Azaadi Music Festival
Azaadi Music Festival
August 29 to September 7
From the mellifluous Kabir gayan of Padmashri Kaluram Bamaniya to the Carnatic soul of the Akkarai Sisters to the throbbing beats of Arivu’s protest rap — India’s music is an ever-expanding, ever-evolving soundscape of global and local influences, living traditions and modern technology.
IME’s Azaadi Music Festival is more than just a celebration of this diversity, it is a curated dialogue on the evolving meaning of freedom, or Azaadi, in today’s India. Through workshops, artist conversations, film-screenings and live performances, AMF offers a chance to become an active participant in the nation's cultural dialogue, rather than just a passive observer of its history.
Join IME this August and September for curated walkthroughs, workshops, film screenings, listening sessions and an open mic night. And stay for stunningly intimate performances and musical conversations across folk, tribal, rock, ghazal, and classical genres.
Discover just how music sets us all free with performances by Rumi Harish, the Tetseo Sisters, Sumangala Damodaran’s band Antara, Paraja folk dancers, Divyam Sodhi & Khwaab Padmashri Kaluram Bamaniya, Akkarai Sisters, Gaekhir Republik, and Arivu.
Note: All events are free, but registration is compulsory. Registration does not guarantee a seat at the event. Seating is on a first come, first served basis only.
Music that sets me Free
A special walkthrough of the museum
English
Thursday | 28th Aug 2025 | 4 PM
Step into IME’s galleries with museum director Preema John as your guide in a special walkthrough to uncover little known stories of artists, songs and instruments that echo freedom across India’s history.
Kaluram Bamaniya: Bairag Kabir
A talk on Kabir’s relevance in modern times
Hindi
Friday | 29th Aug 2025 | 4 PM
Experience Padmashri Kaluram Bamaniya at IME as he brings Kabir’s timeless words into today’s India. In this intimate conversation, Bairag Kabir, discover how verses written in the 14th century still echo as powerful calls for truth, equality, and freedom.
Seraikela Chhau Workshop
Hindi/English
Saturday | 30th Aug 2025 | 2 PM
Discover the powerful world of Seraikela Chhau with Guru Kush Kumar Karua in this hands-on workshop exploring storytelling through stunning mask and the use of traditional instruments.
Azaadi Treasure Hunt
English
Sunday | 31st Aug 2025 | 12 PM
Designed for young audiences, this interactive game lets participants explore music’s connection to freedom, identity, and culture in unexpected ways. Each clue reveals hidden stories, voices, and sounds from India’s diverse traditions.
Guided Walk: Music that sets you free | English | 3rd Sep 2025
English
Wednesday | 3rd Sep 2025 | 4 PM
Uncover little known stories of how music has shaped identity, resistance, and joy across India’s history.
Guided Walk: Music that sets you free | Kannada | 4th Sep 2025
Kannada
Thursday | 4th Sep 2025 | 4 PM
Explore IME’s stories in Kannada with a guided walk that uncovers how music has always been a voice of the people, shaping collective identity and echoing freedom across centuries.
Sumangala Damodaran: Musicians in the Museum
English
Friday | 5th Sep 2025 | 4 PM
Experience music of protest and resilience with music scholar, performer and curator of Songs of Struggle Sumangala Damodaran as she reflects on her personal journey and reveals how music has long been a tool for memory, dissent, and hope.
Divyam Sodhi & Khwaab: Musicians in the Museum
English
Sunday | 7th Sep 2025 | 5 PM
Join journalist and music critic Anurag Tagat in conversation with Divyam Sodhi for a candid exchange on music, creativity, and freedom
Kaluram Bamaniya: Nirgun Bhajan
Malvi
Friday | 29th Aug 2025 | 6:30 PM
Join us for an evening of Nirgun Bhajans with Padmashri Kaluram Bamaniya and experience Kabir’s formless devotional songs are freedom in its purest expression — no rituals, no filters, only truth and melody.
Gaekhir Republik: Mandyan Shaam
Kashmiri
Saturday | 30th Aug 2025 | 7 PM
Join Gaekhir Republik for Mandyan Shaam, a moving performance in Kashmiri with music that weaves tradition, contemporary expression, and lived reality together in a journeys through grief and hope.
Seraikela Chhau Ensemble
Heritage in Masked Motion
Hindi/English
Sunday | 31st Aug 2025 | 2 PM
Witness the spectacular tradition of stylised combat, mythological landscapes, and vibrant masks with tales of Radha Krishna, Hara Parvati and the joyous play of peacocks before the rain, bringing hope and renewal.
Akkarai Sisters: Mānasa Svātantryam
with BC Manjunath on Mridangam and Giridhar Udupa on Ghatam
Tamil / Sanskrit
Sunday | 31st Aug 2025 | 6 PM
Join contemporary Carnatic icons, the Akkarai Sisters, for a spellbinding performance rooted in classical rigour yet filled with contemporary vitality, in a celebration of evolving Indian classical music.
Open Mic Hour: Anthems of Freedom
Mixed
Wednesday | 3rd Sep 2025 | 6:30 PM
Take the stage at IME’s Open Mic Hour: Anthems of Freedom. This is your chance to share songs, poems, and voices that embody the spirit of Azaadi.
Rumi Harish: Albele Khayal
A performative conversation
English/Hindi
Thursday | 04th Sep 2025 | 6 PM
Dive into ghazal, poetry, and personal narrative with Rumi Harish, a queer transmasculine Hindustani singer as he explores artistic freedom at the unique intersection of gender and classical Indian music.
Antara: Woh subah kabhi to ayegi...
Songs of Resistance, Songs of Hope
Hindi
Friday | 05th Sep 2025 | 6:30 PM
Join Antara, led by Sumangala Damodaran, for an evening of protest music and hope that brings together songs that carried communities through struggle and change.
Tetseo Sister: Tsale tshemo (We may not know each other's song)
Chokri
Saturday | 06th Sep 2025 | 2 PM
Share intimate expressions of memory, belonging, and identity, passed down through generations with Nagaland’s singing sensations the Tetseo Sisters, who weave magic in the Chokri dialect of the Chakhesang Naga.
Arivu: Up close
An exclusive DJ set with therukural himself
Tamil
Saturday | 06th Sep 2025 | 7:30 PM
Get up close and personal with Arivu himself, known for his fearless lyrics, protest rap and blending Tamil tradition with contemporary beats.
Paroja Song & Dance of Koraput
Celebrating Community and Culture
Odia
Sunday | 07th Sep 2025 | 12 PM
Tap your feet to the rhythms of the Dhemsa dance, a vibrant performance where women hold each other's waists, moving in rhythmic circles to the beats of traditional music instruments, symbolizing unity and joy.
Divyam Sodhi & Khwaab: Ghazals Aaj Kal
Hindi/Punjabi
Sunday | 07th Sep 2025 | 7 PM
Experience ghazals for today’s world with Divyam Sodhi & Khwaab in Ghazals Aaj Kal as they blend tradition with modern interpretation to bring the timeless beauty of ghazals into contemporary contexts.
Laya Project
A Journey of Music and Survival
English
Saturday | 30th Aug 2025 | 12 PM
Watch this intimate yet global documentary, created after the 2004 tsunami, this film captures songs, rhythms, and voices from communities across the Indian Ocean.
Rasan Piya: The story of Ustad Abdul Rashid Khan
Written & Directed by Niharika Popli
Hindi
Sunday | 07th Sep 2025 | 2 PM
Watch Rasan Piya, a film by Niharika Popli that tells the story of Ustad Abdul Rashid Khan, one of Hindustani music’s great masters. The screening will be followed by an interaction with the director