Need for revival of folk music, says Lesle Lewis

Gurvinder Singh

Tribune News Service

Ludhiana, April 4

All new popular music trends in the country eventually end up become Bollywood music as the film industry readily gets inspired by new music trends. So, independent music eventually becomes Bollywood music, as even independent musicians eventually join the film industry, said musician Lesle Lewis, who was in the city for the promotion of Kasauli Rhythm and Blues Festival, being organised by the Genesis Foundation, that works for the treatment of children with heart disorders.

Lewis said there was a need for revival of folk music of the country and he would work towards it. “People of a region don’t essentially go far from their own music because it is in their roots. So, the next generation needs to connect to them. That is why I will collaborate with folk artistes in all parts of the country, including Punjab, to revive the folk music of different regions,” he said. Though he doesn’t know Punjabi, he likes the music. He is also considering singing Punjabi songs written by lyricist Kumar, he said.

He said he had started a campaign for promoting his music, and apart from the running cost, he didn’t charge anything for performances. “My fans anywhere can get in touch with me for a performance connect with Lewis’.

Speaking about the music festival of Kasauli, Kriti Makhija, a volunteer of Genesis Foundation, said the music festival to be organised on April 14 and April 15 was unique for different genres of music would be played at the festival. She said there were no tickets, but ‘donor cards’ for the event, as the entire funds raised from the event were going to be utilised for the treatment of children with heart disorders. She said the organisation earlier had worked for children suffering from thalasaemia and cancer too. But because there was no organisation working for heart treatment, which is costly and poor families cannot afford it, they took the initiative.

She said more than 1,200 children had been treated with the help of the foundation and more than 98 per cent of them were leading a healthy life.