India, March 7 -- When the British virtual band Gorillaz, created by musician Damon Albarn and artist Jamie Hewlett, released the cover art for their album, The Mountain, last year, excitement rippled across the Indian internet.

The band's four cartoon members were shown perched on the craggy peak of a mountain, looking down at a cloud-covered world. Above their heads was the Hindi word for Mountain, in Devanagari: Parvat.

When The Mountain was eventually released, on February 27, it became obvious why. Gorillaz' collaborators on the album include beloved Indian names from across genres: playback legend Asha Bhosle, disco queen Asha Puthli, sarod players Amaan Ali Bangash and Ayaan Ali Bangash; there's also British-American sitar player...