Namaste!

Welcome to the Jaisalmer Merasi Musical Legacy site, home of our Musical Narrative Project (MNP).

*Explore the first chapter of the MNP Legacy Project on the Dhol,  a drum played for over 800 years*

Who Are We?

Hailing from NW Rajasthan, the Merasi are a marginalized people who carry a unique musical legacy, an Intangible Cultural Heritage (ICH) as defined by UNESCO criteria.

Scorned as outcasts and known by the label "Manganiyar," meaning beggar, they still carry the burden of an enduring prejudicial system.

New York-based Folk Arts Rajasthan (FAR) and India-based Lok Kala Sagar Sansthan (LKSS), a Local Folk Arts Society, share a unified vision of a just future for the Merasi people.

Our collaboration recognizes that education, music preservation, and achieving social justice are mutually dependent goals.

Together, we nurture capable youth who shed their derogatory label and proclaim themselves Merasi, meaning musician, as a poignant symbol of self-determination. 

 No More Manganiyar, We Are Merasi!