Bengaluru may be known as the Silicon Valley of India, but an emerging festival is trying to establish the city as a cultural hotspot as well. Organised on the lines of the iconic Edinburgh Fringe Festival—when the city in Scotland transforms into a mega festival hub, hosting over 2,000 daily events across 600 venues—BLR Hubba, previously called Unboxing BLR Habba, is crafting a new narrative for Brand Bengaluru.
BLR Hubba is just two editions old, but the 16-day-festival has been able to garner interest across the arts, initiating conversations and organising activities in collaboration with residents, stakeholders and the government alike to breathe life into the city’s public spaces. While the first edition in 2023 had a total budget of Rs 1.5 crore holding about 150 events, the second edition in 2024 had Rs 8 crore with over 500 events across 42 venues. “Bengaluru may be known for innovation, serene gardens and old-world charm, but we thought of making the city more accessible and enjoyable for people,” says V Ravichandar, the chief facilitator of BLR Hubba.
The city-wide festival celebrates Bengaluru’s vibrancy, diversity and rich cultural tapestry at various public places. For instance, the residents, shopkeepers and partners like civic and municipal officials on Church Street have worked on a detailed waste management plan for a facelift of the area with road repairs and replacement of street lighting, among other things.
Events like Hubba in Your Park nurture local parks with silent reading sessions, zumba and nature walks, while Hubba in your Street is where the city’s iconic streets spring to life through collaborative projects. For instance, in Akkamahadevi Park, there was a collaborative art activity, a collage art inspired by the lush greenery; in Bugle Rock Park and Subhash Chandra Bose Park, adults and children enjoyed a workshop on traditional dance form, Yakshagana.
“The etymology for the word ‘Hubba’ draws its inspirations from the Kannada ‘Habba’, using the phonetic version ‘Hub’ that denotes BLR as a hub for just about anything. There is something for everyone, given the diversity of events,” says Ravichandar.
Sanatkada Lucknow Festival: Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb in the city of nawabs
The magnificent Safed Baradari, a monument built by the last nawab of Awadh, Nawab Wajid Ali Shah, in the 19th century, saw the rise of music, poetry, and dance in Lucknow. Today, this monument stands as the backdrop of the Mahindra Sanatkada Lucknow Festival (MSLF), an annual event that celebrates the ‘Ganga-Jamuni tehzeeb’ of the region.
“The monument has seen many generations celebrating the rich legacy of the region, and this festival brings the lovers of arts, crafts, food and culture from Lucknow and beyond under one roof,” says Tasveer Hasan, director of the festival.
From bait bazi (a verbal game and genre of Urdu poetry played by composing verses of Urdu poems) and dastangoi (a 16th-century Urdu oral storytelling art form) to classical music, the festival offers something to everyone. No wonder it receives an overall footfall of 80,000, including over 25,000 unique visitors every year. In 2012, when the Awadhi Home Cooked Food Festival was introduced with culinary dishes such as lal mirch ka keema and yakhni pulao prepared by over 40 home chefs with recipes passed down over generations, it became a phenomenon. “We now do it every year as the heirloom delicacies of Awadh and recipes come from home chefs,” he adds.
Following a regional theme every year, starting from Sama in 2010 to Basant in 2011, Pehnawa in 2012 to Feminists in 2014, and so on, the latest (2025) edition was all about ‘Lucknow ke gali kooche’, shedding light on the lanes of the city that hold numerous stories. “Sama was about poetry, music and Kathak; Basant showed a glimpse of the times of the last nawab of Awadh and his connection with Basant. Pehnawa and Bazaar showcased traditions of different communities residing in Lucknow. The centrepiece of the festival is handicrafts of Lucknow, and supporting artisans and handicrafts,” says Hasan.
MSLF was launched in 2010 as a celebration of the beautiful culture of Awadh in memory of the late Indira Mahindra, mother of Anand Mahindra, the chairman of Mahindra Group. The founder and trustee of the Sanatkada Trust, Madhavi Kukreja, organises the annual festival, which started off as a crafts bazaar but later turned into a vibrant cultural extravaganza.
