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 You had the music- plenty of it and in many genres, with live bands and DJs belting out numbers that were popular with the crowd; you had wines and wines everywhere and then some- plenty for cocktail lovers and fans of Jägerbombs too. You had plenty of food to buy at various food stalls, some of them participating for the first time-Boteco Brazilian Restaurant from Pune being highly recommended by Rajeev Samant and the pulled pork sandwich was really delicious. Chef owner Guto Souza whom I had met in Goa several years ago when he was running a Brazilian Restaurant is a brilliant Chef. The Tasting Room was overflowing with wine enthusiasts, many of them visiting for the first time. For 3 days last weekend, all roads proverbially led to the buzzing Sula Vineyards, the site for SulaFest.
Rajeev Samant, the founder CEO and the visionary behind conceptualising this event was multi-tasking as usual. There were a few anxious moments last year with the crowds going wild and a bit out of control, while enjoying the live performance of Kailash Kher, the popular Bollywood singer. With heavy foot stomping on the wooden platform they were standing on, right in front of the VIP Lounge, the wooden platform almost caved in. Taking a mental note of the mishap, he had a pucca Gallery constructed on the first floor, at the back but facing the stage of the amphitheatre, the site for prime Acts like our popular desi musicians, The Raghu Dixit Project and  Indian Ocean. Bloc Party and Infected Mushroom were the darling of the western music loving crowd which had the ‘open stadium’ thumping, clapping and dancing on their feet and calling out for more.
SulaFest 2016: Another Memorable Feast for Music and Wine Lovers
If I were to describe the 10th edition of SulaFest in only one word, my first thoughts would go to Santana’s popular album of my era-SMOOTH! After all, having an event where up to 6,000-8,000 young people congregate during an evening, wading through the vineyards and stretches of fairly narrow, rough and bumpy road with more than usual amount of wine and alcohol in their belly and with no untoward incident is not an easy task. SulaFest has consistently managed the crowds well over the years and provided the visitors uninterrupted music in different genres and this year was no different.
Till a couple of years ago Amphitheatre used to be the sole stage, supplemented by another stage on the vineyard site, primarily for DJ music. Atmasphere on the vineyard was erected in recent years so the people who like to shake a leg could enjoy the Fest even better. Expecting a bigger crowd, the organisers had erected another smaller stage named as Tropical Stage in order to release the pressure on the Atmasphere despite a huge dance floor and thousands of music lovers another option to dance to different genre of music. I could often hear trance music in the background while traversing the distance from the Tasting Room full of vibrations to the amphitheatre which had most of the action at the fest- from noon onwards till the closing at 10 pm. Incidentally, the statutory closing time for music at 10 pm must have been a sore point with many youngsters like the previous occasions. But apparently due to Supreme Court ruling, it’s not feasible. One wishes that for occasions like this exceptions would be made.
 ‘Globe in a Glass’ was a new addition to the festival this year. Visitors had the opportunity to ‘meet and taste’ with the people behind the various brands from the Sula Selections portfolio. Guided Tastings and visit to the winery is always an attraction for many visitors. Robert Joseph was at hand conducting tasting for his French wines Le Grand Noir being imported by Sula. So were Paul Hellar, UK based Marketing Director (EMEASA) for Accolades (Hardys, Mud House and Kumala) and the Export Manager, Ann Marie Battista. Of course, Ajoy Shaw the chief winemaker and his whole team of winemakers were on their toes talking about Sula wines and keeping the knowledge seekers happy.
Notable at tasting were Sula Blanc de Blanc Brut Chardonnay 2015- supposedly the only vintage sparkling wine in India. Another special treat for the connoisseurs was Sula Rasa Shiraz 2007 which was surprisingly still very perfumed though traversing over 10 years has made it tired. But it did help understand the evolution of this wine and affirmed that quality Indian wines are ready to age for 10 years-and not only rhetorically.
