FolkTea 2026

Nanda Talukdar Foundation presentsHatipoti Tea

FolkTea

Festival 2026 6th edition

India's only open-air folk festival, set amidst the tea gardens of Assam. This year: an exclusive Founders' Retreat!

Generate Invite See the Founders' Retreat Car Rally sign-up

--days to go until 28 November

A folk singer performing by the bonfire at the FolkTea stage

Two tea leaves and a bud held against a glowing garden arch

A band playing under the FolkTea sign at night

Colourful tents pitched amidst the tea gardens, seen from above

28 NovSaturday

Gala Evening + Founders' Retreat

A curated cultural evening, and Assam's entrepreneurs together in the tea.

Invite onlyFounders' Retreat

29 NovSunday

The Main Festival

Games, culture and community, all day and into the night.

Open for allFree entry

Fun Car Rally to the Arunachal borderSunday 29 November · 9:00 AM–2:00 PM · Separate registration required Register for the rally

New on 28 November

The Founders' Retreat

Assam's leading entrepreneurs are coming together at the FolkTea Festival for an exclusive Founders' Retreat!

Saturday, 28 November 2026Part of the 6th FolkTea Festival weekend

Hatipoti Tea EstatePabhoi, Biswanath, Assam

Proceeds support Digitizing AssamOrganised by the Nanda Talukdar Foundation

FolkTea Festival 2026 poster: Saturday 28 November 2026, Hatipoti Tea Estate. Assam's leading entrepreneurs are coming together for an exclusive Founders' Retreat.

Presented by NTF with Hatipoti Tea Organised by Nanda Talukdar Foundation Write to folkteaassam@gmail.com

The FolkTea sign glowing over the open-air stage at night

About the festival

Two days in the living tea gardens of Assam

India's only open-air folk festival, set amidst the living tea gardens of Hatipoti. Over two days, FolkTea celebrates the culture, community and heritage of Assam's tea belt — with indigenous music, sport, food and starlit nights.

The Gala Evening and Founders' Retreat on 28 November support Digitizing Assam, preserving the state's heritage for generations to come.

Programme

What happens across the two days

A curated Gala Evening and Founders' Retreat by invitation, followed by a free festival open to all.

Day one

The FolkTea Gala Evening

28 November · Saturday

Invite only

28 Nov · Saturday

New: The Founders' RetreatAn exclusive gathering of Assam's leading entrepreneurs at Hatipoti Tea Estate. Read more or register here.

12:00–12:30 PM

Assembly at Marnoi Dhaba, Sootea

12:30–1:00 PM

Lunch at Marnoi Dhaba, Sootea

1:30 PM

Departure for Kaziranga — guests opting for the Northern Range Jeep Safari

3:00 PM

Arrival & assembly at Hatipoti Tea Estate

3:00–4:45 PM

Welcome, interaction and photography

4:45 PM

Opening Remarks

5:00–5:30 PM

Sky Lantern Release

5:30–5:40 PM

Digitizing Assam: Presentation & Call for Support

5:40–7:00 PM

Hirak Jyoti Sharma Folk Ensemble

7:00–7:30 PM

Matcha: From Leaf to Cup

7:30–8:00 PM

A play directed by Nayan Prasad

8:00–9:30 PM

A magical evening with Rupam Bhuyan solo

9:30–9:35 PM

Vote of Thanks & acknowledgement of Digitizing Assam supporters

9:35–10:00 PM

Gala Dinner amidst the tea gardens

10:00 PM onwards

Star Gazing — tracing Jupiter and Saturn's journey

Night

Camping · Jamming · Bonfire

Also on the evening

Local brew available for purchase
Barbecued pork available for purchase
Campsite available with prior information
Informal open-stage interactions and music

Generate Invite for the Gala Register for the Founders' Retreat

A guitarist performing under the thatched FolkTea stage — Live music under the thatch at FolkTea

Day two

The Main FolkTea Festival

29 November · Sunday

Free entry

9.00 AM - 2:00 PM

Fun Car Rally to Arunachal border (Separate registration required),(Click to register)

10:30 AM–2:00 PM

Indigenous Tea-Tribe Games & Traditional SportsRooster Fight · Dart Games · Fetê · Other traditional community games

4:30 PM

Official Inauguration of FolkTea Festival

5:30 PM onwards

Tanmoy Saikia Night

Evening & Night

Camping · Informal Gatherings · Stargazing

Tents pitched across the tea gardens at Hatipoti, paddy fields beyond

Stay amidst the tea

Sleep in the gardens. Wake to the wild.

Explore the campsite & adventures

Registration & accommodation

Choose your entry

Best value · Guaranteed stay

Early Birds

By 10 November

₹1,500 / Festival Fee with Gala Dinner

100 entries available

Accommodation₹1,500 per person, twin sharing — guaranteed

Middle Birds

By 15 November

₹2,000 / entry

30 entries available

AccommodationNo accommodation guarantee

Late Risers

By 25 November

₹2,500 / entry

20 entries available

AccommodationNo accommodation guarantee

To register or enquire about accommodation, write to folkteaassam@gmail.com

FolkTea campsite — tents in the tea gardens with a snow peak on the horizon

Stay & explore

Your campsite.
Your base for adventure.

Sleep under canvas in the living tea gardens of Hatipoti — and wake with the whole North Bank of Assam at your doorstep.

A tent at FolkTea is more than a place to sleep. It is a starting line. From this clearing in the tea — bushes running to the horizon, the Eastern Himalaya rising beyond — you set out into a corner of Assam that most maps still leave blank. Days belong to the road and the trail; nights belong to the bonfire, the jam and a sky thick with stars.

Kaziranga & the North Bank

Drive out at first light for the quieter Northern Range — grassland, rhino country and the wilder side of the great river, well away from the crowded gates.

Nomorah & the road to Sijusa

Follow the backroads through Nomorah and on towards Sijusa, where the tea belt gives way to forest and the foothills begin to climb.

Arunachal & the route to Itanagar

Point north on the newly opened route towards Itanagar — a climb out of the plains into Arunachal Pradesh, its ridges and its cool mountain air.

Unexplored wilderness

Between the named places lie the real finds — river islands, cart tracks, working villages and forest edges for anyone willing to wander off the highway.