“There are weaves and crafts bazaar, heritage walks, literary guftgu, food stalls… all depicting the different nuances of the city,” adds Hasan.
For the past three years, the craft sales have been crossing Rs 2 crore every year but the trust charges 15-20% commission from artisans to take care of costs. “We also try to provide 100% subsidy to over 10-15 artisans for their free travel and stay in Lucknow. The food festival generates revenue of around Rs 4-5 lakh, one part given to chefs and the other donated to the trust,” Hasan tells FE.
Rann Utsav: Beyond the salt marshes of Kutch
When PM Narendra Modi posted “Kutch awaits you all!” on X late last year, he was actually urging people to visit a cultural festival that may have started as a three-day event in 2005—initiated by the Gujarat tourism department to showcase the rich culture and natural beauty of the Rann of Kutch—but is today considered a major cultural festival spanning 100 days.
Rann Utsav is held in Dhordo, a border village that has metamorphosed into a bustling hub of tradition, art and eco-friendly living, especially after it was chosen as one of the United Nations World Tourism Organization’s (UNWTO) ‘Best Tourism Villages’ in 2023. The village has emerged as a key tourist destination in promoting sustainable rural tourism that empowers local communities and preserve their cultural heritage, and hosting Rann Utsav in a vast expanse of white salt desert.
In the latest edition held from November 11, 2024 to March 15, over 460 tents worth Rs 54 crore were set up in the village. “Rann, once seen as barren land, has now become a gateway of global tourism through the Rann Utsav, a testament to PM’s foresight,” CM Bhupendra Patel was quoted as saying in a statement.
Rann Utsav attracts more than 700,000 tourists annually, with approximately 50,000 guests staying in the ‘tent city’. “Visitors come from across India as well as abroad,” says Bhavik Sheth, COO of Evoke Experiences that manages the Rann Utsav and the tent city. “There is no separate ticket price for entry. Instead, we offer packages that include accommodation, meals, and curated experiences, providing guests with an all-inclusive cultural immersion,” adds Sheth.
Mylapore Festival: A community movement in Chennai
What started as a contest for the community in 2001, organised by a neighbourhood newspaper, has now grown into a major festival spanning four days across 12 venues, holding over 30 events and featuring 300 artistes. “Mylapore Festival is growing into a passionate community movement,” says Moahan Venkatesan, senior vice-president and head, Tamil Nadu, Sundaram Finance, a non-banking financial company that is behind the festival.
Come January and the streets around the Sri Kapaleeswarar Temple in Mylapore transform into a living art gallery. Families flock to the streets of one of the oldest neighbourhoods in the city for the traditional Kolam (a decorative and ritualistic art form) contest, held as part of the festival. “It is interesting to see grandparents hanging out with their grandchildren in a fun space celebrating and sharing their culture and tradition,” says Venkatesan.
As the presenter of the cultural extravaganza, Venkatesan says, “Sundaram Finance does not make money or want to make money. We volunteer support through a large number of employees. This festival is our way of thanksgiving to the community that has supported and nurtured our growth for the past 70 years in the region,” adds Venkatesan.
What makes this 21-year-old festival also special is that it has clearly evolved into a people-driven movement—by the people and for the people. “With increasing globalisation and Western influences, there is a need to safeguard our culture and showcase it,” adds Venkatesan.
Bengal Biennale: An immersive art experience
In its very first edition in November last year, Bengal Biennale unfolded across two symbolic landscapes—Santiniketan and Kala Bhavana—setting the stage for what is arguably the largest festival of serious visual art in the east and a defining moment in the country’s art calendar. The intention? To restore to Bengal what had long been absent—a space where art could breathe its history while carving pathways to the future.
This year, 26 venues, including iconic spaces such as the Victoria Memorial Hall, Indian Museum, and Alipore Museum in Kolkata, as well as the Nandan Museum and Somnath Hore’s Studio in Santiniketan, carried the narrative forward. “The difference lies in its scale and ambition—a web of connections that blurred boundaries between tradition and the contemporary, rural ethos and urban critique,” says Siddharth Sivakumar, curator and director, Bengal Biennale, whose aim was access—a democratisation of visual art.
