On My Pinboard: Karthik Sundar Gubbi

Karthik Sundar Gubbi, known by his stage name ‘Gubbi’, is among one of the leading Kannada rappers. He also raps in English, Hindi and German. He is one of the first Kannada rappers to use Kannada literature in rap songs. His first Kannda rap number, ‘Mungaru’, released in 2012, has more than 3,000 downloads.

‘Amma’, ‘Moneygaagi’, ‘Enlightened’, ‘Everlasting’ are some of his popular songs. His debut music video, ‘Outta This World’, fetched him fame through out the country. Having performed at various college and music festivals, Gubbi has also rapped for Kannada and Tamil movies. He has many interesting projetcs coming up.

Inspiration
Eminem

“Eminem and J Cole are my biggest inspirations. Eminem inspired me to look at rap as a career option, while J Cole got me out of my writer’s block. I admire both of them as they are honest with their music and talk about things that matters. I connect to J Cole on a spiritual level too. Being a follower of Sadhguru, I prefer being bluntly positive about everything in life.”

Music
Charan Raj

“Charan Raj is one of my favourite music directors. Known for experimenting, he is one among those who is changing Kannada movie music scene for good. Eminem’s ‘Monster’, J Cole’s ‘Apparently’, ‘Neenondu Mugiyada Mouna’, ‘Sanchari’, ‘Nammora Mandara Hoove’, ‘Na Tum Jaano Na Hum’, Coke Studio’s ‘Allah Veh’ , music band Lagori’s ‘Darbari’ are some of my other favourites.”

Travel
Salzburg

“I love travelling even though it is usually for work. For weekend getaways, I prefer Mysuru. Abroad, Salzburg in Austria is one of my favourite destinations. I also love Chiang Mai in Thailand. For solo backpacking, I like Bali and Amsterdam if I am with friends.”

Films
Godhi Banna Sadharana Mykattu

“I like films ‘Godhi Banna Sadharana Mykattu’ and ‘Rangitaranga’ for the fact that they dare to break out of the typical movie structure.‘Godhi...’ is a perfect amalgamation of the storyline, acting and even the music. Jim Carey’s ‘Bruce Almighty’, ‘Number 23’, ‘Liar Liar’ are some of my favourites.”

Books
DC Comics

“I love reading. I prefer the e-reading. I’m often stuck in the infinite loop of Wikipedia; the topic can be anything. I even read a lot of blogs. I also read a lot of comic books; DC Comics are a favourite. ‘Art of Rap’, ‘Sapiens’, ‘Monk who sold his Ferrari’ are some of the books on my reading list.”

Food
Dosa

“I am a foodie. I long for home cooked food. I used to be a meat eater, but not anymore. I do not have any particular food choices. I am up for dosa any time of the day; I can eat it thrice a day (laughs). Akki rotti with ladies finger curry and lots of ghee is another favourite. I don’t have a sweet tooth but ‘Jamun’ and ‘Holige’ is an exception.”