How Daira's 'Jaadoo Bastar' Tapped Into Chhattisgarh Tribal Stories

Mumbai rock band teamed up with artists including Lakheshwar Khudaram and Hindi lyricist Alok Ranjan Srivastava for five songs and a documentary that goes behind the scenes of the project

- ANURAG TAGAT

In july 2022, when Mumbai rock band Daira got the call to be a part of a workshop and perform with tribal musicians in Bastar, Chhattisgarh, there were understandably some presumptions.

Vocalist Piyush Kapoor says, “We thought should we go or not? Would they accept us, or would they say you’ve come to wreck our traditions? People think it’s a very violent place and that there are only Naxals there and you’d get kidnapped or something. People were very hospitable and very sweet. I think more people should go and explore that place. It’s very untouched and unexplored in that sense.”

After the workshop at Bastar Monsoon Festival organized by Bastar’s then-collector Rajat Bansal and the government of Chhattisgarh in July 2022, Daira decided they should go back and make five songs. The result is their new five-track collection of songs Jaadoo Bastar, featuring Bastar artists Lakheshwar Khudaram, Ablesh Kumar, Vineeta Pandey, flautist Rahul Raikwar and more.