From the works of Rabindranath, Abanindranath, and Gaganendranath Tagore, alongside Jamini Roy, stood as a reminder that Bengal’s artistic lineage is not a history to be read, but a narrative still being written. These masters, their visual vocabulary born from the soil of the region yet constantly responding to the larger world, were juxtaposed with contemporary voices like Jayashree Chakraborty and Paula Sengupta, whose works challenge and expand upon existing traditions. Even the ephemeral art of puja installations, represented by the noted theme puja artist Pradip Das, was brought out of its religious framework.
Many exhibitions and performances that reflected on the Baul way of life—a philosophy that resists commodification and champions spiritual freedom. “The festival rejected the sanitised narratives of cultural nostalgia. It dared to confront the ruptures in Bengal’s identity—its colonial past, its fractured present, and its uncertain future. The city, in this festival, was not a place but an idea, shaped by its histories, challenged by its contradictions, and open to reimagination,” adds Sivakumar.
Ami Arts Festival: With an ‘I’ on Kolkata
Ami literally translates to ‘I’ in Bengali. The idea behind starting the Ami Arts Festival in Kolkata was thus to pay an ode to the personal connections that transcend boundaries and borders, and to celebrate self-expression in various forms.
“The support from the city and its people make the fest an inclusive space where artists and audiences from diverse backgrounds connect, collaborate and be inspired to make it one of the largest art and cultural festivals in east India,” says Richa Agarwal, the visionary behind the festival.
Agarwal is also the chairperson of Kolkata Centre for Creativity, a multidisciplinary interactive art centre, and CEO of Emami Art.
The festival started in 2020 as an affordable art fair for local art collectors and enthusiasts as part of the CSR initiative of Emami Art’s parent group Emami Group. Over the years, however, it has become a grand celebration of cultures, languages and identities.
This year, for instance, many thought-provoking renditions and conversations on Bengal’s culture were brought to the fore at the recently held multidisciplinary interactive festival. Once such was a talk on Feluda, the iconic Bengali detective created by Satyajit Ray. The character was brought to life by none other than Ray’s son Sandip Ray, who also explored the legendary filmmakers’ timeless appeal, intricate plots and brilliant deductions, and his impact on Bengali culture, in a conversation with actors Sabyasachi Chakraborty and Indraneil Sengupta.
Another such initiative was an exhibition titled Courage of Spirit that highlighted the legacy of Emami East Bengal Club, one of India’s most iconic football clubs that turned 105 last year. With memorabilia, archival documents, and objects on display, the show was all about the club’s illustrious history—its people, moments, and unparalleled achievements.
From an exhibition of traditional musical instruments and rural heritage to events reviving Bengal’s ancient Baul music and culture, the fest promotes Indian talent with a focus on local art and culture to all ages and interest groups.
Phoolwaalon Ki Sair: A celebration of Dilli in full bloom
In the early 19th century, Mumtaz Mahal, wife of Akbar Shah II, once organised a procession of flower sellers as part of a vow that she made for her son’s safe return from exile in Allahabad.
So popular was the event that it was decided to be held every year. The result was a week-long celebration called Phoolwalon ki Sair or Sair-e-Gulfaroshan. This ceremony eventually became integral to Delhi’s history and culture.
A flower market was also set up at a place called Jharna near Jahaz Mahal, a Mughal monument in Mehrauli in Delhi, which is revered by the city’s people even to this date. Here the flower-sellers of Delhi play a vital role in creating beautiful floral decorations—pankhas (fans), shawls, and other symbolic structures. The pankha, a tribute to both the dargah and the temple, has become a symbol of communal harmony and national integration. Every year, this traditional floral fan is presented to the CM or lieutenant-governor of Delhi.
However, in 1942, the Britishers stopped the festival in pursuance of their policy of ‘Divide and Rule’, which was later revived after Independence by Yogeshwar Dayal, a wealthy merchant and banker from Shahjahanabad.
