Hyderabad Gen-Z Embrace Bhajan Nights, Supper Clubs

HYDERABAD: Across the city, young people are turning away from bars, malls and loud club nights in favour of curated experiences that slow things down and place greater emphasis on conversation, participation and presence. From devotional music evenings to dinners where strangers leave as friends, these gatherings are becoming the way Hyderabad wants to meet itself.

“Our Gen‑Z is taking to Bhajan Clubbing… it is spirituality and modernity merging beautifully, particularly keeping in mind the sanctity of the bhajans,” Prime Minister Narendra Modi said on his radio programme in January, commenting on a trend that has also entered Hyderabad.

On a January evening in Khajaguda, a banquet hall filled with young voices singing bhajans set to dholak beats and guitar chords. Incense hung in the air. Chai and buttermilk replaced cocktails. The event, billed as Hyderabad’s first bhajan jamming night, presented devotion as participatory rather than performative.

A month later came Hyderabad’s first Kirtan Clubbing. This involved ISKCON and a young band, Band Aadhya. Guitarist Kalki Aravind, 23, explained: “There is a clear difference between bhajan and kirtan. Bhajans are largely repetitive chants like ‘Hare Rama’ or ‘Hare Krishna’, while kirtans are spiritual compositions such as ‘Aigiri Nandini’ that allow musical exploration.” The group chose a live band format rather than electronic sets common in Goa. “We wanted to stay closer to tradition while still sounding contemporary,” he added.

The appeal lies partly in what these spaces leave out — alcohol, drugs and loud music. Some older participants say they feel relief watching younger people take part, even if the setting looks unfamiliar. Others read the trend as ideological. “This is a soft shift towards conservatism dressed up as cool spirituality,” wrote one user on Reddit, while another argued that such formats make “religion easier to consume and therefore easier to normalise politically.”

Beyond devotional music, offbeat meet‑ups have also taken root, with Supper Clubs proving less controversial. These bring small groups together around a shared table, often at home, with a set menu.

Sacred Spoon is one such pop‑up kitchen founded by Deepannita and Abhijeet Bose, who believe eating together lowers social barriers. The duo has run two public pop‑ups so far: a Marathi Mahaprasad, a temple‑food‑style sit‑down lunch, and Breads and Beyond, pairing English bread‑and‑butter formats with flavours from Assam and Mangalore. “Sacred Spoon is about more than food. It is about meeting strangers, sharing stories, and leaving with new friends after every table,” said Deepannita.

Another curated experience is the after‑hours programme at Chowmahalla Palace, where select evenings open the gates for private tours and royal dining. Visitors walk through courtyards with classical or Sufi music playing in the background before dinner in durbar halls. Curators call it a “royal‑dining experience”. Guests described the ambience as unforgettable, eclipsing the food itself.

Baithaks have also made a comeback as intimate musical evenings rooted in South Asian salon culture. Hyderabad has seen these gatherings appear in restaurants such as Gaurang’s Kitchen, lounges like Aish at The Park, and creative spaces. Audience sizes remain small, with performers seated at the same level as listeners. Poetry, dastangoi, qawwali and experimental fusion are part of the sets.