The festive season has begun and this could be seen at the Gitanjali Heritage Festival, which had its grand opening with a concert by famous singer Shaan.

The concert, organised by the Bengali Association, was hugely attended, especially by the Bengalis from all over the City.  Though the heavy rains did act as a deterrent, it did not stop the crowds from coming in to listen to the beautiful voice of the singer. The musical event began with a brief warm-up session of popular songs like Zoobi-Doobi and Genda Phool before Shaan enthralled the audience with his voice.

Starting out with his latest hit Behti Hawa from the film 3 Idiots, Shaan maintained the suspense quotient by not entering the stage for some time.  But soon the music from the movie Don started playing out and he made a grand entrance mouthing the words Don ka intezar to gyarah mulkon ki police kar rahin hain. He was effortlessly charming and melodious as he sang Mein hun Don to the screaming crowd.

“I have observed that ever since the City’s name has been changed to Bengaluru, the number of Bengali people in the City has increased quite a bit,” joked Shaan.  Soon afterwards, he sang a piece dedicated to Rabindra Nath Tagore on the occasion of his 150th birth year. Though a little nervous, he sang the Bengali song quite beautifully.

“My Kannada friends must be wondering whether I am in Bangalore or are they in Bengal,” he joked after the performance.  Soon, he set the mood for the evening with the number Jab Se Tere Naina from the movie Sawariyaan but it was the song Suno Na from Jhankaar Beats which got the crowd screaming.

He performed flawlessly on the stage, singing songs like Hum jo chalne lage, Mein Aisa Kyun Hun and Subah ho gayi Mamu. He also dedicated a song to one of his fans from Bangalore, who had been a keen follower of the singer on Twitter.

Wishing luck to her and her friends, he went on to sing Who Pehli Baar from the movie Pyaar Mein Kabhi Kabhi. The singer was put in a tough situation as there was a request made for a Kannada song but he surprised everyone by singing one song that he remembered.

He followed this with Tune Mujhe Pehchana Nahi from Raju Chacha which seemed to be a crowd favourite. Everyone, young and old, enjoyed the wonderful evening of music which was marked by Shaan’s trademark smile and his beautiful voice.