23 Oct - 6 Nov 2026 · Dehradun 46 days to go

Thirty-one years of India remembering
itself.

A festival of music, dance, craft, and the conversation between them. Everyone welcome, all fifteen days. This year's theme - VIRASAT 31.
15 days· 300+ artists· 200+ artisans· 3 stages· ~1M visitors
Since 1995
31 yrs
Unbroken editions
since 1995
280+
Masters & maestros
hosted on stage
3,000+
Artists & performers
who have taken the stage
1,600+
Artisan families
who have sold at Virasat
15+
Countries represented
on our stages
This year

Highlights of Virasat 2026

The Grand Musical Stage
Sufi, ghazal, qawwali and the great voices. The evenings that have brings the legends to Doon.
Classical Music
Maestros of Hindustani vocal and instrumental music. A stage that has hosted the great gharanas
Indian Classical Dance
Kathak, Bharatanatyam, Odissi, Kuchipudi and Mohiniyattam
The Folk of Uttarakhand
Chholiya, Jhoda, Chancheri and the Jaunsari traditions.
Folk from Across India and the World
State troupes from ten Indian states, and international countries
Virasat Saadhna
School students of the classical arts, performing on the same ground as the masters.
The Master Crafts Bazaar
Hundred's of craftspeople from across the country. Watch a craft being made, not only bought.
Heritage Cuisine - Taste of India
Regional kitchens from across India, and a curated row of Dehradun's best-loved names.
The Vintage Car & Bike Rally
Fourteen years of vintage cars and classic bikes on Doon's roads to the Mussoorie hills.

Photographs and artists shown are from previous editions of Virasat and do not represent the 2026 line-up. This year's programme will be announced on the Programmes page.

On stage

This year's line-up

Full programme →
01 Programmes

Fifteen evenings. A hundred years of music, dance, and the conversation between them.

Browse the full programme →
02 Crafts & bazaar

A bazaar where artisans earn. Not just perform.

Three hundred and fifty artisans from across India and Central Asia. Bhadohi carpets, Madhubani painting, Firozabad glass, Uttarakhand's revived Ringal craft. Bought directly from the hands that made them, in the one fortnight of the year that sits between Dussehra and Diwali.

350
Artisans
50
Craft forms
1,600+
Families supported
Explore the bazaar →
№ 02
03 Legends · 1995 - 2025

Where the masters have made their stand.

In thirty years, this stage has held some of the finest practitioners of Indian music, dance, and craft to have walked any stage in the country. A few of them are no longer with us. Their performances at Virasat remain part of the record.

Begum Parveen Sultana
Patiala gharana · 2022, 2025
Pt. Ulhas Kashalkar
Gwalior / Jaipur · 2025
In memoriam
Ustad Bismillah Khan
Shehnai · Bharat Ratna · 1997
In memoriam
Pt. Shivkumar Sharma
Santoor · Padma Vibhushan · 2005, 2008
Browse all legends →
Partners across thirty editions
A new home for an old story

A new ground for a tradition thirty years deep.

Virasat has grown the way living traditions do. One more artist each year, one more corner of the country represented, one more family returning every October. That growth has finally outgrown the grounds that first held it.

This year, the festival moves to the Himalayan Cultural Centre in Kaulagarh, Dehradun. A state-of-the-art auditorium holds the performances that call for four walls and true acoustics. An open-air amphitheatre holds the ones that don't. And terraces open straight onto views of Mussoorie and the mountains beyond, so the hills stay part of the evening even between acts.

Landscaped grounds give the crafts bazaar and the food festival room to breathe, and to grow with the crowds who come for both. Parking at the adjacent helipad ground means getting here is as easy as the evening that follows.

Virasat isn't moving to a bigger venue. After three decades, it has found one that finally fits, for the youth discovering the festival for the first time and the families who have returned since the very first edition.

Address
Himalayan Cultural Centre
Kaulagarh, Dehradun, Uttarakhand 248003
View on Google Maps →

October is not far.
The hills will be calling soon.

Open to everyone, all fifteen days. Bring whoever you think should see this.

Plan your visit →