Soulful Sounds: The royal Rajasthan International Folk Festival Experience

While the full moon illuminates the night sky and bats remain hidden within corners of the grandeus Mehrangarh Fort in Jodhpur, one of the most intriguing international festivals in the world comes to life every year. Jodhpur RIFF never fails to leave your spine tingling, feet tapping, body shaking, ears ringing and your head exploding! In the words of festival patron, Maharaja Gaj Singh, “The festival is emerging as a fine example of an excellent confluence of music, cultures and heritage. This amalgamation reveals the richness of our musical traditions on a global platform. The beauty of this musical event lies in the fact that while it is extravagant in terms of the music you get to experience, it maintains its rustic simplicity and commitment to its vision and ethos.”

Mornings were consumed with some of the most intriguing workshops, where music aficionados had the rare opportunity of discovering extraordinary Rajasthani instruments that are close to extinction, as well as the chance to take part in an interactive session with the Manganiyars of Marwar. Dr. Vijay Verma, a leading expert on folk traditions, enlightened festival goers about instruments like the murali, an aerophonic instrument made from bamboo and gourd shells, which is often accompanied with the graceful surinda, a string instrument played with a bow.

Which was the one performance that blew away people’s minds and had everyone smiling and grooving to his tunes? “The grinning, soulful player with the leather bag pipe!” laughs Anna Karvinsky, a festival goer from Russia, who was fascinated with the sounds emerging from the leather bag pipe, created from a goats hyde. But no one could stop raving about the captivating performance and powerful energy displayed by the Manganiyars of Marwar. The Manganiyars are from the bardic tradition, where focus is implied upon an oral performance rather than a written performance. Though the Manganiyars are all muslims, the kings they sang of were hindus and it’s believed that they keep hindu shrines in their homes. While modernisation might severely threaten the existence of their music, it’s a shame to find their striking symphonic voices which are perfectly synchronized, singing stories of life in Rajasthan, receiving more international attention, than appreciation within our own country.

The legendary performances by Kachra Khan and Mangi Bai enthralled the audience, leaving festival goers transfixed by the sound of their voices. “It’s incredible how traditional sounds can move you to tears! The sheer power of music. I’m speechless,” gasped photographer Mitisha Chheda, as she angled her camera perfectly to catch the light reflecting upon the balconies of the fort, above the singing performers. Khan is a well known face at major sufi music festivals across the globe and the charming Mangi Bai’s powerful, rhythmic vocals cast a spell upon the audience.

Their sensational voices were perfectly in sync with the golden rays in the sky, signaling the setting sun. “It’s the only reason I attend Jodhpur Riff every single year, I am fascinated by the traditional Rajasthani performances,” smiles school teacher Madhu Rao, who believes the festival has transformed into more of a European musical experience than an Indian one. I found several regular attendees vociferously nodding their heads in agreement.

The first night I saw festival goers manically jumping around, swaying and crooning to the tunes of international sensation Manu Chao, whose infectious energy had a massive crowd of Europeans and Indians on their feet, dancing together, laughing and hugging eachother. “Manu Chao’s performance spread so much love, light and immensely high levels of energy tonight,” laughed Brazilian fan, Anthony Silva, as he hooted, whistled and broke into an excited solo jig, as the frequency of the music reached a frenetic pace. His performance almost came to an end, with Manu Chao beating the mike against his heart repetitively, screaming at the crowd, “You crazy Jodhpur!” The crowd yelled for more and he sang his heart out for another half hour. “In Europe, we’ve grown up listening to Manu Chao, so it’s a very special moment for us to be here and witness this at a fort in India,” says German musician Tobi Flegel.

Post midnight, the festivities continued away from the fort, at the desert lounge. The magical, distinctive voice of Bhanwari Devi echoed through the dark, muddy pathway leading to the quiet musical arena, bathed in moonlight. Couples lay in eachothers arms, spread out on mats,  gazing at the night sky, families ate hot samosas and creamy cups of piping tea. I spotted singer Maya Kamaty blowing rings of smoke, bobbing her head silently in tune to Bhawari’s fruity, raspy melodic voice. While she sang, Bhanwari Devi’s young son slowly got up and broke into a dance, swinging his hips and hands, festival director Divya Bhatia immediately quipped, “The last time we saw him perform, he was a very young boy. It’s a rare sight to see mother and child perform together.”

It’s not everyday one hears the soulful, heart warming musical notes of an Afghani lute instrument, the robab. Witnessing Daud Khan Sadozai lost in a meditative trance like state, as he strummed the robab, is a once in a lifetime experience for classical music aficionados. His performance with Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan’s nephew Dilshad Khan, the classical sarangi player and Australian musician Joseph Tawadros playing the oud, transcended all geographic and cultural barriers leaving the audience cheering, tearing up and yelling for more. Since the collaboration was rather impromptu, Tawadros joked, “This is musical politics happening right here,” while Khan and Sadozai decided how to proceed during the final performance.

The most spontaneous, extemporized performance was led by Gypsy All Stars drummer Cedric Leonardi at the RIFF Rustle, an event that concluded the festival’s night time revelries. It was only during Leonardi’s performance that one witnessed festival patron Sir Mick Jagger get up to shake a leg, surrounded by his dancing bodyguards. “Mick Jagger dancing while I’m performing?

Greatest compliment ever,” laughed Leonardi. He collaborated with Kheta Manganiyar, Norwegian accordionist Linda Gytri and a group of Rajasthani musicians. There were moments when an impromptu, synchronized musical connection between the performers, encouraged the audience to clap along and become part of the spectacular performance. When asked what the experience was like, Leonardi smiled and said, “The deep and soulful voices of the Rajasthani musicians, the rhythm and vibration, this made my hair stand on end! It’s true, music is a universal language, you don’t have to talk to connect, just play.”