New Delhi: India has the potential to host music festivals that are bigger in scale than renowned global events like Coachella, Punjabi singer-actor Diljit Dosanjh said during his meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on New Year’s Day.
The globally popular singer met the prime minister at his residence on Wednesday where they discussed music, culture, and India’s artistic legacy.
During the meeting, PM Modi asked Dosanjh about his experience of travelling outside of India and performing at various global festivals like the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in April 2023.
“I feel that they have made festivals like Coachella or any other very big. And I believe we can make it much bigger. People travel from all over the world for such festivals,” said the 40-year-old singer.
Dosanjh said music is embedded in India’s cultural fabric and noted how people who are not trained professionally can often display impeccable talent.
“Whether we are eating food in a dhaba or someone is singing in Rajasthani, the song we listen to is so melodious that I feel like I should stop singing. He is singing such a good song. And I sing professionally, this person is not even singing professionally. And he is singing better than me. He has so much art in him.
“If such a development happens here, people from all over the world will come,” Diljit said.
The prime minister told the singer that he had been thinking about the same for many years.
“Now I am doing it through Waves,” Modi said, referring to the upcoming World Audio Visual Entertainment Summit.
The summit, to be held from February 5 to 9, is being touted as a global platform for creative talents, fostering collaborations and showcasing the country’s potential as a hub for world-class content creation.
“My idea is that we are such a big country, and most of the world’s films are made here. The biggest creative industry in the world is here. So I’m trying to start a big movement here through Waves. Now India will be the centre of the creative world,” he said.
The prime minister also recalled a discussion about music with Angela Merkel, the former Chancellor of Germany.
“She asked me about music. I told her that in my country, the music before sunrise is different, and the music after sunrise is different. I told her that there are different types of music in India,” he said.
“Then I said whether it is a sad situation or happy situation, there are different types of music. She was very interested,” he added.
Dosanjh also spoke about his successful “Dil-Luminati India Tour”, which began in New Delhi on October 26 and ended in Ludhiana on December 31.During the two-month tour, Diljit also performed in cities, including Mumbai, Jaipur, Chandigarh, Indore, Bengaluru, and Guwahati.
“It is the biggest ever tour from India. We performed in so many countries and did so many stadium shows,” he said.
“We say ‘Mera Bharat Mahaan’ but I got to witness this during this tour when I visited different cities. I understood why we say this,” he said.
PM Modi said Indian people are very environment friendly and asked Dosanjh to spread awareness about it through his shows.
The prime minister also praised the singer for staying grounded despite the fame he has achieved.
