Nagpur: A mix of devotional songs and ghazals presented by noted singer Prasanna Joshi impressed a huge gathering of music lovers at Reshimbagh ground on Wednesday.
Presenting 'Bhajan Sadhana and Ghazal' during Mahila Udyojika Melava organized by the women and child welfare department of Nagpur Municipal Corporation (NMC), Joshi swayed the audience with lilting songs from the word go. He started off with devotional song 'Ambe charan kamal hai tere' that kept the audience spellbound. Joshi sang a soul-satisfying ghazal 'Tumko dekha to yeh khayal aaya' which hit right notes and the audience too joined him in chorus for a few lines.
Mehdi Hassan's fans were in for a treat as Joshi sang the beautiful 'Ranjish hi sahi', mesmerizing music lovers with his voice. Some other songs he sung included 'Baat niklegi', 'Gulo mein rang', 'Aapko dekhkar' and many more. He was accompanied by Devendra Yadav on tabla, Nasir Khan on sitar, Rahul Manekar on harmonium, Arvind Upadhye on flute and Saurabh Killedar on keyboard.
Joshi lamented that the number of fans of devotional music and ghazals was reducing day by day as the people were more turning to other forms. Therefore, he conceptualized this programme to bring back the beauty of such songs and provide entertainment to music buff. Though a lot of youngsters are still attracted towards ghazals, the number is less when compared to the older people, he added.
Calling out to amateur singers, Joshi said, "Practice makes a man perfect. Magic happens if one kept improvising and following the passion." Through his songs, he paid tributes to Jagjit Singh on the eve of his birth anniversary.
Varsha Thakre, chairperson of the department of women and child development of NMC, said that the eight-day festival was aimed at providing women entrepreneurs a platform and promote their small-scale businesses. With entries coming from across Vidarbha, women-run enterprises are the attraction at the event. Besides this, entertainment programmes added colour to the event, she said.
Singer Prasanna Joshi performs at Reshimbagh ground
