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Milap have announced the second wave of events for their festival of Indian Arts & Culture, INDIKA 2025. The 15 day celebration of Indian music, dance and culture, will take place across the entire Liverpool City Region this October, (17 - 31 October) bringing the best of Indian arts to an even wider audience.
Chiming with Milap’s 40 year anniversary, the INDIKA festival will feature a programme of Indian music and dance, ranging from cutting-edge contemporary to deeply rooted traditional forms, plus yoga, poetry, storytelling and participatory activities for all the family. Events will take place across iconic Liverpool City Region venues, including The Tung Auditorium, Liverpool Philharmonic Music Room, Future Yard, The Storybarn and more to be announced soon.
Described by World Music Central as; “…a splendid extravaganza celebrating the diverse facets of Indian music, dance, arts, and culture” - INDIKA showcases the best of contemporary Indian Arts and Culture, presenting a bold and varied programme that celebrates India’s diverse cultural traditions. With Diwali falling on 20 October this year, Milap’s Diwali celebrations will feature as a centrepiece of this year’s INDIKA.
Audiences won't just watch and listen to performances - they'll feel them. With music, dance, food and storytelling from across India, INDIKA offers a multi-sensory experience that brings people together through culture and leaves audiences moved. Milap continues its work to connect audiences with the vibrant sounds and compelling stories of India, showcasing its enduring influence on the world stage - in Merseyside!
INDIKA 2025 - 2ND WAVE ANNOUNCEMENT
Milap + The Reader present Diwali Storytelling - Saturday 18 & Sunday 19 October 2025, 10am The Storybarn, Calderstones Park, Calderstones Rd, Liverpool, L18 3JB TICKETS
Celebrate love and light with a very special Diwali session. There’ll be time to explore the magical Storybarn, and share Diwali inspired stories and crafts. For families, best suited to 4-9 year olds.
Milap + Mellowtone present The Tapi Project - Wednesday 22 October 2025, 7.30pm Downstairs at the Everyman, 5-11 Hope St, Liverpool, L1 9BH TICKETS
The Tapi Project's is a continuous revival and retelling of stories that make up modern India - held together by their compelling songwriting and compositions. The ensemble blends funk and folk over a hypnotic tribal groove, powerful vocals and poetry exploring themes of urban life, lost roots, alienation, and the search for self. Influences from the worlds of jazz, folk and rock - filtered through the Indian subcontinent - all combine to create their unique and genre-defying sound. Their music is an emotional journey that speaks to the challenges faced by everyday people today.
Milap + Unity Theatre present Dancing with the Divine - Thursday 23 October 2025, 7.30pm Unity Theatre, 1 Hope Place, Liverpool, L1 9BG TICKETS
Conceived and performed by Sanjukta Sinha. Inspired by the timeless figure of Krishna, Dancing the Divine is a journey through love, longing, and surrender — a personal exploration of devotion, presence, and the unseen. In this intimate solo, Sanjukta Sinha draws from recent work that reflects a quiet, internal dialogue with the idea of the divine - however one may imagine it. Krishna never appears, yet his essence is felt in every movement and stillness. Through Kathak, Sanjukta asks: Can love exist without form? Can absence still hold presence? This is not a retelling of myths, but a living inquiry - an experience where the dancer becomes the seeker, the beloved, the question itself. The stage becomes a space to experience something beyond words - whatever that may mean to you.
Milap + Unity Theatre present The Idea of God - Friday 24 October 2025, 7.30pm Unity Theatre, 1 Hope Place, Liverpool, L1 9BG TICKETS
A solo Bharatanatyam performance by Dr. Apoorva Jayaraman Is He the creator, or is He my creation? Does God reside in art, or is art a path to the divine? Do I seek Him, or is She already within me?
