Shillong, Nov 30: The much awaited and one of the biggest musical festivals of the North East being organized in the picturesque landscape of Garo Hills in Meghalaya, the 4th Edition of Me’gong Festival 2024 kick off on Friday evening with electrifying performances and vibrant cultural extravaganza at Baljek Airport in West Garo Hills near Tura.
The festival is the perfect representation of the fusion of Garo art and culture with the best of global music that has touched music lovers from around the world.
Meghalaya Tourism Minister, Paul Lyngdoh, graced the first day of Me’gong Festival as Chief Guest along with the Ambassador of Uzbekistan Sardor Mirzayusupovich Rustambaev, Ambassador of El Salvador Guillermo Rubio Funes, Ambassador of Jamaica Jason K M Hall and host of dignitaries and Officers of various Department of the district attended the festival.
It may be mentioned that the permanent presenting partner of Me’gong Festival is Meghalaya Tourism and this festival is the initiative of the Department of Tourism, Government of Meghalaya. The core mission of the festival is to promote tourism in Garo Hills of Meghalaya by bringing music and nature lovers of different parts of India and world to this beautiful and culturally vibrant region of Meghalaya.
Prominent national artists like Gajendra Verma, Euphoria, DJ Uditaa Goswami including local Rock Band from the State Haystack Ladies, Da Suraka performed with unstoppable energy creating every moment into pure magic on the first day of the Me’gong Festival.
Meanwhile, on the second day, legendary international Swedish rock band and one of the most popular bands of the world “EUROPE” along with Indus Creed- the rock band from Mumbai, Shanka Tribe, Restless Desire will be performing.
Further, there is a separate Day Stage (MGMP) which is solely dedicated to the local artists of Garo Hills where of the Dopos, Murder in Space, Aransa, Ahaia, Strange Origins, etc.
It may be mentioned that the Department of Tourism, Government of Meghalaya had successfully hosted two popular international bands namely MLTR and Big Mountain in the year 2022 to an audience of 2.6 lakh in two days. Similarly, last year’s Me’gong Festival hosted over 3 lakh people and was headlined by Vengaboys and Bollywood sensation Arman Mallik.
The venue for this event is a dysfunctional airport at Baljek with a tarmac strip of 1.3 kms and the entire airport campus dedicated for this event which is why despite such huge numbers the venue easily accommodates each one of them and this also clearly depicts the magnitude and the reach of this flagship event of Meghalaya Tourism. Most importantly, ticket prices are kept to an absolute nominal level so that each and every one can get access to the festival and the footfall is high.
Meghalaya Chief Minister, Conrad K Sangma, Meghalaya Speaker, Thomas A Sangma, Tourism Minister, Paul Lyngdoh and a host of other dignitaries are set to grace the festival.
Apart from this, the Me’gong Festival 2024 with the theme titled “Echoes of Tradition” will showcase the rich and vibrant culture of the Garo Tribe of Meghalaya. Traditional dance forms, the local brew, Garo Cuisines, traditional sports, the Garo way of life and many other such interesting and engrossing aspects will also be on display in the festival.
Other added attractions of the festival are Garo Handloom and Handicraft, traditional Garo Culinary Showcase, cooking demonstration, Brew Village, Eating contest, Model Garo Village, Activity Zone, Camping Zone, Stall arena, Light and laser shows.
The festival has received tremendous response from the music and festival goers of the nation and that is evident in the ticket booking data that we have received with tickets being booked from all parts of the country.
This year’s edition will take Garo Hills closer to the rest of the country and the world and visitors can also explore this hidden paradise tucked in this beautiful state of Meghalaya and show Garo culture to the world.
Also Read: Meghalaya secures Rs. 198.5 cr from Finance Ministry for tourism infrastructure at Umiam & Mawkhanu
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