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Folk Music Revival: Why Young Artists Are Returning to Roots

Across India, young artists are turning back to the music their grandparents sang — Baul songs from Bengal, folk tunes from Rajasthan, devotional forms from every corner of the country — and fusing them with rock, blues and electronic sounds. The folk revival is not nostalgia. It is a generation discovering that its oldest music still has something to say.

The Baul example

Bengal's Bauls are wandering mystic minstrels whose songs carry a profound spiritual message in simple tunes. The word Baul comes from the Sanskrit word "batul," meaning mad — a madness born of love for the infinite self believed to be present in every human being. The most famous Baul, Purna Das, even appeared on the cover of Bob Dylan's album John Wesley Harding. Baul culture has been recognised by UNESCO on its list of Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity.

Fusion as a bridge

Fusion is how folk reaches new ears. Folk-rock band Bolepur Bluez described themselves as the first "Baul Rock" act, fusing western rock with traditional Baul songs to globalise the form. Their logic is simple: the current generation leans toward rock, club music and band formats, so carrying folk through those sounds puts it in front of audiences who would never seek it out otherwise.

Why roots matter now

Young artists return to folk because it gives them something no algorithm can manufacture: identity. A folk song carries a place, a language and a story. In a streaming world where everything sounds the same, roots are a differentiator — and the artists who carry them forward are building the most distinctive music in India today.

Folk on new stages

Baul music has travelled far beyond Bengal's villages. Baul performers have appeared at events like Lakme Fashion Week and shows like India's Got Talent, while composers have drawn on Baul and Bhatiyali roots in mainstream film work — S.D. Burman is widely regarded as the form's primal flagbearer in Hindi film music. Grassroots efforts keep the tradition alive at home too: groups organise the annual Baul Fakir Utsab, where Bauls from across the state gather, and volunteers run night schools for the children of folk artists. Folk survives when communities choose to carry it — and right now, a new generation is choosing to.

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