Kapila Venu is leading a movement in Kerala to save an ancient Sanskrit theatre from fading into oblivion. Kutiyattam, the two-millennia-old theatrical tradition, is in the throes of a crisis with few performances and fewer professionals, even after becoming the first from India to join the Unesco’s list of Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity more than a decade ago.
Far away in Norway, a new band relies on the ancient traditions of the Sámi culture for its repertoire. Gabba, the young band, wants to preserve the rich heritage of joik, a folk music with minimal lyrics sung over centuries in the Nordic region and parts of Russia.
Closer home, Dilip Bhatt’s passion lies in practising a family tradition that began over a century ago in Jaipur, Rajasthan. Jaipur Tamasha, a musical folk act aimed to entertain the audience, performed by Bhatt today needs audience and support.
At the Jodhpur RIFF roots musical festival to be held at the 15th-century Mehrangarh fort from October 16 to 20, revival of folk music facing a crisis of existence will be high on the agenda. “The five-member Gabba is reviving joik, the traditional Sami folk music,” says Jodhpur RIFF festival director Divya Bhatia, who first saw the band last year at the Førde International Folk Music Festival in Vestland, Norway. “At the heart of their sound is joik master John André Eira from Mazé in northern Norway, whose original compositions blend seamlessly with traditional joik, creating an evocative and immersive experience,” adds Bhatia about the band that will perform on October 17.
A day later, Jaipur Tamasha, a two-and-half-century-old folk drama from Rajasthan, will be performed by Dilip Bhatt, who learned the storytelling from his father Gopi Bhatt.
On October 19, Kapila Venu will perform Kutiyattam, bringing India’s oldest living theatre tradition to Jodhpur RIFF for the first time since it began 17 years ago.
Another first this year will be a band from South Korea. Gray by Silver, which rose to fame in 2021 with its second album, The Song Ethnic, will also take the stage on October 19 to present its melange of traditional songs and Korean nursery rhymes.
