Gig Review/ Sona Mohapatra - Sona Tarasha

 

BY NARENDRA KUSNUR

Sona Mohapatra/ Sona Tarasha: A Treasure Trove Of Culture

Genre: Hindi pop/ folk-pop

Details; NMACC Grand Theatre, August 12

Rating; *** 1/2

The Grand Theatre of the Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre (NMACC) was sold out on Saturday night, with singer Sona Mohapatra presenting the Sona Tarasha concert. This was the first time a solo pop act was performing at the venue since its launch in April, though there was a Hindustani classical event before, besides two stage musicals including the long-running The Sound Of Music.

The thematic show was divided into five chapters, beginning with songs of timeless love, and ending with her hits. There was a mix of thumri, folk, romantic songs, Sufiana, ghazal, uptempo fare and Bollywood, with most compositions by Sona's husband Ram Sampath. The back-screen displayed an aesthetically-chosen set of visuals, with colourful light schemes on stage. The back-up band was totally in sync, with Sahil Solanki chipping in with vocals on some tracks, and female rapper Dee MC stunning the audience with her control and confidence. Sanjoy Das's guitar, Rajeev Prasanna's flute and Larissa Coelho's piano were joined a tight bass-drums rhythm section and Arshad Khan's esraj, a bowed string instrument not heard too often on the live circuit today.

The show began with the chapter A Burning Love, which included the traditional thumri 'Ras Ke Bhare Tore Nain' and the Bulleh Shah-written Sufi number 'Tere Ishq Nachaya Karke Thaiyya Thaiyya'. Though these songs were popularised by Girija Devi and Abida Parveen, respectively, Sona gave them her own contemporary twist. The Amir Khusro-penned 'Main To Piya Se Naina Lada Aayee Re' and the spiritual 'Mangal Gaan', celebrating the union of Shiv and Shakti and featuring a sprightly Kathak dance, concluded this section.

To be sure, the show took a few minutes to settle in, with the instruments sounding too loud in the first couple of numbers. There were also some comic moments. A music reading stand was placed on stage, and when Sona came, she removed it and kept it out. During the short costume-change break between the first two chapters, someone kept it back, and again, another person took it out. These hiccups were over when the second section Kalankini began, and things were smooth thereafter. 

This chapter talked of marginalised women and those who dared to protest against norms, moving from poets to courtesans. Here, Sona began with Meerabai's melodious 'Shyam Piya' and Ram Sampath's lullaby-like composition 'O Ri Chiraiya', written by Swanand Kirkire. She sang about fearlessness and freedom on 'Bekhauff', which had Svati Chakravarty's lines, "Bekhauff azaad hai jeena mujhe, bekhauff azaad hai rehna mujhe". An extract from the Kismet song 'Kajra Mohabbat Waala' lent a touch of Hindi film nostalgia.

The chapter Roots included the Oriya song 'Rangabati' and Beyond Borders, about music transcending boundaries, included the Farida Khanum-popularised 'Aaj Jaane Ki Zid Na Karo' and the foot-stomping crowd favourites 'Jugni' and 'Damadam Mast Kalandar'. One of the highlights was 'Abhi Nahin Aana', a soulful track from her self-titled 2006 debut, where Munna Dhiman wrote, "Abhi nahin aana sajna, abhi nahin aana sajna, mohe thoda marne de, intezaar karne de".

The final section Jashan featured some of Sona's hits. Naturally, 'Ambarsariya' and 'Bolo Na' had to be in the list, and 'Naina', composed by Amaal Malik in the 2014 film Khubsoorat, added a filmi flavour. There was a special moment when Sona pointed out to lyricist Javed Akhtar sitting in the side wings, welcomed him and sang his 'Jiya Laage Na' from the 2012 film Talaash. The lines, "Ho, main muskaaoon, kab se chhupaaoon, vyaakul hoon din-rain; kabse na aaye nainon mein nindiya, man mein aaya chain, jiya laage na, tum bin mora, jiya laage na" featured only voice and piano.

Ending at 10 pm sharp, the show maintained a good balance of traditional and contemporary, fast and slow, soulful and foot-tapping. Sona added anecdotes and commentary between songs (maybe could have chopped that a bit) and even kept things interactive by asking the audience to sing along on some tracks. The idea is to take the Sona Tarasha concept to other places, tweaking the set list and getting in different musicians. Sounds like a plan.