Staff Reporter –
Music, dance, fun and laughter were all part of the ‘Bengali Menu’ served to a large section of the Auckland Bengali community last month.
Bhabna, a local body that functions under the stewardship of Tapas Mandal presented its ‘Swornali Sondhya’ (Golden Evening) at West Auckland’s Play Theatre on July 5, 2015.
Children excel
The annual programme, twelfth in an annual series, comprised two portions, the first of which was ‘Dance,’ representing the first aspect of the evening’s theme.
Devoted to children, ‘Swornali Sondhya’ presented two different moods.
Fourteen children aged between four years and 13 years presented a dance number asking themselves a number of questions. Among them were, “What will we be when we grow older?” “How relevant would our dreams be tomorrow?”
The dance ballet comprised four songs, rendered with a special narration.
Musical Journey
‘Ganey Ganey Path Chola’ was the theme of ‘A Musical Journey Part II,’ taking many on a nostalgic trip down the memory lane.
Bhabna paid tributes to legendary musicians including Salil Chowdhury, R D Burman, Hemanta Mukhopadhyay, Kishore Kumar, Manna Dey, Shyamal Mitra, Bhupen Hazarika Lata Mangeshkar, Asha Bhonsle, Sandhaya Mukhopadhyay, Runa Laila, Subhomita Somlata, Rupankar and others.
This segment accounted for 17 singers rendering 18 evergreen hits.
Tapas Mandal’s stand-up comedy was an added attraction. Other items included ‘Mushtijog,’ ‘Sreemati Bhayankori,’ ‘Taser Desh,’ Dance Drama of Rabindranath Tagore and ‘Kalmrigaya.’
-With reporting by Tapas Mandal
Photo :
- Singers through a musical journey
- Anchors Tapas and Naboneeta
