Dec 02, 2011
The indomitable spirit of the “Elvis of India” came alive at Yahoo; a commendable music program held to honor the memory of Bollywood’s superstar and the icon of the Kapoor Clan: Shammi Kapoor. Atlanta’s notable Attorney Udai V. Singh with a great taste in music & performing arts coupled with a few equally gifted and refreshingly passionate performers set the stage, at the Berkmar High School in Lilburn, on fire.
Precisely crisp audio and scintillating led lights managed by the AV expert Sandeep Savla had the karaoke soundtracks booming through a reasonably packed auditorium. The simple stage decor consisted of framed posters of Shammi’s classic films laid out with fabric draped around it – posters framed by Unique Art at Global Mall and stage setting by Sarita Goel's Aayojan. The singing cohorts; Udai Singh, Amit Dave, Rajen Raval, Rekha Radhakrishnan, Shyam Gupta and Laxmi Rao belted-out the choicest solo and duet songs from the treasure chest of Shammi Kapoor’s dancing library. In conformity with his silver screen portrayal, almost all songs barring a couple, were happy and feet-tapping numbers of yester years. It kept the engaged crowd clapping and dancing in front of and on stage at every opportunity received. The tickets were complimentary for senior citizens, which got many lovers of the old Bollywood movie songs to come out and enjoy. The first half included hit songs: aasman se yaya farishta , subhanallah hai haseen chera hai, aaj kaal tere mere pyaar , dil deke dekho, tareef karoon kya , kabhi hamne nahin socha tha, bade hain dil ke kale, dekho ab to, yoon to hamane lakh haseen, Jawaniyan ye mast mast, hum aur tum aur ye saama, mujhe kitna pyaar hai and aaja aaja mein hoon payaar tera. The first half witnessed Udai Singh changing hair styles to mimic the character of Shammi in the movie as well as sorted attire. For the couple songs before intermission including “aaja aaja” he donned a stunning bright red suit with glitter all over it as well as radiantly white sun glasses with and a shimmering low-neck adornment clipped to the shiny white shirt with a flashy bow tie. One could not escape being completely immersed in the moment; enjoying the sight, sound and the song! A short intermission called for 30 minutes undoubtedly became almost an hour because all wanted to enjoy the included hot snacks of Samosa-Chole with Chutney and Masala Chai catered by Paresh Munshi.
The second half continued with: diwana hua badal, mein chaali mein chaali, o haseena zulfoanwali, jaane bahaar husn tera, jab mohabbat jawan hoti, tu bemisaal hai taareef kya karoon, din sara guzara tere angina, duniya waalaon se door, dil tera diwana, badan pe sitare lapete huye, baar baar dekho, yahoo, govinda alla re alla and the grand finale had the entire group singing savere waali gaadi se…
The performance was in a very intimate setting as everyone was invited to participate; clap, dance and have fun. The songs were very reminiscent of the legend who is unparalleled in Indian cinema and one who will continue to be celebrated for centuries to come. The inscrutable combination of Mohammad Rafi and Shammi Kapoor will live-on forever in the hearts and minds of Indians anywhere in the world.
The program raised funds for Georgia Legal Services Program, a nonprofit agency to provide legal help for low income Georgians.
Viren Mayani
