Sufi to folk, Delhi to be on song at fiesta

A cultural festival in the national capital beginning Thursday will bring together multiple genres of Indian music -- soulful Sufi singing to rustic folk -- on one platform, an organiser said Wednesday.

The cultural fiesta "Raag Rang", organised by the department of art, culture and languages in association with the Sahitya Kala Parishad, will be held at Central Park, Connaught Place Aug 28-31.

Lt. Governor Najeeb Jung will be the chief guest on the opening day.

"Diversity is the essence of India, including the arts and music traditions. It is impossible to define or sum up what constitutes Indian music in a single breath," said S.S. Yadav, secretary, department of art, culture and languages, in a statement.

"The festival is an initiative to highlight this richness and attempt to bring together different genres of Indian music under one banner," he added.

There will be performances by gazal, Sufi and folk singers and a popular pop band.

One of the star performances will be by Teejan Bai, an exponent of Pandavi, a traditional performing art form from Chhattisgarh, in which she enacts tales from the Mahabharata.