“Aise mokhe, aise shyam bar bar nahi aati hai” ( Beautiful evenings like this don't come often)'.
This is what Naveen, one of the singers of Dhwani and it was true in case of the teachers who had gathered to enjoy the musical evening held at the Music Academy. The concert titled ‘To teachers with love' was organised by The Hindu's Newspaper in Education programme as a tribute to the contributions of the teachers in shaping the young generation.
Naveen Daga, Sarita Chandak, V. Srriram and Priyanka Mukherjee of the Dhwani — a renowned band from Kolkata — made the evening memorable with their captivating voice and selection of songs. “Teachers shape our future generation and they should be given due importance. The show is designed completely to entertain them this evening. Dhwani has been performing for the past four years and this is our second performance in Chennai, said Sriram.
Dhwani presented western classic songs and their Indian versions which showed how they have inspired Bollywood music. It was a new experience to listen to ‘Gumnam hai koi' sung along with its original theme song from ‘Charade'. They presented a fusion of old and new Bollywood songs. The evening had a touch of German and folk too. To the audience's surprise the group presented a few Tamil songs at the end.
The event saw the teachers turn into naughty kids clapping, singing aloud and running around. Making it an interactive event, the singers quizzed the teachers on film songs and threatened them with punishment for wrong answers, as they usually did with students in class. The event provided an opportunity to bring out the hidden musical talent in them. The singers were impressed by the talent displayed by the audience.
The songs from the 70's and 80's brought back their youthful spirit, singing aloud and dancing with the tune. The audiences were thrilled to hear Kishore Kumar's ‘Ek ladki bheegi bhaagi si'‘Dilbara'‘Meri Sapnon ki rani'
In the felicitation note, the teachers said the evening was a relaxing experience that reminded them of the days of their youth. This was a Teacher's Day gift from The Hindu.
