Music by the lake

Escape, a three-day music festival in Uttrakhand, commences tomorrow with 30 bands from across the country performing along with Indie filmmakers, graffiti and pottery artists

In its fourth year now, Escape, a music festival organised by two Delhi companies Potheads along with MGMH (Music Gets Me High) will take place from May 20-22 at The Lake Resort in Naukuchiatal, Uttrakhand.

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Touted to be a mini Woodstock of sorts, the event, spread over three days, offers a wholesome experience of camping, live music and many workshops by photographers, filmmakers and musicians.

'It’s a fringe festival of sorts. It’s a great mix of artistes and includes jazz, blues, rock and electronic music,' mentions Riknika Jayan, owner of MGMH. 'There are a lot of other art-related things happening as well. Potheads’ original idea was to get away from the city and have an all-round art and culture festival. So there’re activities like music, fire-dancing and pottery all with the lovely backdrop of the mountains,' she says.

The music performances will take place on three separate stages over the course of the event. The Sound Garden stage will feature jazz and fusion artistes like Vedanta, Adil & Vasundara and Ranjit Barot. The Magic Forest stage will showcase rock and electronica with bands like Indigo Children, Half Step Down and Teddy Boy Kill. Finally the third stage, Rabbit Hole, has experimental acts like Hari Om Project and Alisha Bhatt.

The director of Potheads, L Mama Tochhawng, who’s also the curator of the event, adds, 'The idea behind Escape is to provide a space for artistes to express themselves within beautiful natural surroundings. In the first year, we had an audience of only 60 people but last year we had over 1,200. This year, we hope to see at least 1,000 per day,' he says.

Passes are for Rs 2000 for two days and Rs 2500 for three days. For more information and band line-up, visit www.escapefestival.in or Call: +91 78381 70001.