Anandita Gupta

Have you ever traveled on a cruise that doubled as a musical instrument? Well, Punjabi boy Akshai Sarin has turned this vision into a beautiful reality. A forward-thinking musical artist, technologist and innovator, Sarin set the world record for creating the world’s largest musical installation, transforming an entire cruise ship into a breathtaking musical instrument!

Sarin has traveled to Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand – transforming one of the world’s largest cruise ships – Royal Caribbean Cruises’ Spectrum of the Seas – into a musical installation. This mammoth ship, measuring over 1,100 feet long, is as tall as an 18-story building and weighs 1,69,379 tons.

“I am extremely excited about creating the largest music installation in the world. This is a testament to the limitless possibilities of Sonokinesis and its potential,” chirps Akshai. The magic maker is now full of exciting offers to transform iconic international landmarks, buildings and even designer stores into musical installations. Akshai, who started playing keyboard at the age of 12, attributes his love for music to his genes. “My maternal and paternal grandmothers played instruments and sang. My father also plays guitar and sings.

Interestingly, it was technology that inspired him to make music. The rise of computers and technology allowed him to record at home (instead of expensive recording studios) and experiment with music. “I used to take apart my Walkman, tape the wires together to create rudimentary samplers, connect them to a Casio toy keyboard (yes, like the one Ross played in Friends) and a computer,” recalls the Bangalore-based musician, who remembers playing at the Taj Hotel in Chandigarh many years ago with Hard Kaur during her first Ek Glassy tour. Akshai wanted to study artificial intelligence and holography, but ended up studying liberal arts at Lawrence University in the United States. There he studied music physics, music psychology, joined the improvisational music orchestra and also had the most talented musician friends.

So how did he end up transforming objects into musical installations? “I came up with the original idea while tapping a rhythmic pattern with my fingers on the dining table. And I thought it would be cool to have musical notes while doing that. So I started converting small objects like tables and walls.

Moving forward, Sarin’s original plan was to convert the Ritz Carlton Hotel building into a musical instrument for its 10th anniversary. However, he was tempted by the human imagination and technical prowess behind a cruise ship. “An 18-story floating city, 1,100 feet long, with 5,000 human beings on board? It’s bigger than 10 hotels on earth. Sarin and his team started working on it in April 2023 and came on board three times, completed two sailings to understand the dynamics. Throughout the process, he faced a multitude of obstacles: technical problems, skepticism from industry veterans, and the weight of his own expectations.

“Since I had only done this in simulations, we had to take into account many variables: the strength of the wind on the high seas, the vibrations of the ship’s engine, and even things like the availability of an audio system for transmit the sound. While testing the equipment at the ship’s pool, the scorching heat caused my laptop and equipment to overheat and freeze. The long hours and emotional burden often left me exhausted.

The emotional roller coaster of this high-stakes endeavor was relentless. Yet his unwavering passion for pushing the boundaries of art and technology kept him going. “When the project finally came to fruition, the success was not just a professional milestone: it was a profound moment of emotional validation for me.”

Sarin, who has already transformed the Armani Exchange store into a musical instrument, aims for performance – transforming iconic landmarks like the Taj Mahal, the London Eye and the Eiffel Tower into the main instruments of an orchestra led by AR Rahman or Hans Zimmer!

Akshai’s journey is a powerful testament to the transformative power of art and the emotional fulfillment that comes from realizing a vision against all odds!