Young talents enthral city

KOLKATA: Two young vocalists Rageshri Das of Durgapur and Kolkata's Alik Sengupta mesmerized classical music enthusiasts of the city at the grand finale of the Golden Talent Contest organized by the Pt. Ravi Kichlu Foundation at the GD Birla Sabhagar on Thursday evening.
Such was their command over their vocal chords, that even the panel of judges, comprising Padmabhushan Smt Girija Devi, Pt.Hari Prasad Chaurasia, Jaya Biswas, Haimanti Shukla and Gobindo Bose, were left spellbound and praised Rageshri and Alik wholeheartedly. The two were shortlisted from nearly 700 candidates after several rigorous rounds of competition. The contest was held in association with The Times of India.
"I am nervous to perform after hearing these two young talents. It seems children of Kolkata start learning music since the time they are in their mother's womb," said Pt. Hari Prasad Chaurasia in jest before giving a special flute recital. He was also presented with the Dr R S Agarwal award for his contribution to Indian classical music.
While Alick Sengupta impressed the audience with his rendering of raga Malkauns, Rageshri Das mesmerized with her soulful rendition of raga Bhopali. Rageshri Das was declared the winner of the A category. Alick missed the first position by a whisker and Anirban Bhattacharya bagged the third position. Shubha Ghosh won the first prize in B category and Anindita Deb stood second. Oishi Bhattacharjee and Dhruba Banerjee shared the third prize.
"It is heartening to see that there is a long-standing culture in Bengal to encourage children to excel in classical music. These children have given performances of high quality," said Veena Kichlu, wife of the late Pt Ravi Kichlu. Girija Devi and Pt Chaurasia also released Khwahish a collection of ghazals and kajri, sung by the late maestro's son Vibhas Kichlu. This is his first solo album.
Besides promoting young talent, the foundation also runs a primary school for under-privileged children and supports retired musicians in need of treatment.