Singer Sona Mohapatra on what prompted composer husband Ram Sampath and her to build archive of folk music
Mohar Basu (MID-DAY; February 24, 2020)

With Bollywood songs dominating the taste of music aficionados, most other forms of music have unfortunately been relegated to the fringes. Keen to nurture the rich heritage of India, mid-day has learnt that singer-composer duo Sona Mohapatra and husband Ram Sampath have joined forces with NGO Virasat to build an archive for different forms of folk music in the country. Turns out, the couple has thrown open the doors of their studio to enable local artistes to record their folk songs, which will then be preserved by the non-profit organisation for perusal of music students.

"Both Ram and I are proud of our rich folk heritage. While Ram introduced me to world genres like Fado, Flamenco and Latin music, I introduced him to the folk music of India. Since then, it has been a fabulous journey of discovery," smiles Mohapatra.

For a country that is a treasure trove of literature and art, the artiste rues it is unfortunate to see how folk forms are all but forgotten. "As a culture, we are terrible at preserving our past — be it our architecture or even films. Since folk music is an oral tradition, nothing much is archived. Conserving folk music in our studios is a start in the right direction, but is far from being a long-term solution. We will continue to shine the spotlight on folk artists through our music. Bhavari Devi has become a sensation after debuting with us in Coke Studio."