The Idea of God is a full-length solo Bharatanatyam performance that traverses Indian thought and literature — from the ancient Vedas and Sangam texts to revolutionary writing of the 21st century. Through a series of powerful and rarely explored narratives, this evocative performance probes the evolving idea of the divine in Indian philosophy. Blending classical rigour with contemporary insight, Dr. Apoorva Jayaraman invites audiences to reflect on where the divine truly resides - in form, in feeling, or within the self. This is not simply a recital, but a layered enquiry into the many ways we imagine God.
Milap + The Tung Auditorium present The Stringmasters Saturday 25 October 2025, 7.30pm The Tung Auditorium, Yoko Ono Lennon Centre, 60 Oxford St, Liverpool, L7 3NY TICKETS
Anil Srinivasan, an award winning Indian pianist, and Dr Jayanthi Kumaresh, a virtuoso of the Saraswathi Veena, have forged a remarkable musical partnership through their innovative collaboration, notably showcased in their project The Stringmasters.
They were first brought together by Milap in 2013 for a concert at London’s Southbank Centre, where they discovered a natural synergy between the piano and veena, both string instruments. Their remarkable ability in blending Western and Carnatic classical traditions to create a unique ‘third space’ of musical expression has been winning fans worldwide.This partnership, marked by performances at venues as diverse as the Riverside Theatre in Sydney, the Habitat in Delhi, Bengaluru’s Jagriti Theatre and Chennai’s The ARTery, emphasises intuitive and genre-neutral explorations of ragas.
Milap + The Reader present Yoga & Live Sitar Sunday 26 October 2025, 10am & 1.30pm Theatre Room, The Storybarn, Calderstones Park, Calderstones Rd, Liverpool, L18 3JB TICKETS
Join yoga practitioner Sian Griffin and sitar artist Jonathan Mayer for an immersive 90-minute session combining movement, breath, and sound.
The first 45 minutes will be a guided yoga practice with Sian, focusing on pranayama (breathwork) and asana to ground and energise. In the second half, Jonathan introduces live sitar, creating an immersive soundscape as the session moves into deeper movement, rest, and meditative stillness. Expect guided relaxation, elements of Yoga Nidra, and a closing sound bath with sitar and crystal singing bowls - designed to calm the nervous system and invite deep rest. An intimate journey into stillness, presence, and connection — where sound and movement flow together, shaping the experience in equal harmony.
Milap + The Reader present Shared Reading at Indika Festival - Sunday 26 October 2025, 11am & 1pm Blue Reading Room, The Storybarn, Calderstones Park, Calderstones Rd, Liverpool, L18 3JB TICKETS
The audience will explore the words of celebrated poets and authors with connections to India, including Rohinton Mistry, Arundhathi Subramaniam, and Debjani Chatterjee. Through their stories and poems, you can celebrate India’s rich heritage, vibrant diversity, and creative spirit. Everyone is welcome to share how the words make them feel, as well as their thoughts, ideas and memories. There is no pressure to talk or read aloud. Everyone experiences what is read in their own way, but the shared language found in literature can help us to understand ourselves – and others – better.
Milap + Unity Theatre present Stories of the Ramayana - Tuesday 28 October 2025, 2pm Unity Theatre, 1 Hope Place, Liverpool, L1 9BG TICKETS
Performed by Upahaar Dance Company (London) Graceful, expressive, and full of storytelling magic - this vibrant performance brings to life stories from the Ramayana, the ancient Indian epic that celebrates the triumph of good over evil and the return of light over darkness.
Closely tied to the festival of Diwali, the Ramayana explores themes of love, duty, courage, and the power of hope - universal ideas that continue to resonate today.Performed in the classical South Indian dance style of Mohiniattam, dancers from Upahaar weave together movement, music, and vivid expression in a show perfect for families and curious minds of all ages. After the show, families are invited to a free, fun, hands-on workshop from 3-3:50pm.
