Home to over 1.27 billion people, India is emerging as one of the most sought after countries for an ‘EDM’ experience. Why so , you wonder? Well the answer is obvious. With such a colossal sect of youth , almost 50% of the total population , with the energy and eagerness to discard all bonds and Eat , Sleep , Rave , Repeat all day , every day, it is natural for DJs to be drawn to a crowd they can motivate and get on their feet and dance into the wee hours of the morning. The small yet rapidly increasing percentage of Indians that do embrace dance music have proved to be a thriving market. But where can we trace back the roots of this craze in India? Here’s a low-down on Sunburn Festival, Goa as we trace its growth from its time of conception. A synergy of trance and electro house , food and shopping , the attendance at Sunburn has gone up by tenfold over the years since its commencement because of its ability to channel and tap the energy of India’s youth. Not only has it successfully surpassed other festivals to become Asia’s largest in its genre , but also attracted , in large numbers , tourists and music enthusiasts from across the globe.
2007
The earliest traces of an established EDM fan base go back to the foundation of Sunburn and the Big Chill in Goa , 2007. While the Big Chill wave was a short-lived one , Sunburn surfaced as a triumphant effort at Candolim Beach with Smirnoff as their sponsor. Organized by Percept, Sunburn became India’s first international dance music festival. Sunburn started out considerably small, but it retained quality and featured 36 artists, all geniuses of their genre. Above & Beyond, DJ Pearl, Carl Cox, Midival Punditz, Axwell, John 00 Fleming were only some of the names on the debut line-up. Year one and Sunburn attracted over 10,000 attendees. How’s that for beginner’s luck? The only shortcoming of Sunburn 2007? It was only for two days.
2008
2008 not only saw twice the attendees as the first year, but also a larger line-up. With over 30 stalls, fire jugglers, rock climbing, massage centres, a flea market and volleyball courts Sunburn’s second edition had a lot more to offer and look forward to. However, it did become the subject of an open beach festival ban. It did, however, get the green light to go on as a consequence of back-up from the Goa government, along with the venue marked out as private property. The terrorist attacks in Mumbai from 26/11 may have curbed but did not deplete the number of attendees at Sunburn. Its second season saw Sunburn greater than its predecessor, with The Bar Stage, Circus Stage and Banyan Tree Stage and multiple Indian and international DJs. While there were some fresh faces, there were DJs from the first season who returned, like John ’00’ Fleming (whose set was allegedly ‘noise pollution’ and temporarily shut down by the Goan police) The three day festival saw some stellar performances from DJ Pearl, Nikhil Chinapa and G.M.S. The several hurdles the festival overcame made concrete the fact that Sunburn was here to stay.
2009
2009 was the year Sunburn became a 24 hour festival by introducing the After-Dark series at the Club- Butter. Armin van Buuren, Roger Sanchez and Sander van Doorn appeared alongside Jalebee Cartel, DJ Pearl, Ma Faiza, Nawed Khan and Designer Hippies. It was a day of celebration for trance lovers when van Buuren took the stage by storm. Playing to a crowd of 25,000+, van Buuren was overwhelmed claiming ““Sunburn 2009 was one of the best festivals I went to.” 2009 was also the year Sunburn Festival was ranked as the Ninth Best Festival in the World by CNN and bagged “Best Live Event of the Year’ award at the WOW Event. It was only the beginning for Sunburn to establish its supremacy as a festival in India.
2010
2012 saw several new things. From a soaring number of attendees which increased two-fold from the previous edition, 2010 stood for new heights. With over 90 stalls, football, volleyball, makeover and sunset lounges, and a brand new Alice in Wonderland theme inspired avatar, Sunburn 2010 saw the new Castle and Caterpillar Stages. Butterfly bars and an experimental stage called the Rabbit Hole, saw fresh and indie acts like Mental Martians, BassFoundation, Bay Beat Collective, Reggae Rajahs, Turntablist Uri, Vachan Chinnappa, Boombaba, Kohra and BLOT! John ’00’ Fleming and G.M.S made a comeback for Sunburn AfterDark. Sultan and Ned Shepard, Nadia Ali and Aly & Fila were only some of the big names on this year’s lineup.
2011
Undoubtedly bigger than ever, Sunburn never failed to amuse with its innumerable surprises! Not only were EDM giants Above and Beyond back, they also brought with themselves Pete Tong, Funkagenda, Jerome Isma-Ae and Nic Fanciulli, the Grammy nominated producer and DJ. Sunburn also brought back several names from previous lineups. Several Bollywood stars were expected at 2011’s Sunburn, to add to the excitement of many. 2011 also saw another scare, where permission was not granted to the festival until the very last few days to host the three day indulgence in electronic music due to its vulnerability to terrorist threats. However, Sunburn emerged supreme. Leave No Trace was also a new initiative undertaken to ensure proper waste disposal.
2012
Sander Van Doorn, BT, AN21, Richard Durand, Paul Van Dyk, Roger Sanchez and many others along with indigenous talent such as Anil Chawla, Reggae Rajahs and Ash Roy marked the variety Sunburn 2011 had to offer. Sunburn moved beyond Goa and played to massive crowds in Mumbai and Delhi in 2012. For the first time Sunburn crossed international shores to the beaches of Colombo, Sri Lanka in 2012. The festival in Goa saw a whopping turnout of 50000+ attendees and 120+ artists, along with 7 stages: Arro’s Cupcake Castle, Cubezoid and Helia being the most breathtaking ones.
2013
7 massive, independently creative stages. On-site camping along the lines of Tomorrowland. Sunburn cruises, a flea market, book libraries, circus tents, a kite festival, an open air movie theatre and a Ferris Wheel. Vagator took Sunburn 7 to a greater height with a larger beach and all the extra leisurely activities it had to offer. Afrojack, Axwell, Markus Schulz, Pete Tong and Mark Knight became the largest attractions on the lineup. 120+ artists and 200+ hours of music, Sunburn, Goa 2013 fell only a few inches short of heaven.
2014
With the Sunburn Festival 2014 merely weeks away, we’d be lying if we said the mammoth lineup of this gargantuan festival did not get us excited. This year’s line-up, like every other year’s is exciting and full of myriad genres. From Knife Party to Dimitri Vegas & Like Mike, we can only wait to see what 2014 has in store! Recently, Sunburn bagged accolades worldwide for its premium quality and unique experience, after winning a WOW Gold in two of the largest categories: ‘Entertainment IP of the year’ and ‘Entertainment Event’ of the year. This only has us more eager in anticipation, expecting Sunburn to reach new heights!
Leave a Reply