi Mishra, a 24-year-old marketing professional, who attended both events, says, 'The vibe was fun, there was lots of dancing, and most of the crowd was Gen Z. We are seeing more people choosing not to drink. But sober doesn't mean boring anymore.' For brands like Starbucks, it's a bridge to a younger crowd. DJ Aaryan Gala, who played at the coffee rave, says: 'They wanted to draw in Gen Z and introduce new coffees. This was the best way—good beats, good brews. We had kids and pets grooving with us.' Mokai, a cafe in Mumbai, held a coffee and matcha rave. 'The inspiration came from a London space that mixed music with matcha and sugar-free coffee,' says Karreena Bulchandani, founder of Mokai. 'We loved the vibe and added our own signature twists.' What started as a low-key experiment in September last year now has turmeric and ginger shots, matcha lattes and Arab-inspired DJ beats. 'People love trying something fresh and Insta-worthy. But this isn't designed to be a weekly ritual; it is just a feel-good moment worth experiencing,' she adds. NO-TOX PARTY The definition of a rave is being rewritten— its time, space and liquid companion have changed. 'People used to party till 2 am. Now they are partying at 8 am. They are building rituals that feel good, look good and are actually good for one's health,' says Singh of Delhi Run Collective. 'It's a cultural detox .' What ties all these raves together? Music. For Aaryan Gala, who has spun decks across global nightclubs for over 17 years, the shift to caffeine-led raves is anything but conventional. 'Coffee raves are held in cafés, without alcohol or any vices. People are high on caffeine and music only,' he says. Instead of high-octane drops, the mood is groovy and grounded. 'We tailor the vibe to the space—mostly Afro House, Deep House and a touch of Bollytech. It's less about the drop and more about the flow.' He is optimistic about where this is headed. 'With over 20 lakh cafés in India, we are just scratching the surface. This concept will blow up—we are not even prepared for it.' At a recent techno festival in Kullu, Himachal Pradesh, ravers made sun salutations under strobes. This was a yoga rave, curated by Art of Living teachers Isha Sharma and Divam Kapoor, and Sarvagya Moondra of the music festival Eden of Sounds. 'We chase a pranic high, not a chemical one,' says Sharma. With breathwork drops, bass-backed Om chants and a crowd that leaves sweaty yet serene, raves like this are redefining what it means to party, says Kapoor. Globally, too, the concept of the rave is being reinvented. At the padel club raves in Europe, for instance. high-energy dance meets sport culture. The new raves are all about cardio over cocktails, caffeine over chaos and joy minus the judgment.
The Hindu
25-04-2025
- Health
- The Hindu
How new India is making friends
On weekdays, Shahnil Samantara and Manraj Singh work as a product manager and software engineer, respectively. But on Sundays, they compete in marathons with members of the running club they co-founded last year. Running has been a long-time hobby for both but it was only last June that Samantara, 26, and Singh, 27, decided to build a community in New Delhi around their shared passion. 'I'd make plenty of WhatsApp groups with different friend circles seeking fellow runners, but nobody would come except Manraj. So we started the Delhi Run Collective with the aim of getting people of all ages together, and gaining the motivation and company to go running as well,' says Samantara, who catches up with us on a sweltering Sunday morning. It is 7 a.m. and he is warming up for his weekly ritual with the Collective in South Delhi's Sanjay Van park. About 35 people, from software engineers to Army personnel to journalists and more, have turned up. Some have mutual friends, others are complete strangers to one another. At least four of the people I spoke to were first-timers, while two were professional marathon runners. The Delhi Run Collective (DRC) is one among at least 15 formal running clubs that have come up across Delhi, Mumbai and Bengaluru alone after the COVID-19 pandemic. And it's not just running clubs. There's an overall uptick in activities designed to forge community, and foster a larger culture of wellness amongst a generation usually associated with labels such as 'brainrot' and 'doomscrolling'. As per a 2021 global survey by market research and consulting firm Ipsos, four out of 10 urban Indians reported feeling lonely and friendless at most times, especially after the COVID-19 pandemic. Urban isolation is notable in metropolitan cities such as Mumbai, where about 18% respondents reported feeling isolated 'always', and 37% 'often'. The issue came into the spotlight in 2023, when the World Health Organization declared loneliness a pressing global health threat. Its health impact has been likened to smoking 15 cigarettes a day, or a feeling of hunger or thirst 'the body sends us when something we need for survival is missing'. What does this have to do with the rise of third places? In his 1989 book The Great Good Place, sociologist Ray Oldenburg first introduces the concept of a 'third place' or third space as an informal gathering place that serves as 'anchors of community life'. The disappearance of 'addas' (loitering spots near chai stalls), public parks, and other community spaces that once served as outlets to meet people and exchange conversation and ideas, is increasingly evident at a time when interactions and exchange of ideas are mediated online rather than in-person. That is where initiatives like running clubs and pickleball groups are stepping in to offer a solution to the loneliness epidemic. Mumbai-based Aayushi Pathak agrees. The 20-year-old student of Commerce recently started 'Hobby Hoarders' as one such community for young girls and women — strangers to each other — to meet up and engage in activities such as 'junk journaling' together, making postcards and bookmarks, crocheting and more. 