When it comes to Bengal, its rich history of folk music and mishti are impossible to miss. At the Cadbury Gaane Mishti Folk Fusion in association with Anandabazar Patrika and The Telegraph, the two came together in a grand celebration campaign.
As a part of the campaign, Bengal was divided into five regions based on their geographical location and cultural diversity. Their folk music traditions were then chosen and conceptualised into songs composed by music composers Debojyoti Mishra and Joy Sarkar, and performed by some of Bengal’s favourite artistes. Over 140 heritage sweet shops from various parts of Bengal, also came together to whip up traditional mishtis of the particular region but with a fusion twist, using Cadbury Dairy Milk as an ingredient. Mishti lovers across the state voted for their favourite shops through a QR Code available at the participating mishti stores. Culinary experts were also called upon to taste the unique creations and determine the best few among them.
The campaign culminated in a two-day Mishti Mela on April 1 and 2 at City Centre New Town. Filled with melodious performances by artists like Iman Chakraborty, Rupam Islam, Soumitra and more, who had also sung for the campaign, the two-day festival was a gala event amidst roaring crowd cheers. Participant mishti shops had also set up stalls with a range of their creations, including their chocolate fusion sweets and received various awards for their excellence. Sixty-eight mishti shops from across the state and their craftsmen or karigars, were awarded. Here are the highlights.
The star of the event was sweets with notes of Cadbury Dairy Milk that kept everyone happy at the Mishti Mela
Singer Iman Chakraborty enthralled the crowd with evergreen classics like Sohaag chand as well as hits like Tumi jaake bhalobashe.
Rupam Islam took the stage as the closing act of day 2, amidst roars of Joy Rock! He seranaded all with Aro Ekber and other hits.
Abhijit Barman aka Pota performed with great enthusiasm.
People thronged the venue to catch the artistes perform live at City Centre 2 and make the most of the Mishti Mela
Lopamudra Mitra and Joy Sarkar enthralled the audience with numbers that made them sway.
Singer and Bhoomi frontman Soumitra got the crowd grooving to folksy tunes like Nazm nazm and Lale laleshwari, among others. “It’s a great effort! Not only was this enjoyable but it has also been a learning experience in getting to know all the regional folk traditions from various parts of the state that have been highlighted,” said Soumitra on the concept behind the campaign.
The combination of Upal Sengupta and Prashmita Paul was musically potent.
New Kalpana Mistanna Bhandar also took home the award for Cadbury Mishti Sera Srishti Ananya Somman.
The Cadbury Mishti Serar Sera Somman winner, Sova Sweets.
Suravi Sweets won the Janapriyatai Sorboshera in the ‘Sailing into the waters’ division.
Balaram Mullick & Radharaman Mullick also won Cadbury Mishti Sera Srishti Ananya Somman.
Abir presented the Misti Gourab Somman to Misti Mahal from ‘Sailing into the waters’ division (24 Parganas (S), and Midnapore).
Ghosh Sweets Corner won the award for Janapriyatai Sorboshera in the division ‘From the land of the hills,’ which encompassed the entirety of North Bengal till Dinajpur.
Mishti Stories took home the prize for Mishti Gourab Somman in the ‘Magical Confluence by the Ganges’ cluster. Abir and Pravin S Nalawade, branch sales manager, Mondelez India Foods gave away the prize.
Nalin Chandra Das & Sons received the grand Cadbury Mishti Sera Srishti Ananya Somman prize.
Mishti Stories won the Janapriyatai Sorboshera award in the regional division of ‘Magical confluence by the Ganges,’ which included Kolkata, Nadia, Murshidabad, 24 Parganas (N), Howrah, and Hooghly
Although she was not in the best of conditions, singer Ujjaini Mukherjeesportingly took to stage to belt out a song before handing over awards to selected sweet shops and their craftsmen. “This is the third time that I am associated with this campaign and it has been really exciting each time. I could try unique styles of music which I had not had the opportunity to do before at Cadbury Gaane Mishti Folk Fusion. With new themes every time, this event has always given me scope to try new things,” said Ujjaini.
Sa Re Ga Ma Pa 2020 winner Arkadeep Mishra took to stage to belt out a string of popular hits. “Not only did I enjoy singing for this campaign, but I also enjoyed all the other songs that are a part of it. I visited many places through this campaign and in turn, met many different people, talked to them and saw their interest and enthusiasm regarding the songs, Cadbury mishti and the whole event. This event will always be memorable for me,” said Arkadeep when we caught up with him backstage before the show.
Debojyoti Mishra had the crowd under his spell when he took over the stage.
With her melodious songs, Ananya Bhattacharjee made the audience sway