Amit Kumar mesmerised Aucklanders with his unique power packed performance that had all the ingredients of a Bollywood movie, from singing and dancing to acting and comedy.
The star son of legendary Kishore Kumar paid an appropriate tribute to his dad his mentor RD Burman through the concert held last Saturday at the Logan Campbell Centre, in Greenlane.
Amit’s wit and humour on stage, coupled with his melodious singing and dancing won over the hearts of one and all. His performance was reminiscent of Kishore da in many ways.
The show titled Yeh Zameen Ga Rahi Hai was conceived and directed by well known Auckland radio personality and a top performer in his own right, Gopal Bhatia of Sursangam.
Amit Da, as he is fondly known, enthralled the music starved Aucklanders with his songs, coupled with anecdotes from his dad’s and his own musical moments with music directors, directors or actors. His powerful voice coupled with mimicry of his dad, SD Burman, RD Burman, OP Nayyar sent the audience into laughter frenzy.
Amit Da started the musical evening in a dynamic manner, with a typical Kishore da flavour, singing the introductory Pyaare Bandhuon that really charged the music lovers of Auckland. He quickly switched gears, with a beautiful and soulful rendition of Bade Achhe Lagte Hain from the movie Balika Badhu.
This was the song that had catapulted him to stardom in Bollywood 35 years ago. The applause from the audience said it all; it seemed as if the song had touched their hearts. Another song that got Amit da and the audience nostalgic was Yaad Aa Rahi Hai, the super hit song from the 1980s Bollywood blockbuster, Love Story, starring Kumar Gaurav and Vijeta. Amit fondly remembered the sweet memory attached with this song, as he had won his first (one and only) prestigious Filmfare award, for the best male playback singer of Tinsel town.
Amit’s funny, sometimes weird, yet comical gestures, like his body shaking or doing a twist , hands trembling or his head banging, something that the rockstars do or just jumping like a 10-year-old sent the audience into bursts of laughter and masti, craving for more.
Sumeet, Amit’s brother, who is much younger to him provided the youthful element of the show, as he belted out some of the memorable Kishore da hits, like Chala Jaata Hoon kisi ki dhun mein, a song that was one of the biggest chartbusters of its times and still sounds fresh after so many years.
The music lovers of Auckland loved the yodelling element of Sumeet’s rendition. My favourite was Jaane Jaan sung by Sumeet in a very peppy style, yet having the old flavour of Kishore da, in the song.
Amit’s new album Le Chalo was officially launched in collaboration with Radio Tarana. Amit then rendered a song from the same album.
Another highlight of the show was the top Bollywood musicians: Kishore Sodha on the trumpet and Riteish playing the lead guitar. It was heartening to note that Kishore Sodha had played alongside Kishore da in most of his concerts. Riteish was awesome on guitar, as he strummed some golden melodies.
Makrand, a Kishore param bhakt, from Pune was also introduced to the Kiwi audience. It was amazing to note that Makrand had sung 80 Kishore Kumar songs continuosly over period of five hours, to pay his tribute to the maestro on his 80th birthday last year.
Our local version of Kishore da, Gopal rendered a couple of Kishore gems including the evergreen Neele Neele Ambar Pe.
The audience simply cherished the moment when Amit and Sumeet sang the peppy and vibrant song Babu Samjho Ishare from the flick Chalti ka Naam Gadi as the Ganguly brothers nailed the song. Also, Amit’s imitation of Kishore da’s elder brother Ashok Kumar(Dada Moni), was quite comical and the crowd loved it.
The show ended with some racy tracks like Yeh Bambai Shahar and Dil Main Baji Guitar.
Overall, it was a memorable musical evening that could have been done better, with some more songs by Amit Da or Sumeet. Some audience might have felt a bit let down, as Amit did not perform some of his own super hits like Oye Oye, Aati Rahengi Baharein, Ek Do Teen,Tiptip Baarish, To Rootha Toh Main, Makhana, etc.
One would have expected the main stars of the show, to be singing at the start and not close to 9pm, maybe we could have seen a little bit less of the other local artistes etc. Hope the organisers will improve on this next time around.
One thing is sure, the magic of Kishore da still reigns supreme, whether it is India or Auckland. We can proudly say that Kishore da and Pancham da were true legends of Indian music - their memories will always linger in our hearts and will always make us proud as Indians.
- Perdy Mohindru, New Lynn