IT’S a tactic bands are often told not to do – but Indian pop duo Parekh & Singh took a chance and it paid off.

The Kolkata pair – vocalist/guitarist Nischay Parekh and drummer Jivraj Singh – sent a host of European and American record companies some of their songs directly.

It landed them a deal with London indie label Peacefrog, and they’ll play their first ever Scottish gig tonight at the Hug & Pint.

“We don't like rules,” says Nischay, referring to how bands are often told it’s pointless to send unsolicited songs to record companies.

“Rules change all the time so I think exploring every opportunity is worthwhile, even the ones that are silly or obvious. A friend told us to try getting in touch with some labels, so we sent some emails and the rest is history.”

That decision has led them to Scotland tonight. Their debut album Ocean was released in the UK last year, displaying a knack for melodic, winning and sun-kissed pop, with their early single I Love You Baby, I Love You Doll going down a storm on Youtube.

Much of the chat surrounding the duo has focused on the fact they don’t use traditional Indian instruments like the sitar, and they have been used to spotlight the alternative music scene in their native country.

Nischay’s mother lived in America when she was younger, meaning he grew up listening to plenty of Western pop music. He studied at the Berklee College of Music in Boston, before returning home to focus on his own music.

That’s when he encountered Jivraj, whose parents were both musicians.

“We were introduced by some common musician friends,” says Nischay.

“We actually live on the same street back in Kolkata. We knew that we had something strong and unique from our first ever gig as a duo, which was at a festival in 2011. We both are interested in creating narrative driven worlds. It's good when things work together to make a bigger picture, which is what we tried to do with Ocean.”

They’re eager to arrive in Glasgow this evening, name-checking a selection of Scottish greats as they why they’re happy to be visiting.

“There’s Mark Knopfler, Chvrches and Mogwai,” says Nischay.

“There's such a variety there so I think Scotland produces well crafted and strongly conceptualised music.”

The duo have a strong sense of identity themselves. They have a sharp-suited look, all pastel colours, and the video for I Love You Baby, I Love You Doll was a clear homage to Wes Anderson, the American director behind films like The Royal Tenenbaums and The Grand Budapest Hotel.

He even contacted the duo to say how much he had enjoyed the video.

“We do admire his work,” says Nischay.

“We love the quirkiness in his movies. Quirky and surreal - that's the feeling we're trying to evoke (with our music). Then for our look we worked in close collaboration with our label and some other creatives to really craft a strong visual identity for who we are and our music.”

The slightly surreal situation for the band is that Ocean was released a few years ago back in India. That means they’re currently touring a record that is old to their ears, while a new album is already mostly completed back home.

“It doesn't feel dated, but it does feel a little strange,” he admits.

“The timeline has shifted in some sense but that's also an opportunity for us to breathe some new life into something old…

“We might add a few new songs to the new album, but that shouldn't take us too long. We'd love to share it with the world very soon.”

And the singer believes that more Indian acts could be on the way.

“There's a whole world of music from India that's just waiting to launch.”

Parekh & Singh, Hug & Pint, tonight, £9.50, 7.30pm