Meet the sisters who hold music classes inside a bus

Music on the move

It’s not unusual to hear classical tunes from inside a yellow bus parked in the leafy bylanes of Napean Sea Road. Step inside and what you see is a brightly lit classroom with colourful posters. The students are children from the slums of Shimla Nagar in Napean Sea Road. Conducted twice a week, The Sound Space on Wheels is a bus that navigates through the slums of Mumbai to teach Indian classical music to the children who live there. This unique venture by Mumbai-based sisters Kamakshi and Vishala Khurana attempts to bring some creative and fun moments in the lives of the underprivileged children. Both sisters hold a degree in psychology and a Visharad (considered equivalent to a Bachelor’s degree in music) in Hindustani music.

The Khurana sisters don’t recollect a specific time in their childhood when they were initiated into music. It was a part of everything they did. From learning tables to helping their mother in the kitchen — everything had a rhythm to it. While studying music from her father and other gurus, Kamakshi also dabbled in teaching music to children and creating interesting learning modules to keep them engaged. “Expecting three to four year old children to sit and learn music is not going to work. It’s not the future of art education. Unless, of course, they are are passionate about it. But how do you bring them to a point where they learn and also enjoy themselves? So I built a curriculum that involved not just music but also other things such as storytelling,” says Kamakshi.

A few years down the line, Vishala joined in and the sisters launched The Sound Space, a company that creates and runs specialised music workshops and training sessions in some of the most high-end schools in Mumbai. But it was the pandemic that gave birth to the idea of The Sound Space on Wheels. “During Covid, we had online classes for our regular students from schools and homes. Some even sent their children in cars with their nannies. That set me thinking — what are children, who cannot afford to enrol themselves in classes, doing with their time? They are mostly getting into things they do not want to. So we thought why not give them 45 minutes a week of joy. A safe space to come to and takeaway happy feelings for the whole week,” says Kamakshi. So the sisters approached Eicher Motors for a bus they could take around Mumbai and teach music to children. After months of presentations and discussions the auto major stepped in with a bus with remodelled interiors. The venture kickstarted with crowdfunding in 2023.

The Sound Space on Wheels bus is no ordinary bus. Devoid of any seats, the carpeted interiors are lined with guitars, ukuleles, djembes, tabla and other percussion tools and decked out with colourful posters. As the clock strikes 5 pm, a stream of children aged 6-14 trickle in and take their place inside the bus. The 45 minute class is conducted by ‘didis’ (music teachers recruited by Kamakshi and Vishala) using songs and props. The session ends with listening to some calming music.

The Sound Space on Wheels is not just a music programme insists Kamakshi. “The intention is not to make singing stars. It’s a class where they learn language skills, cognitive and socio-emotional skills, cultures of various countries, concentration, etc. These are things they will never learn in school. And all they have to do is come out of their homes and step into the bus.” When the sisters spot talent they pick them up for specialised training and to be a part of the music concerts they put together. Currently, the bus travels to slums areas in the Malabar Hill, Napean Sea Road and Worli.

While Eicher is ready to roll out the second bus, the girls are holding back because of lack of funds. In the past, business houses such as Piramal and Zerodha, have funded the classes which have recurring costs like fuel, salaries for teachers and driver, parking charges, and repair and maintenance. “The south Bombay kids are very inspired by the project. Students from The Cathedral and John Connon School in Fort put up a music show and raised funds. One of our music students held a bake sale and donated the money to us. Some even volunteer to teach. So it’s a community project,” says Vishala.

Finding the right kind of teachers is another herculean task. “There are many music teachers but we are looking for teachers who are willing to work with us on raising awareness among children through music. It high time educators get paid well so they have a reason to work well. We are firm with our teachers on how they speak with the children, their tone and body language.”