Rural rhythms: Dilli Haat sings along voices from the countryside

Voices from rural India had Dilli Haat visitors dancing on the folk beats at the Rural Renaissance Concert, organised by Village Square India. The concert was part of an eight-day-long Indian Rural Colloquy in the capital. Two bands, Naya Savera from Udaipur and Da-Shugs from Ladakh, came all the way to Delhi and delivered culturally rich performances on recently.

It is often said that music can transform lives, and it happened with Ashish Sharma, Soheb Khan and Sunil, who were in Udaipur Central Jail when they chose to learn to play musical instruments and their lives turned over a new leaf. The reformed inmates formed a band called Naya Savera when they were released and since then they dedicated their lives to music. They sang old Hindi songs accompanied by cajon and guitar. Songs like Ek Ajnabee Haseena Se, Deewana Hua Badal and Qawwalis like Duma Dum Mast Kalandar had the audience grooving and cheering for the band. “Music ke zariye humien naya jeewan mila hai. Aj, Dilli aakar humien bahut acha lag raha hai,” said Sunil, a band member.

Delhi’s heat and humidity didn’t stop members of the Ladakhi folk-rock band Da-Shugs from donning their traditional silk gonchas and woollen boots to give a peek into the cultural heritage of Ladakh. The band, which was formed in the April of 2021, includes lead vocalist Tsewang Nurboo, co-vocalist Tsewang Phuntsog, who also plays the traditional instrument Damnyan, lead guitarist Rigzin Norboo, percussionist Tsering Motup and Tsering Norbu, the bassist. The Delhi crowd went into a complete frenzy when the band crooned Hindi songs Maaeri and Dil Beparwah.

Dilli Haat sees a vibrant cultural renaissance

Tsewang Nurboo, lead vocalist of Da-Shugs, danced during the band's performance

The final songs of their set saw the crowd, including many people from Ladakh staying in Delhi, breaking into a group dance. Tsewang Nurboo, said, “The energy of the people was amazing. The crowd was crazy. If I talk about the weather, I feel like I am in the oven but we enjoyed thoroughly.” Tsering Dolker, who was in the audience, said, "I enjoyed my evening a lot and even danced to Ladakhi songs. I was missing home and I think I needed just this to be in a good place." Yukti, a member of the audience, said, "Naya Savera made me hop on the train of trance and when Da-Shugs came up on the stage, there was a certain burst of energy in the atmosphere. The music was so appealing, and when the Ladakhi musicians sang Hindi songs, it was like sone pe suhaaga."

‘If I had not made Gaman, I would have been a different person’
Filmmaker Muzaffar Ali, who was a guest at the event, spoke about the cinema today and how it portrays rural India. “Films on rural India need to be made, now more than ever. We need to put films in context so that the portrayal can be more authentic. My father was deeply concerned about our village Kotwara, so I made my first film Gaman (1978), which was based on why people leave villages and move to cities. It was not only a political question but also a poetic question If I had not made Gaman, I would have been a different person.”

He said that it is important for a filmmaker to understand the rural predicament. “The film industry is evolving and growing. The growth has to be organic and understand the culture, pain and ethos of rural communities. Being sensitive to the rural predicament is important, it changes the language of telling stories and of moving images,” he said.