As always, the Ziro festival of Music celebrates the next big names in the independent music scene as well as established ones. This year sees the veteran Rabbi Shergill play an exclusive unplugged at the Signature Danyii (Sun) stage along with the inimitable Jumme Khan from Mewar, Rajasthan. India’s oldest rapper Baba Sehgal will perform his first ever show in the northeast on the Simba Uproar Piilo (Moon) Stage, as will Nepali language singer Bipul Chettri. Among the international acts playing this year are Lithuanian pop sensation Leon Somov & Dileta, high energy female-fronted Japanese act Pinky Doodle Poodle and French composer Emilie Hanak’s new project Yelli Yelli. Emerging Welsh artist Eadyth will also bring her ongoing collaboration with Manipur’s musical icon Mangka as part of the British Council’s India-UK Season of Culture celebrations.
Continuing with the festival’s focus on northeast talent, we will see Manipur’s neo-psychedelic, post-punk band Meewakching, Arunachal Pradesh’s beloved troubadour (and doctor!) Nikom Riba, Mizo pop act Origami, Khasi folk-fusion collective Da Minot, Sikkim’s Salakhala with their funk rock sound, Nagaland’s popular singer-songwriter Abdon Mech and the bluesy Dr Declan Oppenheimer’s Polyphonic Experience from Assam among others.
Gathering at Ziro from other parts of the country are India’s first female classical slide guitarist Dr Kamala Shankar, Kerala’s veteran rockers Motherjane, Tamil Nadu’s dance electro-pop act Sapta, the ultra-melodic Easy Wanderlings and the fiery act Laxmi Bomb from Maharashtra, Uttarakhand’s fresh qawwali act Rehmat-e-Nusrat, among many more.
This year will witness a wide selection of artists from across genres from electronic to folk classical, rock and fusion. Look out for experimental post-rock band Sky Level and Street Stories, arguably India’s finest pop punk band, Takar Nabam, a well-known name on the independent music circuit, Arunchali folk-fusion band David Angu and The Tribe and electro duo Dokodoko.
There are many fun learning activities for kids and families including art installations and sustainable design workshops by Shantiniketan artist Dharitri Boro, storytelling hour with Shubha Das, dance & movement sessions with Denis Barwa, yoga and meditation, and you can learn how to make an indigenous Apatani flute made from paddy straw.
After two years of the pandemic keeping us away from this perfect setting, music once again brings us all together this year.
The festival is scheduled to take place in Ziro, Arunachal Pradesh from 29 September – 2 October. Book your tickets, stay and experiences on www.zirofestival.com
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