The SANDSCAPE FESTIVAL Jaisalmer, India 2017

By mosquitomassala | On 20/08/2021 | Sandscape Festival / Art Residency

The full moon rose nigh into the sky. The wind carried with it the amalgamation of voices of travellers, adventurers and cultural seekers gathered in the Thar Desert, near Khuri Village.

Amidst the sand dunes, an infusion of electronic music with the folk music of the Manganiyar community, unfolded on the main stage. Evocative of a peacock feather, the origami inspired stage set the backdrop for Projection Mapping and VJing of content created through an initiative called Graphic Designers Without Borders.

DJ Rohan1000 flew down from Paris, and joined Indian veterans of electronic music, DJ Mash (Delhi), Ma Faiza (Pune), and Reverse Osmosis (Jaipur), in guiding the way after the initial Folk Music by Talab Khan and his Band. A special mention to Lucid Raaga, for starting the second evening with original fusion music made in collaboration with the local folk musicians and with the voice of kalbelia dancer, Nirmal Sapera. Fat Krrent (a promising youngster from Ajmer) did a Beat-box and rap set and performed a live jugal-bandhi with Folk artists Gafoor Khan and Band. The skill with the khartal was showcased beautifully by Kutle Khan, and the children from the Pehchaan Folk Music Institute of Barna performed a special set led by Dayam Khan.

Queen Harish, has been described as a Classical Indian tapestry coming to life. She and her students from Japan took the stage by storm. Mirrors shimmered and golden gauze glinted as the dancers spun in charismatic control, weaving a story of strength of the people in surviving the harsh desert, then breaking into a Bollywood piece, and then finally speaking eloquently about the city of Jaisalmer and how it celebrates culture.

Art installations peppered the tops of dunes and marked a path to The Cabinet of Curiosities. This second stage, hosted the Digital art performance by French artists Etienne Bernardot and Mathieu Sanchez from Crossed Lab; as well as the open-air cinema where audiences watched ‘Road Movie’ by Dev Benegal.

The Festival was witness to two days of moonrises and sunrises.

The SANDSCAPE FESTIVAL took place in February of 2017, and was organised by the Sandscape Art collective, comprised of Gajendra Singh Sodha, of Mama’s Resort and Camps, Nitesh Mathur of Universal Selective, and Samvida Nanda and Viktor Furiani of the Mosquito Massala.

Participation of Mosquito Massala at Sandscape:

· Co-Direction and Coordination of the Festival.

· Co-Direction of Production and Technique for the Festival

· Initiated Graphic Designers Without Borders

· Stage Design (concept to construction) -- With assistance in construction by Luna ji, the master carpenter from Khuri.

· Projection Mapping and VJing for the Stage.

· Development of the Electric Desert Lab.

· Co-Curation and Coordination of the Artists

· Documentation and Montages

· Organised Pre-Parties in Mumbai (The Den, and Bonobo) and Jaisalmer (KB Lodge)

· Co-Conceptualised the project and festival

· Co-Curation and Co-Mediation of all artists during the Art Residency.