MUMBAI: A 500-year-old village with 28 households isn’t the type of venue many would choose for a music festival but Assam’s BiG BANG! Festival of Love is unlike any music festival in the world.

Returning after a break of three years, The BiG BANG! is the revival of a concept rooted in love, community, and the preservation of indigenous traditions. Founded by musician and activist Daniel Langthasa and indigenous chef Avantika Roohi Haflongbar in 2016, this small festival with the big ideas celebrates the richness of India’s indigenous roots while also using music as a tool to connect with a wider audience.

Tickets for the festival are available on the website.

“Music has always been a powerful way to communicate ideas and provoke thought, and through The BiG BANG! Festival, we wanted to merge this with a message of sustainability, alternative worldviews, and indigenous wisdom,” say the co-founders, adding that the festival was first conceptualised as a way to showcase the vibrancy and potential of localised economies and slow living.

“We’ve seen how global movements for change have been sparked through music — whether it was punk rock, reggae, or hip-hop. At the BiG BANG! Festival, we want to use music as a tool to ignite the same kind of consciousness. It’s a universal language that can inspire people to see the world differently, and through our carefully curated lineup of artists, we hope to channel the energy of the festival into something bigger than just entertainment,” they add.

The theme of the 2024 edition, scheduled to be held over October 26 and 27, is ‘Village is the future’.

“Globalization has shown us its faults, especially as we face ecological and social crises. Localized economies, where communities are self-sufficient, connected to the land, and aware of their cultural heritage, offer an alternative model. By bringing people into this space through music, art, and culture, we want to invite them to rethink their relationship with the world. The BiG BANG Festival is not just about celebrating indigenous traditions; it’s about reimagining how we live and how we can create a future that is more equitable and connected to the land,” adds Langthasa.

The BiG BANG! Festival’s revival was made possible courtesy of an application that reggae artist Delhi Sultanate of the BFR Sound System made featuring the festival for the Studio Monkey Shoulder initiative. One of five successful applicants from around the world, the £10,000 endowment meant the festival could return to life.

Featuring in its sixth edition – apart from the hand-built Jamaican reggae-style soundsystem BFR Sound System, which will travel from Delhi all the way to Nanadisa by road – are a diverse group of artists, and a blend of genres that resonate with the spirit of collaboration and unity.

Trombone and trumpet player Chie Nishikori will join forces with BFR Sound System as will Mumbai-based rapper and activist MC Mawali, who uses his music to champion social and cultural preservation, often challenging the influence of westernization in India. Also, joining BFR will be reggae producer and DJ Ras ManMan.

One of the biggest names from north east India, Tipriti Kharbangar – known to music fans as the powerhouse vocalist of the blues-infused Soulmate – will play a live acoustic set of Khasi blues and folk at the festival. Also on the lineup are Ahimxa, a cult grunge band hailing from Haflong that started as a high school project, and are now making a comeback after 20 years. Also part of the lineup will be co-founder Langthasa with his band Digital Suixide, and as satirist Mr India with the soundsystem.

The real highlight of the festival experience at Nanadisa is a glimpse into village life, and into a future where local economies are thriving, sustainable, and in tune with the environment.

One of the oldest Dimasa villages in Dima Hasao district, Nanadisa is a living example of self-sustenance and self-reliance. “Nanadisa is a window to the alternative worldviews that we need to seek,” says Avantika, who was a contestant on MasterChef India. “Many elderly people above the age of 70 are all healthy, work in their own jhum fields every day, make their own wine, drink it occasionally and eat all homegrown foods,” she adds.

Langthasa, an activist and currently the Convenor of Sixth Schedule Protection Committee – whose role is to defend the rights of the indigenous people living in the areas which are under the protection of the Sixth Schedule to the Constitution of India – says the festival is an extension of this activism. “The BiG BANG Festival is an extension of this activism; creating a platform where conversations about the future can take place within the context of culture, nature, and community,” he says.

During the two-day festival, Avantika – who is on a mission to prove that indigenous approach to growing and cooking food is a conscious and a sustainable choice – will conduct a workshop demonstrating the indigenous ways of cooking, including foraging, with a curated meal at the end.
 
The BiG BANG Festival is a celebration of the many things that make Dimasa culture special. One of the key activities will be judima brewing, a centuries-old tradition of making rice wine that is unique to the Dimasa people, and the first indigenous beverage from North East India to have received the Geographical Indication (GI) tag. Guests will be able to witness the process of brewing and understand the cultural significance of judima.

Attendees will be able to partake in Jhum farm tours and acquaint themselves with an age-old method of agriculture practised by the indigenous people of this region. Another key feature of the festival will be workshops on bamboo weaving and handloom weaving, allowing attendees to get hands-on experience in these beautiful, ancient crafts. Interestingly, every household in Nanadisa has a weaver. Weaving is education passed down usually from a mother to a daughter.

Alongside, there will also be sessions on medicinal plants used by indigenous people for centuries, passed down from one generation to another.