There is some cheer for the people of Jammu this Independence Day. Kunwar Viyogi Memorial Trust is bringing I-Day celebrations to your doorstep with its Freedom Concert, first of its kind to be held online at 5pm on August 15. Freedom Concert is a live musical tribute dedicated to our brave soldiers on the occasion of 74th Independence Day of India!
Six mega stars will perform for Jammuites and enthral them with their melodies in Dogri, Punjabi and Hindi at the Freedom Concert. Renowned Punjabi singer Jasbir Jassi, popularly known for his foot-tapping songs like Dil Le Gayee, Laungda Lashkara, Kudi Kudi will share the stage with renowned Ghazal singer Radhika Chopra – daughter of the soil. Radhika learnt Thumri, Dadra and Ghazal from the most eminent guru, Smt. Shanti Hiranand, renowned disciple of Begum Akhtar. Having been empanelled by the ICCR to perform abroad to promote classical Indian music and commissioned by the Indian Ministry of Culture to commemorate legendary figures such as Ghalib, Kundan Lal Saigal,et al. Radhika has also performed at the ‘Jahan-E-Khusrau’ Sufi Festival to mark the death anniversary of Hazrat Amir Khusrau. Apart from Jasbir Jassi and Radhika Chopra, brother-sister duo RJ Roohie and Juhi will also perform at the Freedom Concert along with soulful Dogri folk singer Vanshhika Jaral and Indipop singer Dr Manvi Gupta.
Freedom Concert is being held in collaboration with Red FM and is open for all music lovers, who can come online and interact with all the artists. It is yet another endeavour of Kunwar Viyogi Memorial Trust to celebrate the spirit of India and the vibrancy of Dogri Culture. In 2018, the Trust had showcased its patriotic dance drama Pryustu: The Yodha at Manikshaw Centre in New Delhi. The event coincided with Independence Day and saw in attendance then Chief of Army Staff General Bipin Rawat along with 900 soldiers of the Indian Army. Kathak dancer Sanchita Abrol performed the dance drama, adapted from the poetry of Sahitya Akademi Awardee Kunwar Viyogi. Following its success in Delhi, Pryustu: The Yodha was showcased in 5 Indian cities namely – Jaipur, Srinagar, Chandigarh and Srinagar.
Kunwar Viyogi Memorial Trust also unveiled the first online edition of Artist Circle, featuring Founding Director of Natrang Padamshri Balwant Thakur. Artist Circle is a unifying platform for artists across the globe to converge, engage and inspire fellow artists and amateurs. As multifaceted as art is, Artist Circle brings together artists of all genres to share, explore and connect via myriad forms of art. It is an online forum to showcase the works of artists in various categories of art including but not limited to visual art (painting, drawing, sculpture), graphic art (design), plastic art (sculpture, modeling), decorative art (enamelwork, furniture design, mosaic), performing art (theatre, dance, music), literature (poetry, drama, story), photography and more.
In a lively interview, Thakur spoke on various issues and stressed on the need to take theatre to the rural population. He said that today people are hungry for good stories and want to reconnect with their roots. “Theatre or any form of art survives on demand and supply. Fortunately for us there is supply in terms of creating fascinating stories and theatre productions for the people. But we artists are unable to cater to the public need,” said Thakur. Apart from financial constraints, Thakur said that disconnect of the youth from their culture and their language has led to shortage of demand. Asking aspiring artists to do tapasya, Thakur said that younger actors need to have the patience and determination to follow their dreams. He was of the opinion that while success comes and goes, it’s the craft that helps an artist grow and sustain in the longer run.
Kunwar Viyogi Memorial Trust recently launched two music videos penned by the celebrated writer himself. Bholi, describing a beautiful bond shared between a brother and sister was sung by RJ Roohie and his sister Juhi, while Dosti – a tale of selfless friendship was sung by Dr Manvi Gupta. Both the Dogri songs have been widely appreciated by the people across the county for its unique composition and simplicity of Viyogi’s verse.
