NEW DELHI, 21 November 2022 – The second edition of the ASEAN-India Music Festival returned to the historical site of Purana Qila, India for a three-day showcase of the best traditional and contemporary music from ASEAN and India.
The festival was organised by the Ministry of External Affairs of India, in collaboration with SEHER, to commemorate the 30th year of ASEAN-India Dialogue Relations.
The ASEAN-India Music Festival 2022 brought together 10 bands from ASEAN Member States and five acts from India. A prelude concert at the Ashoka University on 17 November and a workshop at Dr. B.R. Ambedkar School of Specialized Excellence and Global Music Institute on 21 November were also held to promote ASEAN awareness among students.
The closing ceremony was graced by the Union Minister of State for External Affairs and Culture of India, Smt. Meenakshi Lekhi, Ambassadors and representatives from the ASEAN Member States’ embassies in India.
“I saw all of you enjoying yourselves, so I know the festivals are a hit when audiences are happy, when youngsters are happy. That means we did a good job. So, you must cheer and clap for ASEAN-India friendship,” says Minister Lekhi.
The Music Festival attracted approximately 15,000 people of all ages and backgrounds, including the elderly, on-site. About 7,000 viewers tuned in via YouTube Live, as it was also widely shared across national and international conventional media, such as TV, newspapers, radio, and magazines, as well as social media, with a total engagement of 2,300,000 accounts.
Until the first edition in October 2017, such a large-scale music festival has never been held, and this is an important initiative to boost the cultural relations in this vital sector between ASEAN Member States and India.
