Milap Unveils Indo-Jazz Highlights For Spring 2026

Milap has announced its Spring 2026 program. The series will present leading UK Indo-Jazz artists and South Asian performance throughouts Liverpool, Merseyside, and the North West.

The season opens through Milap’s ongoing partnership with Liverpool International Jazz Festival on Saturday 28 February. The festival date features pianist Zoe Rahman and clarinetist Arun Ghosh, two award-winning figures in contemporary Indo-Jazz. The duo will explore their shared British-Bengali heritage, bringing together South Asian traditions and modern jazz language.

Rahman is widely recognized for a distinctive voice influenced by jazz and western classical music. Her career includes collaborations with Courtney Pine and George Mraz, alongside honors such as the Ivor Novello Impact Award. Ghosh, a two-time Parliamentary Jazz Awards Jazz Instrumentalist of the Year, is known for leading innovative ensembles and for an open, multi-genre approach to composition.

On Saturday 28 March, percussionist and producer Sarathy Korwar is set to bring his UK tour to Future Yard, promoted in partnership with Milap. The show supports his fourth studio album, There Is Beauty, There Already. Korwar’s work has received wide critical acclaim, earning MOJO’s Jazz Album of the Year (2019), a top-two placing in The Guardian’s Best world music Albums (2022), and Songlines’ Best Album of the Year (2023). The performance centers on rhythm, voice, and electronics, drawing on South Asian procession traditions and contemporary minimalism.

Earlier in the season, sarangi player Satwinder Pal Singh appears in a free lunchtime concert at The Tung Auditorium on Wednesday 18 February. Joined by Milap Artist in Residence Kousic Sen, Singh will present music rooted in Punjabi heritage. His practice includes multiple bowed instruments from North India, including dilruba, israj, and taus.

Dance returns to the program on Tuesday 31 March at The Lowry with Just Enough Madness & Caught In The Net of Rebirth. Created and performed by Kuchipudi dancer Payal Ramchandani and choreographer Chandenie Gobardhan, the work examines the Trimurti cycle of creation, preservation, and destruction. Themes of motherhood, miscarriage, and postpartum experience develop through poetic text, ritual, and live music featuring percussion, flute, and vocal, alongside movement influenced by Kuchipudi, Bharatanatyam, street dance, and contemporary forms.

Founded in 1985, Milap is based in Liverpool and Merseyside and presents Indian arts year-round in Liverpool and London. The organization also founded the National Indian Arts Awards to recognize artists, educators, and institutions supporting Indian arts across the UK.

Milap Spring 2026 Program

Milap & The Tung Auditorium present Satwinder Pal Singh & Kousic Sen
Wednesday 18th February, 1pm

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Milap & LIJF 2026 present Zoe Rahman & Arun Ghosh
Saturday 28th February, 1pm

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Milap & Future Yard present Sarathy Korwar
Saturday 28th March, time TBC

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Milap & The Lowry present Just Enough Madness & Caught In The Net of Rebirth
Tuesday 31st March, 8pm

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Milap & The Lowry present Timeless
Wednesday 22nd April, 7pm

More information is available at milap.co.uk