3rd ASEAN-India music festival concludes in Delhi

The 3rd ASEAN-India Music Festival was held at Purana Quila here in the national capital from November 29 to December 1. The festival was organised by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in collaboration with Seher.

Minister of State (MoS) for External Affairs, Pabitra Margherita inaugurated the festival in the presence of Ambassadors and High Commissioners of ASEAN countries in New Delhi.

The year 2024 marks a decade of India’s ‘Act East Policy’. To mark the occasion, a series of people-centric events and activities, including the ASEAN-India Music Festival, were announced by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the 21st ASEAN-India Summit held on 10 October 2024 in Vientiane, Lao PDR, the press statement by the Ministry of External Affairs noted.

10 bands from ASEAN Member States and 5 bands from India captivated the audience through their spell-binding performances during the festival reflecting the civilisational bonds between ASEAN and India that have thrived on people-to-people linkages.

The MEA noted that an estimated more than 15,000 people attended the festival.

In his opening remarks for the festival, MoS Margherita had said, “Music is a universal language that inspires, heals, and connects us. Today’s event is very special because we have an opportunity to hear music from a region with which we share deep civilization bonds. We share language, literature, cultural practices, stories of Ramayana and Mahabharata, Jatakas, Buddhism, art, architecture and even festivals”.

India and ASEAN have seen various high-level interactions in recent times. In October, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Laos to participate in the 21st India-ASEAN Summit. During the Summit, PM Modi had called the 21st century the “Asian century” and noted that India-ASEAN ties were critical to guiding Asia’s future.

More recently, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar delivered the keynote address at the 8th Roundtable of the ASEAN-India Network of Think Tanks in early November. “India and ASEAN are major demographies whose emerging demands can not only support each other but become larger productive forces in the international economy. Our collaboration can also be crucial in addressing contemporary challenges,” he had said.

Jaishankar further expressed great confidence in the India-ASEAN ties and highlighted that the deep cultural and civilizational connect between the two regions had resulted in fruitful cooperation and a strong foundation for a deeper partnership benefitting our people.