Sula also launched their new Limited Edition Valentine wines at the festival. They were big hits, especially with the younger set and women. I liked the newly introduced Sula ‘Globe in a Glass’ 10th edition signature drink ‘ValenSeco’- a mix of Sula Seco Rose and RAW cold pressed Valencia Orange juice. It made a nice, cool, refreshing low alcohol drink, especially during summer when it RAW was collaborating as a sponsor for the first time, replacing Vero Moda as the title sponsors. Wine is a healthy drink. Combined with Yoga and Running it could be a healthier drink. Adding the health and fun element,there were yoga sessions for the enthusiasts; even a ‘SulaFest Run’ to increase the energy levels. Traditionally SulaFest goes all out to help the community. This year too it reached out the locally based NGO’s and non-profit organizations, thus fulfilling its commitment to give back to the community around it in their needs.
 Cecilia Oldne, Global Brand Ambassador and Vice President - Marketing, Sula is always the focal point at SulaFest and smilingly helps co-ordinate various activities besides doing the personal PR with scores of Media persons, celebrities and other visitors. One could spot the inexhaustible Cecilia at every corner- one moment she was in the Tasting room while the next moment saw her at the amphitheater. Constantly organising chats and interviews with Rajeev and various other journalists and media officials, her happy face was a testimonial to the fine wines she was drinking. She did not fail to invite everyone back next year.
Beating the Records
Though Sula went out for the 10th edition to get the record number of musicians, food stalls, stages etc., the number of attendees appeared to be less than the 18,000-20,000 people estimated to be present last year. This year, my estimates vary from 15,000-17,000. Though Rajeev Samant does not like to talk about numbers, we agreed on one thing during an exclusive chat-that the numbers were less than last year.
 While the Lakme Fashion week in Mumbai during the whole week might have affected the presence somewhat, Rajeev felt that this could be due to the absence of super stars from Bollywood. Lucky Ali (2015) and Kailash Kher (2016) were huge draws in previous years but this time that the Bollywood flavour was somewhat missing despite the presence of Indian Ocean, he says. Obvious conclusion is that net year one can expect a more impressive line up from the Bollywood music genre.
It would be a matter of conjecture but the absence of Vero Moda as the main sponsor this year might have been somewhat responsible though Rajeev might question that. I wonder how many did not come due to the poor traffic arrangements last year, which were slightly worse this time. Although the arrangements within the SulaFest campus were decidedly better and more impressive than previous years, traffic-especially the last mile leave much to be desired. It does not reflect well even for the local traffic police who miss out an opportunity to showcase their quality of traffic police force. Sula needs to constantly strive for better arrangements from the box-office outwards till the main road.
Sula is at the forefront of the ongoing wine revolution and hopes to become the world's most sustainable wine producer. SulaFest also went all sustainable this year by using only recycled and eco-friendly material for stalls and other décor. Only natural material was allowed at the festival making it one of the most environmental friendly events in the world!
 Based on my experience, I maintain my advisory to all wine lovers-if you love music, SulaFest is your go to place-at least while you are still young at heart. Let your experience be your guiding spirit for future visits. If you love music and don’t mind the cheering crowds, you would be in a dream world for the 2-3 days of SulaFest. The Fest was extended for 3 days and it is not yet decided whether there will be 2 or 3 days of bonhomie planned at SulaFest. We recommend continuing with the 3-day stretch to spread out the crowd as much as possible. Even though it might be a drain on the resources, it would enhance the income and sales to quite an extent and the strain on infrastructure will be contained to an extent.
For the music lovers here is a thought inspired by a Hindi play of 1980- Jis SulaFest nahin vekhya o jamaya hi nahin! (The one who has not seen SulaFest is not even ‘born’). So, if you missed it, next year there might be a Bollywood superstar again and a good time to visit. It’s not certain if it will be spread over 2 or 3 days (I hope the 3-day format continues), but it is certain that it will be during the first weekend of February, 2018- ideally on February 2-4.
For a couple of earlier Articles, click:
SulaFest ready to Rock n Roll for Tenth Year
SulaFest 2016: Another Memorable Feast for Music and Wine Lovers
Subhash Arora |