Raghu Dixit, Karsh Kale set Coorg music fest on fire

Serving Indian ethnic and folk music in their innovative, modern styles, two well-known Indian bands - The Raghu Dixit Project and Karsh Kale Collective, jazzed up the mood of an already keyed-up audience at the Storm Music Festival's first day Friday.

The two-day fest is taking place in the misty but picturesque landscape of Napoklu.

The band of Raghu Dixit chose to present their unique Indian folk music to different level by contemporarising it in modern way. The unique combination of traditional Indian sounds mixed with western influences was one of the high points of the day, not to forget Dixit's humorous way of interacting with fans.

Karsh Kale Collective mixed different genres of music such as Indian classical and folk with electronica, rock and pop for their performance, thrilling music aficionados with their passion and creativity.

"I loved both of them and I think they are the pioneers of the music industry... so who would want to miss then if they are performing in our city," said Raghav Ram, one of the local residenta who came with his girlfriend to see them perform.

Dixit was excited to perform in Coorg.

"It is always good to perform here. We were there for the last edition also and I thank all who came today to see us perform. I also feel bad for those who didn't come to be the part of fest and I just wish they should join us tomorrow," he said during his performance.

Other who added fun on day one were bands Aganya, Coshish, Agam, and Advaita, singers Alisha Pais, Anand Vijay Sharma and spinners like Nikhil Chinapa, Vachan Chinapa, Pearl along with others.

As many as 40 Indian artists and five international artists are set to perform on four stages at the event.

In an another eagerly-awaited performance, singer-composer Shankar Mahadevan and popular fusion band Indian Ocean, two powerhouses of the Indian music industry, are set to collaborate for the first time for the grand finale of the fest.

The event will also be a melange of adventure, camping, ecological awareness and late night campsite jams. In all, the fest will go beyond music, with workshops on farming and yoga. The festival also stands firm on its 'No Drugs' policy.