Milap + Future Yard present Sarathy Korwar - Wednesday 29 October 2025, 7.30pm Future Yard, 75 Argyle St, Birkenhead, Wirral, CH41 6AB TICKETS
Experience a bold new soundworld with Indian percussionist, composer and producer Sarathy Korwar. In this live performance, Sarathy presents music from his upcoming album «There Is Beauty, There Already» - a striking, percussion-led exploration of rhythm, voice and electronics. Blending hypnotic, trance-like drum patterns with South Asian temple procession rituals, jazz percussion, and contemporary minimalism, this is futuristic folk at its most immersive. A standout voice in the UK jazz scene, Korwar is known for fusing jazz, electronics, and Indian influences with themes of decoloniality, community and transcendence. His music has earned critical acclaim worldwide, with collaborations ranging from Anoushka Shankar to Shabaka Hutchings and praise from The Guardian, Pitchfork, and Rolling Stone.
Milap + The Tung Auditorium present Resonance - Strings Across Borders - Friday 31 October 2025, 7.30pm The Tung Auditorium, Yoko Ono Lennon Centre, 60 Oxford St, Liverpool, L7 3NY TICKETS
Experience an extraordinary fusion of musical traditions in this captivating concert, where Indian music meets contemporary guitar. In the first half, acclaimed sarod maestro Dr Pandit Ranajit Sengupta, celebrated for his deep, introspective performances, joins forces with distinguished sitarist Ashim Chowdhury, a torchbearer of the Imdad Khani Gharana.
Together, they present a dynamic jugalbandi (duet), showcasing the intricate interplay and profound depth of Indian classical strings. The second half welcomes the versatile and virtuosic German guitarist André Krengel, known for his unique style that transcends genres. Krengel’s contemporary guitar artistry converses with Sengupta’s sarod, creating a cross-cultural dialogue that bridges Eastern and Western musical landscapes. Accompanying them on tabla is the esteemed Kousic Sen, whose rhythmic mastery provides a solid foundation, enhancing the synergy between the string instruments. Join us for an evening where tradition meets innovation, and diverse musical worlds resonate in harmony.
Milap launched INDIKA in 2012, and the festival has continued to grow ever since, with performances from artists such as Pandit Birju Maharaj, Rakesh Chaurasia, Aditi Mangaldas, Talvin Singh OBE, Lalgudi GJR Krishnan, Jayanthi Kumaresh, Priyadarsini Govind, Shashank, Rama Vaidyanathan, The Singh Twins, Mythili Prakash and Patri Satish Kumar!
“Thank you for having us, it was a wonderful audience, and we love you Milap!”
Shakir Khan, performer at INDIKA 2023
“Fantastic festival, fantastic audience, and we really really enjoyed it.”
Shahbaz Hussain
“The standard of every Milap event I have ever attended has always been unfailingly world class. I have been performing in and around Liverpool all my life and this organisation is the jewel in the City’s cultural crown beyond any doubt.”
Audience Member
“It was out of this world! We really enjoyed the performance tonight… so beautiful, and so touching.”
Audience member
“As Milap turns 40, this year’s INDIKA feels especially meaningful, as a celebration of how far we’ve come and a statement of where we’re headed; it’s a reflection of everything we believe Indian arts can be. It is a space for everyone - whether you’ve grown up with these traditions or you’re discovering them for the first time - to feel inspired, moved, and connected. I’m excited that we’re welcoming back some incredible artists loved by audiences over the years, who’ve shaped our story, while also showcasing bold, boundary-pushing work that’s shaping the future of Indian music and dance. For me, INDIKA is where tradition meets imagination - and every performance is designed to leave a lasting impression on you. I hope you’ll join us this October for a festival of experiences that are rich in spirit, depth and meaning!"
Alok Nayak - Artistic Director of Milap
INDIKA is a multi-arts festival packed full of exciting events and experiences; whether you're an Indian music and dance aficionado, or eager to experience new art forms, there's something for everyone to explore and enjoy. This Autumn, INDIKA will present some of the UK and India's most exciting emerging talent, legendary performers, and Milap favourites who have wowed audiences in previous years.
Header Image: Sanjukta Sinha - INDIKA 2025 Artist
