Sunburn Music Festival has announced that it will shift to South Goa. This year the festival will reportedly be held from December 28 to 30. Sunburn Festival is a commercial electronic dance music festival held in India. It is learnt that a storm is reportedly brewing over the shifting of the EDM festival to South Goa. The locals have raised apprehension of the music festival being a threat to the peaceful life in South Goa. It may be recalled that a day after the festival last year the organizers of the music festival had publicly stated that it would never return to Goa.
Now they are singing a different tune as the organizers say that they are thrilled to start a new chapter of the festival in South Goa. It must be said that what is not good for North Goa cannot be good for South Goa. After seventeen years of being hosted in North Goa and dodging controversies like alleged drug abuse including some deaths of guests around the venue allegedly related to substance abuse, the festival is now heading to the South. It is also marked by alleged disregard for local communities and causes environmental damage thereby raising deep concern. South Goa is very peaceful and, by and large, has not been touched by such controversial programs and people of South Goa will certainly not accept it. As has been the case in the past the organizers have reportedly also announced the kick-off of ticket sales via an online booking portal.
The organizers by doing so probably want to gauge the mood of the people of South Goa towards the EDM festival. The Travel and Tourism Association (TTAG) has reportedly said that the music festival will boost tourism in South Goa and put it on the world music map and improve business. But then all will be at the cost of losing peace and tranquility in South Goa. There are other ways to boost tourism and having the controversial EDM festival should not be considered an option. Incidentally the venue where the Music Festival is scheduled to be held in South Goa will expose the political leaders who are supporting the move.
