Record Store Day 2025: Musicheads are keeping Delhi’s love affair with vinyl spinning

Although the loud strains of classic rock pour out of Pagal Records in Hauz Khas, the tiny basement store can be hard to spot unless you have your eyes peeled or you’re a regular. Today, they’ve had a steady stream of customers and casual perusers come in. It’s Record Store Day – a fact that the store has also announced on their Instagram (with special discounts, of course). early afternoon, barely two hours since they opened, the store manager tells us they’ve already sold about 10 records. “Lots of Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd and The Beatles – the classics,” he says, asking not to be named. Pagal Records, an independently-owned record shop based in Hauz Khas, stocks vinyl records and cassette tapes across genres Record Store Day – a quick primerUnless you’ve been at least semi-involved in your local scene at some point, the likelihood that you’ve heard of Record Store Day is slim. And perhaps, for good reason. Established in Baltimore, US, in 2008 local record store owners, RSD remained a largely American concept until it reached European shores in the early 2010s. A love letter to music in tactile form, RSD is a biannual event – held every April and November – that celebrates the independently owned record shops that shape local music culture. Depending on where you are in the world, celebrations range from special album reissues and parades to arte meet-and-greets and live performances. In other words, it’s Chrmas for musicheads. What’s the scene in India?Much has been written about the art of lening to music on wax; vinyl has died multiple deaths in the news and has had nearly the same number of resurrections and revivals. Vinyl has been making a quiet comeback to the Indian mainstream for a while now (or as much of a comeback that a format associated with hipsters and eclectic collectors can make). Contrary to popular belief, we haven’t been too slow on the uptake. In fact, India’s first-ever Record Store Day was held in Mumbai in 2017 — to put things into perspective, France celebrated its first RSD in 2013. Cut to 2025, and celebrations are bigger than ever. Take, for instance, a day-long vinyl takeover of the Capital’s Dhan Mill, happening today. Borrowing from Japanese aesthetics, One Night in Toki-O is an ode to India and Japan’s long-standing love affair with records, with everything from tea room and omakase experiences to curated crates and pop-ups that visitors can dig through. Staying on theme for the evening is music archiv Nishant Mittal; Nishant, who runs the indie record store Digging In India out of Shahpur Jat, tells us he’ll be playing a “curated selection of Japanese jazz, electronic and disco tracks” during the event. This isn’t the only place to cop records today, however. Elsewhere in the city, vinyl lening sessions abound, Pagal and Digging are partaking of course, along with Chandini Chowk’s New Gramophone House, a known Delhi landmark for seasoned collectors. Yesteryear Bollywood soundtracks and Indian jazz records are mainstays in most record stores in the city the numbersAccording to Luminate Insights, global album sales rose from 13.1 million in 2016 to 49.6 million units sold in 2023 – a 300% growth. While year-on-year numbers for India are difficult to come , Cognitive Market Research estimates a 14.4% compound annual growth rate in the market between 2024 and 2031. Speak to collectors or music shop owners and they’ll tell you that India’s vinyl culture never died out — it simply got relegated to a niche. But take a quick scroll through social media feed now and you’ll get the sense that younger folk are a major driving force behind this latest “resurgence”. There’s a healthy amount of rock fiends, some takers for jazz, and of course, the Swifties. Nishant notes, “You never know who walks in through the doors — it could be a new collector with no records or a seasoned collector with thousands. We also get a lot of tours who are travelling for work in India for leisure or work, as well as Indians who are visiting Delhi. It’s an equal mix of budding collectors and long-time collectors.” When asked about their curation and procurement process, Pagal Records’ store manager notes, “Since we deal with first pressings, records can be hard to come these days.” Interestingly though, he shares with a laugh, “We have a lot of people who want classic rock. It’s the NRI customers who usually come to us for Bollywood records that they can take back home with them.” Another reason for this renewed interest is simply the joys of the tactile music experience in the streaming age. Aanya, a 20-year-old student from Amity University who made the trek to Pagal Records early on Saturday, shares, “My parents had a large collection of records and cassette tapes. They sold it all before I could get into music on my own, so I’m slowly building a collection of my own now.” This author has, on occasion, been unable to res the pull, walking away with an 8 inch vinyl and cassette tapes despite not owning a turntable or tape recorder. (They’ve been branded collectibles for now, but really, who’s going to be able to pass up Jethro Tull and Black Sabbath in all their glory?) First pressings of English rock records at Pagal, Hauz Khas Releases to look out forLast year’s RSD-specific album releases included records from David Bowie, Gorillaz, The 1975, Elton John, to name a very few. This is, of course, excluding record store mainstays like Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon or The Beatles’ Abbey Road. This year’s l includes the likes of l toppers such as George Harrison, The Doors and Taylor Swift (an RSD mainstay with how many of her albums have been released on the format) to runaway hits like Charli xcx’s brat and the OST of Wicked. A tip for RSD newbies: you might want to check if the store you’re heading to has the titles you want – re-issues are limited and it is up to the store to decide their special inventories. “We mostly deal with pre-loved records, so not a lot of new released RSD titles,” Nishant explains. “Having said that, we are unveiling a massive pile of Indian pop, folk, classical and disco records for RSD tomorrow (Sunday, April 12) at a discounted price,” he adds. Pagal also has several first pressings of artes like Pink Floyd and Deep Purple available – along with a bunch of old music magazines, if you’re into that. What’s happening this weekend?If you have decided to venture out, here are some spots to hit up in the city. New Gramophone House, Chandini Chowk: The store (established in 1930!) is hosting a live DJ set and a lening session on April 12 and 13. Look out for exclusive deals and rare 78 RPM records while you’re there. Pagal Records, Hauz Khas: Multiple vinyl DJ collectives will be spinning discs at this one on Saturday and Sunday. There’s also 25% off on all cassettes and records. Digging In India, Shahpur Jat: The archival store is offering 15% off on all records and cassettes on Sunday. One Night In Toki-O, The Dhan Mill: This day-long celebration features takeovers collectives including Pagal Records and city-based vinyl bar Genre. Also watch out for DJ sets, vinyl lening sessions and analog markets that will go on late into Saturday night.