Reviving and Preserving Folk Music Through Vanee Utsav – Recognising thousands of Artist in single event
Where Folk Traditions Are Not Remembered, They Are Resurrected.
When Cultural Treasures Are Left to Fade
Rural Rajasthan is a living archive of India's rich musical soul from veena-based bhajans to centuries-old oral vanis echoing the wisdom of saints like Kabir, Meera, and Dadu. But these sacred traditions are at risk of extinction.
As modern entertainment drowns out community-based devotional music:
Elder artists pass away unheard, undocumented
Youngsters lack platforms, motivation, or mentorship to carry forward these traditions
Instruments like the वीणा are vanishing from homes that once echoed with their melodies
These are not just songs. They are generational philosophies, lived prayers, and musical scriptures. If not preserved and celebrated, India stands to lose its spiritual voice.
Vanee Utsav: A Spiritual Renaissance Rooted in Soil
Vanee Utsav is not just a festival. It is a cultural correction. A revival. A movement to reclaim what has quietly slipped into the shadows, the soul-stirring spiritual legacy of veena-based bhajans and the oral traditions of Marwar’s saintly vanis.
Spearheaded by Ruma Devi Foundation, and inspired by the life of Veena Bhajan Legend Danji Ji, the festival creates a sacred space where rural voices are not only heard, they are honored, preserved, and propelled forward.
In a time where tradition is drowned in noise, this movement becomes a powerful stage for purity.
Through months of grassroots outreach, community nominations, and field visits, we identify folk singers, mandali groups, and veena artists some of whom have never seen a stage, some of whom sing to empty village squares under starlit skies.
We bring them together in a grand annual event Vanee Utsav where:
More than 500 veena bhajan singers gather across two days to perform, learn, and celebrate
An 18-hour continuous bhajan marathon brings spiritual music to life unfiltered, uninterrupted, unforgettable
Artists are grouped and awarded across five powerful categories: Emerging talent, youth, senior masters, lifetime contribution, and preservation through organizations
Alongside stage performances, rare vanis are recorded, documented, and digitally archived ensuring this oral heritage is passed on, not passed over
Vanee Utsav doesn’t entertain.
It educates, uplifts, and immortalizes.
It’s a declaration that our oldest voices still carry the strongest truths.
When Forgotten Voices Become Folk Icons
The impact of Vanee Utsav is not measured in claps or camera flashes, it is measured in tears of recognition, in pride restored, and in generations reconnected with their roots.
In its latest edition:
Over 500 veena artists from 100+ villages across Rajasthan came together. many for the first time in their lives
₹5,00,000 worth of traditional veena instruments were distributed tools that will now sing in homes for decades
₹3,00,000 in prize money was awarded to outstanding bhajan performers and cultural protectors
Countless hours of oral vani recordings were captured to be digitized transforming local memory into global heritage
Thousands of rural spectators gathered at Haveli Resorts, Barmer, not for entertainment, but for spiritual elevation
Artists who once had no audience found themselves receiving standing ovations, adorned with garlands, and introduced as cultural torchbearers
For many elderly singers, this was the first time their names were written on a certificate. For many youth, it was the first time their voices were taken seriously.
And for many communities from Jaisalmer to Bikaner. it was a moment of realization that their folk culture isn’t dying. It’s rising again.
Through Vanee Utsav, a deep message echoes across the Thar:
Our culture does not belong in museums.
It belongs on stage. In the heart of the people.
Alive. Revered. Unstoppable.
