‘Jewels of Bengal’ remembered

Sydney seniors are treated to songs of legendary singers, writes RACHITA SAINI

Wahan kaun hai tera, musafir, jayega kahan…

With that opening line, Avijit Sarkar had set the mood.

No fewer than 200 senior citizens gathered to enjoy Avijit’s tribute to the ‘Jewels of Bengal’ in India’s music industry.

It was his annual do for AHIA’s Senior Citizens Forum. In a magnanimous gesture every year, Avijit entertains our community’s seniors with a special concert. He picks his theme carefully, having done ghazals, devotional music and various other genres already. This time round, the frame of mind was light and melodious.

It is not surprising to see why Avijit picked the jewels of Bengal as his theme this year. Even though he was brought up in Gujarat, Avijit’s origins are in Bengal.

“My parents are both musicians and I grew up listening to these very singers and composers,” he told Indian Link. “Besides that, I also feel these ‘gems’ from Bengal have made an enormous contribution to the music industry in India, particularly in the formative years”.

The opening number turned out to be just right – the Guide song belonged to the audience’s vintage, with just the right dose of philosophy, and above all, was supremely hummable.

The mums and dads in the audience settled in for a happy afternoon.

Before long they were tapping their toes as the jewels of Bengal Pankaj Mullick, the Burmans, Kishore Kumar, Salil Chaudhary, Manna Dey, Hemant Kumar and Bappi Lahiri were brought to life on stage.

The Hemant Kumar numbers (eg Tum Pukaar Lo from Nagina; Ganga Aayee Kahan Se from Kabuliwala) went down particularly well, given that many believe Avijit channels the soulful Hemant beautifully. The golden oldie Do Naina Matwale was loved by all – every one cheered and clapped throughout. Manna Dey (Kaun Aaya Mere Man Ke Dwaare) was resurrected admirably as well. But this time the mast numbers were equally memorable, helping to uplift the mood such as with Babu Samjho Ishaare (Chalti Ka Naam Gaadi).

Pushpa Jagadish, decidedly the Lata Mangeshkar of Sydney, joined Avijit for a few numbers, such as the blissfully happy Maang Ke Saath Tumhara, and helped transport the seniors back to their youthful days. Pushpa’s Aaj Phir Jeene Ki Tamanah Hai had many in the audience humming along.

The accompanying musicians Dr Dinkar on casio, octopad Salim Jehani, Sadik Rehmani on guitar, Parag Tijori for effects and Abhijit Tayagi on tabla, all played their roles perfectly.

Avijit himself seemed to be at his entertaining best, telling little stories in between the songs and building up the mood with his anecdotes.

And how did he feel at the end of the show?

“I enjoyed myself thoroughly on stage!” Avijit said. “This time I had a ball with the ‘newer’ songs like those of Kishore Kumar and Bappi Lahiri, whereas usually I’ve sung the Hemant Kumar type of numbers, for this audience at least. I find that when I’m having fun on the stage, the audience has fun too. And that’s pretty much the feedback I got from my listeners that day”.

The lovely afternoon of songs of yesteryear was organised by AHIA Senior Citizens’ Forum as a fundraiser towards its own activities. Tilak Kalra, Rakesh Sachdev, Santram Bajaj, Rajinder Channa and Yash Bhasin have endeared themselves to the community for their loving care and regard of our respected seniors. They are all helped in their endeavour by their lovely wives, who work quietly behind the scenes to bring that extra cheer in the Forum’s activities.

Together they have been in action over fifteen years, bringing in an added dimension to the lives of the seniors here, away from home and family. Picnics and short trips, afternoon tea, presentations by relevant professionals such as medicos etc are all part of the fare at the Forum’s events.

The Forum also tries to lobby the government on behalf of our seniors. One such cause in recent times has been travel concessions for seniors who are not permanent residents. Their monthly meetings are held at Westmead, Cumberland Hospital’s Park Hall.