Unforgettable, that’s what you are

They said the melodies would be unforgettable, and they got it right!

It was an intimate evening of masti and naach-gaana, singing and dancing along to the tunes of a golden era of Indian music that has never, and will never be forgotten. With star performers Bobby Mullick, Gargi Mukherjee, Jeet Das and Kiran Porey, along with a superb live band headed up by the well known Dr Dinakar, it was a wonder the legendary Helen was not dancing along with the audience in the aisles of Homebush Boys High School herself!

The program, headlined Unforgettable Melodies, was organised by Anandadhara Readers Forum, an event-based initiative whose mission is to “spread and share the joy of innovation and creativity with willing and capable members from different walks of life.” It is a lovely philosophy which is summed up aptly as a journey: Anandadhara – The Stream of Joy. It is no surprise then, that the night was indeed a joyous occasion.

The night began with a lovely rendition of Musafir hoon yaaron, followed by Yeh shaam mastani. It was very refreshing to see the tunes of Kishore Kumar performed with a modern spin by Jeet. Jeet really did capture the antics of Kishore Kumar on the mic, including the yodelling! The entrance of Bobby was heralded with a duet, Jaan e jaan dhoondta phir raha – one of many Asha Bhosle and Kishore Kumar covers of the night.  The audience was very involved already, and this would not change as the night grew older – indeed Gargi was introduced with a Bengali classic: Takhon tomar ekush (You were 21 then), drawing wild cheers from the Bengali majority of the full house.

With all the main singers introduced, it seemed that there was already too much talent for just one stage. Not nearly – the young lead guitarist Kiran then surprised the audience with a cover of Manna Dey’s Zindagi kaisi hai paheli hai. It was great seeing some young faces on the stage!

Seeing Kiran on stage truly emphasized the fact that music is indeed timeless.

Raka Gujral