Introducing Delhiites to the Indian folk music

With the intentions to revive the folk music of different parts of our country, The Indira Gandhi National Art Center (IGNCA) has been organizing a successful “Sanjari:ek Bharat Shreshth Bharat” series every month from its 30th Foundation Day. The center is trying to make folk music available to the listeners so that it can maintain its existence and reach the new generation in its original form. The center has so far organized six successful events of ‘Sanjari: An India-best Bharat’ in which Arunachal, Bihar and Rajasthan, Goa, Tamil Nadu, Jammu and Kashmir folk artists have made their presentation. In the 7th series of the event, folk singer of Uttarakhand Padmashri Basanti Bisht and Jogela Sidhuaj of Karnataka gave a presentation.

In the first session of the series held on May 19, Uttarakhand’s first female Jagar singer Basanti Bisht tied up with her team to enthrall the audience. She started the program with the Manglik songs related to Vedic rites of Uttarakhand, after which she dedicated Jogger to Lord Bhole Nath.

In the second session of the series on May 20, Karnataka folk artist Jogela Sidhuaju presented his presentation. Jogela Siddhu Raju, a folk singer of Karnataka, has been singing folk songs since childhood besides pursuing engineering.

Siddhuaju started his presentation with the description of various incarnations of Lord Shiva, whose words were ‘Balukkak (Blokkaka) Diya God Saaya’. Then he sang the Kamsale Padam, the Kamsale post was the melodious rhythm of the Kar- nataka Lok Gangit, whose lyrics were ‘Aadiri Raggaala-nudisiri Taklagala’, that is, playing rhythm and singing the songs of Hari.

His next presentation was ‘Chalindaru Malligeya’, which is the folk song of Malai Mahadevar South India.