Pritam’s music, Amitabh Bhattacharya’s lyrics and Rekha Bhardwaj’s voice in the song Kabira from Ranbir Kapoor and Deepika Padukone starrer Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani has a transcendental effect every time one listens to it and the mystic power of the song seemed more real when Bhardwaj sang it live at The Bengal Club, at a pre-Diwali bash. Many in the audience were seen with eyes closed, enjoying each note and each antra and mukhra. The song was just like a well-prepared and presented hors d’oeuvre that whets ones’ appetite and makes one long for more. And during the next hour of the melodious evening, the mellifluous singer satiated everyone’s soul with songs that have lingered in our hearts long enough. Dressed like a Sufi dervish, in black, she swirled, making it a hypnotic session.
The evening started getting more magical with another song that tugs at the heartstrings — Fir le aaya dil. Starring a charming Ranbir Kapoor with Priyanka Chopra and Ileana D’Cruz as other leads, the romantic song was Bhardwaj’s yet another collaboration with Pritam, the music director of the film Barfi. Bhardwaj who has gifted music lovers songs like Sasural genda phool, Humri atarya pe and more, shared how she loved the composition, the inclusion of ghazal in its pure form in the song. With her entourage on guitar, synthesiser and drums, the song exuded memories of love, loss and longing.
Rekha Bhardwaj swirling like a Sufi dervish on the stage
If the other two songs had a melancholic tone to them, filling the heart with fond and bitter memories, the next one filled everyone with a new energy. Bhardwaj’s breakthrough song Namak ishq ka made all sway, tap their feet and complemented the powerful crooner with a resounding applause towards the end of the hit song from Omkara that starred Bipasha Basu.
The rest of the evening remained high on songs that we all have played on loop. Gulzar’s honey-laced O sathi re from Omkara, and Aise kyu, the soothing number from Mismathed Season 2 filled joy and love in the festive air and cajoled us to revisit the songs once again when back home before calling it a night.
The audience under Rekha Bhardwaj's spell
“A mesmerising evening on The Bengal Club lawns by Rehka Bhardwaj who enthralled the members with some of her well-known Bollywood hits. It was a full house followed by a special curated dinner. We are looking forward to some more classical musical evenings being organised by the entertainment committee,” said Dinyar Mucadum, CEO, The Bengal Club.