“In 1962, the first prime minister Jawaharlal Nehru entrusted responsibility to Yogeshwarji to restart Phoolwaalon Ki Sair; since then Anjuman Sair-e-Gul Faroshan has been organising the festival. Nehru, the then Delhi mayor, Noor Uddin Ahmed, met Yogeshwar Dayal, thus the tradition symbolising Hindu-Muslim unity resumed. Prominent leaders have been participating in the programme,” Usha Kumar, the daughter of the late Yogeshwar Dayal, wrote in her book titled Yogeshwar Dayal aur Dilli.
Nehru also participated in the festival that was held for the first time after Independence. About 2,500 people attended the event, Kumar has mentioned in the book.
Today, the festival also hosts qawwalis, dance and poetry sessions, kite-flying events, heritage walks and others at Jahaz Mahal as part of the festival.
Pushkar Fair: Where camel carnival meets traders’ tradition
For over 100 years, the camel fair of Pushkar, also called Pushkar Fair, has been a source of livelihood for traders and farmers from the Thar region of Rajasthan. However, over the years, it has also transformed into a grand celebration of culture and heritage in the state.
According to deputy director of Rajasthan tourism, Dalip Singh Rathore, Pushkar has been a pilgrimage destination for centuries. “After independence, it began evolving into an unorganised fair. During the 1970s and 1980s, the Rajasthan tourism department established a tourist village in Pushkar, giving the fair a more structured form. The event is not only culturally and spiritually enriching but also contributes significantly to the local economy,” says Rathore.
Those visiting the town of Pushkar near Ajmer district can explore Rajasthan’s cultural essence, economic activity, and spirituality at the festival. This means, the main purpose is not only to host India’s largest camel, horse and cattle fair and facilitate livestock trading but also to represent community music, dance, puppetry and traditional games as a mainstay for artisans displaying traditional attire, jewellery, and crafts.
The uniqueness of the fair lies in the decorations of camels in vivid colours, and the striking costumes that are displayed in full majesty. Pushkar is one of Rajasthan’s tourist hotspots offering a slice of the region through campsites, jeep safaris, hot air balloon, camel safari while sightseeing Pushkar Lake, and Pushkar Mandir. As part of the fair, which is held every year in November, community competitions like ‘matka phod’ and ‘longest moustache’ are also organised.
Before the pandemic, the fair hosted around 450,000 to 500,000 Indian nationals and 10,000 to 15,000 foreign visitors annually, but the 2024 edition attracted nearly 600,000 Indian visitors and 20,000 international tourists.
Hornbill Festival: Nagaland in all its beauty
Very few cultural festivals attain the success of converting a state festival to a mega conclave. Hornbill Festival is one such event that has in the past 25 years not only worked as a catalyst to bind 18 different tribes living in Nagaland but has also become an iconic cultural event of the northeast Indian state.
From traditional morungs (huts), which offer a glimpse into the architecture, history, and way of life of the tribal communities, to music—international bands as well as local talents showcase their best—Kisama heritage village near state capital Kohima comes alive during the 10-day extravaganza held in December every year.
Initiated by the Nagaland government, the festival also highlights artisans exhibiting handmade crafts, weaves, and pottery, reflecting the indigenous skills of the tribes passed down through generations.
Needless to say, Hornbill Festival is also promoting tourism sand the local economy. “It’s become an ambassador festival of Nagaland and a great example of successful IPs created by the state government,” says Arpito Gope, chief consultant, Task Force for Music & Arts (TaFMA), a department created by the state government to promote the arts, with a focus on music.
In 2000, the first edition recorded 13,268 domestic visitors compared to 154,000 in 2023, comprising 2,108 foreigners, 37,089 domestic tourists, and 114,860 locals. “The footfall in 2024 footfall exceeded 200,000 visitors,” says Gope, quoting Abu Metha, the advisor to CM Neiphiu Rio and chairman of the Investment & Development Authority of Nagaland (IDAN), who mentioned that in 10 days the festival contributed over `100 crore (approximately $10-12 million) in direct and indirect economic benefits to the local economy, including accommodation, transport, and food sales. It also generated over 8,500 jobs. “The demographic is youth, say 18-35 years, who attend the music festival, while families and tourists attend the cultural and traditional showcases of the larger festival during the day,” adds Gope.
