Jodhpur RIFF marks 20th edition at Mehrangarh Fort, 22-26 October 2026

Jodhpur RIFF will celebrate its 20th edition at Mehrangarh Fort from 22 to 26 October 2026, with more than 250 Rajasthani folk artistes on the programme alongside international performers, several of whom will play in India for the first time, according to The Hindu.

The festival is staged under the Mehrangarh Museum Trust and is again timed to Sharad Purnima. This year's bill draws musicians from six continents and more than a dozen countries, including Colombia, Chile, Cabo Verde, Poland, Scotland and Estonia.

A line-up rooted in Rajasthan

The Rajasthani contingent is drawn from the Manganiyar, Langa, Meghwal, Bhopa, Kalbelia, Meena and Bhil traditions. Alongside them are Indian artists from other musical backgrounds: vocalists Ashwini Bhide-Deshpande and Jasleen Kaur Monga, pena player Mangka Mayanglambam, pianist-composer Merlin D'Souza and violinist Ambi Subramaniam.

The India debuts include the Filipino-Murrawari artist DOBBY, the Latin American duo Camila y Silvio, the British flute and Uilleann pipe player Michael McGoldrick, and Guitare Voginha of Cabo Verde.

Collaborations and venues

The Hindu describes collaboration as the core of this edition. The young Langa trio SAZ will perform with McGoldrick and Donald Shaw, and Martha Redbone is developing a new partnership with SAZ.

Concerts will be spread across several spaces in and around the fort: Jaswant Thada, Zenana Courtyard, Rao Jodha Desert Rock Park, Club Mehran, Veer Durga Das Memorial Park and Chokelao Bagh.

The festival's place in Rajasthani folk music

Festival director and curator Divya Bhatia credits RIFF with changing how Rajasthani folk artists are seen. He says each edition features around 200 musicians, dancers and performers from the state, and calls the festival "the calling card for Rajasthani folk music".

Bhatia argues that traditions survive through sharing and learning, which is why the festival builds collaborations around these artists and takes them to venues in India and abroad. He also says RIFF has produced more new work with traditional musicians than any other entity, and that press coverage of their music, names, stories and communities over the past decade has exceeded that of the preceding 50 years. In his view, this visibility has brought wider employment and improved livelihoods. These are Bhatia's own assessments, as quoted by The Hindu, rather than independently verified figures.

Full schedules and ticketing details were not included in the report.

This report draws on reporting by thehindu.com.