Jodhpur RIFF 2026 Marks 20 Years With Global Roots Music Line-Up

Jodhpur RIFF is set to celebrate its 20th anniversary with its 2026 edition at Mehrangarh Fort, Jodhpur, from October 22 to 26, coinciding with Sharad Purnima. Held under the aegis of the Mehrangarh Museum Trust, the festival will bring together artists from across India and the world.

The 2026 edition features musicians from six continents and more than a dozen countries, including Colombia, Chile, Cabo Verde, Poland, Scotland and Estonia. Several international artists will make their India debut, reflecting the festival’s long-standing focus on cultural exchange and artist collaborations.

At the heart of the festival will be more than 250 folk musicians from Rajasthan, representing communities including Manganiyar, Langa, Meghwal, Bhopa, Kalbelia, Meena and Bhil. The festival will continue to spotlight Rajasthan’s traditional music while creating opportunities for collaborations with artists from across the globe.

On the festival’s 20th anniversary, Chief Patron HH Maharaja Gajsingh II of Marwar-Jodhpur said: “Jodhpur RIFF now sits strongly in our cultural landscape. Because of it, I have seen our Rajasthani folk artists receive worldwide acclaim as they present what they have inherited and mastered and also shine bright in unique music collaborations at the festival, which continues its essential function as a superb stepping stone, a bridge.”

Festival Director Divya Bhatia said, “Rajasthan's artists have always been this festival's lodestar,that hasn't changed in twenty years. What we have built painstakingly at Jodhpur RIFF, with international, Indian and Rajasthani artists, is a platform, an equal playing field and much more.”

Global Artists Make India Debuts

Among the international artists performing for the first time in India are DOBBY, the ARIA Award-winning Filipino-Murrawari rapper and composer; Latin American folk duo Camila y Silvio; UK multi-instrumentalist Michael McGoldrick; and Grammy-winning producer Printz Board with the Butter Funk Family.

The line-up also includes American roots artists Martha Redbone and Aaron Whitby, who will present The Martha Redbone Roots Project, while Camille Bordet brings The Book of Queens, a production featuring musicians from Iran, Europe and India alongside Indian artists Smita Bellur and Kode Khan Manganiyar.

Cabo Verdean guitarist Guitare Voginha will also make his India debut, bringing the musical traditions of the island nation to the festival.

Indian Maestros and Rajasthani Folk Traditions

The festival will feature prominent Indian musicians including Padma Shri Ashwini Bhide-Deshpande, Mangka Mayanglambam, Merlin D'Souza, Chintan Katti, Avadhoot Phadke, Aniruddha Shirke, Jasleen Kaur Monga and Ambi Subramaniam.

Returning international artists include Finnish fiddler Emilia Lajunen, Colombian DJ Killabeatmaker and Estonian duo Puuluup, who will also conduct a looping workshop with Rajasthani folk musicians.

The festival’s collaboration-led programming will bring together artists from different musical traditions. These include SAZ, comprising Langa musicians Sadiq Khan, Asin Khan and Zakir Khan Langa, alongside Michael McGoldrick and Donald Shaw, as well as collaborations between Martha Redbone and SAZ and between Emilia Lajunen and Asin Khan Langa.

Celebrating Rajasthan’s Musical Heritage

Jodhpur RIFF will continue its focus on Rajasthan’s traditional music, with performances by artists including Mir Bassu Khan, Padma Shri Taga Ram, Ghewar Khan, Darre Khan Manganiyar, Feroze Khan and Asin Khan Langa.

More than 100 young Langa and Manganiyar musicians trained through the Mehrangarh Museum Music Projects' Folk Futures programme will also perform, highlighting efforts to pass Rajasthan’s musical traditions to a new generation.

The festival will additionally spotlight women artists including Anita Dangi, Dariya and Kewal Meghwal, and Ganga and Sundar.

Theatre Joins the Festival

For the first time, Jodhpur RIFF will expand into spoken theatre with Brhannala by Adishakti Theatre. The movement-driven production explores Arjuna’s year in disguise as a dance teacher and adds a theatrical dimension to the festival’s multidisciplinary programme.

Across its five-day run, Jodhpur RIFF 2026 will transform Mehrangarh Fort and its surrounding spaces into stages for concerts, workshops, collaborations and cultural performances, marking two decades of bringing Rajasthan’s musical traditions into dialogue with global roots music.