As the monsoon breathes new life into Mumbai, O Gaanewali returns to the Royal Opera House after a highly acclaimed performance and an overwhelming audience response, with a special repertoire of forms like Kajari, Sawan, and Jhoola, celebrating the music of the rains.

Written and curated by Avanti Patel, a top 9 finalist of Indian Idol Season 10, the evening will take you through the beautiful literary, emotive, and musical repository of these folk forms. The monsoon of the Gangetic Plains typically brings folk melodies created and sung by women, representing longing and separation from their partners. These folk forms are ever-changing living traditions, using song and melody to talk about relational & social issues faced by women. Presented in a conversational mix of Hindi and English, the performance invites audiences to travel back in time to discover the remarkable lives of the tawaifs, the women musicians who were among the foremost cultural torchbearers of 19th and early 20th-century India. Through immersive storytelling, live performance, and historical anecdotes, O Gaanewali honours their artistry while reclaiming their rightful place in India's cultural memory.

 The lead vocalists share a deep musical lineage. Both Avanti and Rutuja Lad are students of Padmashri Vidushi Dr. Ashwini Bhide Deshpande and carry the artistic inheritance of her aunt, Sarla Bhide, a senior disciple of the legendary Shobha Gurtu. They will be accompanied on stage by musicians Akshay Jadhav (Tabla), Siddarth Mesta (Harmonium), and Sandeep Mishra (Sarangi).

Join us as the monsoon sets the stage for an unforgettable evening of music, nostalgia, and storytelling.