'People really craved a girls-only community. Where they can share ideas and engage in hobbies without the pressure of perfectionism,' she says. The meet-ups take place at a pre-booked venue, anywhere between Andheri and Bandra, with the participants paying a fee to cover the costs, says Pathak. She hopes to expand the community and organise gatherings in other cities soon, since the group also has members from Delhi, Hyderabad and Bengaluru. Initiatives such as the Open Collective and No Agenda Space in Bengaluru by Indiranagar resident Meghna Chaudhury have also caught on to this idea, with attempts to envision a space for strangers to meet up, work or simply do nothing. Safety and community 'We had a huge social circle but realised we didn't know anybody in our neighbourhood when we moved to our new home in Panchsheel Park. I'd keep wondering, if the house catches on fire tomorrow, who would we call? Pickleball is what changed that,' says 37-year-old Delhi resident Ekta Marwaha, who works as a business development head at a hydroponics farm. To Marwaha, the game — which combines elements of tennis, badminton and ping pong, and is seeing a surge of popularity thanks to social media — hasn't just opened up new networking opportunities at work, but also connected her to her neighbours. 'Our resident WhatsApp groups have over 1,000 women, of which 15 ended up joining an alternative WhatsApp group last year. We started with playing badminton before switching to pickleball.' The women now frequent each other's homes, and many have also visited the farm Marwaha works at, to buy plants. She now wishes to open a pickleball court of her own. And it's not just about networking. Safety is a huge concern for many women when they go out in public, and joining activity-based groups often gives them the courage to do that. 'A lot of women who are very interested in running have come to me saying that the lack of safety was the only thing holding them back,' says 40-year-old Swetha Subbiah, co-founder of Sisters in Sweat, a sports and wellness-based community. What started off as a WhatsApp group with a few women in 2018 is today a thriving community of 10,000 women across four cities — Bengaluru, Mumbai, Delhi and Hyderabad. Sisters in Sweat offers a range of sporting activities, from football to paddle to swimming. But for most women, in their 20s and 30s, who join the group, the primary motivation is the search for a community, says Subbiah. 'Today, we see a lot of people leaving their hometowns for a job. A simpler way to meet a group of people with common interests is through such communities. In a team activity, when you engage with others, the bonding experience can be very therapeutic,' she adds. Booking a pickleball court in Delhi, for instance, costs anywhere between ₹800 and ₹1,200 (or more) for an hourly session. For many working professionals, it's also a chance at networking informally and building connections. Tier-2 India is catching up For Bhopal-based lawyer Arshad Hussain, playing pickleball twice or thrice a week has not only helped him make new friendships, but also created a sense of community. 'I felt lonely when I returned home after studying law in Odisha. I had lost touch with my old acquaintances or I didn't want to stay connected, in some cases. The absence of a community affected me greatly, but that has now changed,' he says. Kochi-based Sachin Kuruttukulam observes how the trend of 'out-migration' further isolates many youngsters. He says, 'Once you graduate from college, your entire friends circle might just move to different cities. There is a lot of migration happening out of Kerala to cities such as Bengaluru or even abroad.' Drawing inspiration from 'Run for a cause'-style events organised by local parks across the U.S. and Europe, he decided to team up with three of his friends to start the Kochi Run Club last August. A group of 15-odd individuals, most of them in their 20s, meets up every Saturday evening in Panampilly Nagar, Central Kochi, to begin their trail. After the run, the group stays back to have coffee or dinner. 'There is this general trend towards community-driven groups even in tier-2 and tier-3 cities,' acknowledges the 28-year-old strategy manager. Creating meaningful relationships Studies indicate that 'face-to-face' interactions have been falling for quite some time now. Analysis of time-use data from the United States, Britain, and Australia between 1995 and 2021 shows a steady, uniform decline in face-to-face communication, beginning well before the widespread adoption of social media. Manoj Sharma, who heads the SHUT Clinic at NIMHANS, Bengaluru, agrees that online communication has increased. 'Online platforms allow communication without inhibitions — whatever one says is met with some form of validation or acknowledgement. AI-based validation is also an emerging issue,' he says. 'Due to loneliness, people might turn to chatbots to discuss or present how they are feeling and simulate validation. If this becomes repetitive or predominant, people start losing out on offline opportunities to connect.' Dr. Sharma acknowledges that today's youth is highly self-aware. 'Young adults recognise this 'digital burnout' which happens as a result of professional or recreational use of the web. They are conscious and want to work on it,' he says. He sees the potential of group-based sports or activity classes in promoting 'digital fasting' or 'screen-free periods'. It goes beyond that, however, to provide feelings of 'acknowledgement and affiliation' and the joy of working towards 'cohesive goals' as a group — all of which lead to a 'dopamine high', something that is often sought out by users online. Activity-based communities are 'definitely more than just a moment in time', says Subbaiah of Sisters in Sweat. 'While awareness of health and wellness was sparked because of the COVID-19 pandemic in many ways, it's a shift that is going to be sustained.' Bhopal lawyer Hussain's trajectory, for instance, reflects this larger movement towards new forms of community, and friendships. 'I started going out for dinners or coffees with the people I played pickleball with. It's really wholesome, because these people have also turned into cheerleaders and a support system for me. An absence of community here had once made me question my self-worth and identity. But, these new friendships have turned out to be enriching and fulfilling,' he says. Gurmat is an independent journalist and researcher based in New Delhi. Gupta is an independent writer and social impact professional from Mumbai.
