On Friday, March 11, celebrate the Hindu holiday of Holi with Red Baraat Festival of Colors, an immersive experience at the South Orange Performing Arts Center.
Led by dhol player Sunny Jain, the group has drawn worldwide praise for merging North Indian Bhangra with elements of Funk, Go-Go, Rock and raw Punk energy. SPIN Magazine calls the group “a knitted blend of poly-rhythmic panache exploring what it means to communicate music between individuals and across cultures.” Recently, the group performed at the World Expo in Dubai. In February, Sunny Jain was featured in a Super Bowl LVI commercial. Tickets for Red Baraat’s SOPAC performance are $25-$35.
Traditionally, Holi is marked by public gatherings of songs, dance and the exchange of “colors.” It signifies the victory of good over evil, the arrival of spring, and for many, a festive day to meet others, play and laugh, forget and forgive, and repair ruptured relationships.
After presenting a multi-city festival for nine straight years that showcased South Asian artists during the Hindu holiday of Holi, Red Baraat took the spirit of the festival to the next level: a year-round show of communal revelry that brings together what NPR has called “the best party band in years,” a montage of classic Bollywood visuals, and a fiery dancer.
Red Baraat Festival of Colors debuted in 2012 at a sold out Le Poisson Rouge in New York City and then expanded to over a dozen cities in the United States. The night of music highlights the South Asian Diaspora through a diverse range of styles.
During Red Baraat Festival of Colors, the band, the visuals and the dancer are like a mélange of colors, each bold on its own but commingling to form a stunning panorama.
The ever-evolving Red Baraat is a pioneering band from Brooklyn, New York. Led by dhol player Sunny Jain, the group has drawn worldwide praise for its merging of musical styles. Created with the agenda of manifesting joy and unity in all people, the band’s outlook empowers their audience in a near hedonistic celebration of music and dance.
On the heels of their 2018 album release, Sound The People, Red Baraat is very much taking their sonic signature to a new realm while firmly placing it within the context of a globalized generation. NPR’s All Songs Considered called their latest release “wildly infectious, soul-grooving music.” And Stereogum said “Red Baraat delivers an explosion of sound. A frenzy of Funk, Jazz, Hip-Hop, and Indian Bhangra.”
Red Baraat has released five albums prior, including 2017’s Bhangra Pirates (#4 on World Music Charts Europe), 2012’s Shruggy Ji (debuted at #1 on the Billboard World Music Charts) and their debut release in 2010, Chaal Baby, which was featured in FX TV show, It’s Always Sunny in Philadelphia. Their beloved live show has crisscrossed the globe including stops at Bonnaroo, Peter Gabriel’s WOMAD Festival (UK, Australia, New Zealand, and Spain), Austin City Limits, New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival, Luxembourg Philharmonic, New York City’s iconic Bowery Ballroom and Vienna Concert House. The band has performed at the request of The White House (Obama), TED and the Olympic Games.