Rahul Somvanshi
Seeds of Banyan has announced the second Aarey Music Festival, scheduled for 11–13 December 2026 at the Aarey amphitheatre in Mumbai. The volunteer-led initiative says entry will be free, with registration available through its official festival page.
According to the organisers, the programme will include Warli tarpa music and dance, murals, workshops, and an art installation and exhibition made from recycled and natural materials. The accompanying art exhibition is expected to open ten days before the music festival, which places its opening on 1 December, subject to the organisers’ final programme details.
A festival in Aarey
The event is planned for Aarey, a large green area in Mumbai that has long been central to public debate about urban development, biodiversity and the rights and livelihoods of Adivasi communities. Seeds of Banyan describes itself as a community initiative working in the Aarey Forest and says its first open-air music festival took place in December 2025.
On its website, the group says the 2025 event featured tarpa and nadaswaram performances, Warli dance, murals and workshops, and was organised by volunteers, artists, Save Aarey members and local residents. Karmactive has not independently audited the group’s funding figures or all of its descriptions of the earlier event.
Registration and practical information
The official 2026 event page lists the venue as the Aarey amphitheatre, Mumbai, and says attendance is free. Visitors should use the organisers’ registration page for the programme, workshop availability, accessibility information, transport guidance and any changes to timings or venue arrangements.
The festival’s stated focus—music, art, nature and community—makes the setting part of the programme, rather than simply a backdrop. That also means organisers and attendees will need to manage waste, sound, access and visitor movement carefully in a landscape valued for both its ecological and cultural importance.
Source: Seeds of Banyan official website and festival page. This article is an event preview; its details may change before December.
