Of golden oldies

The hall room was aglow with candlelights and the round tables were adorned in white linens to bring a mesmerising effect. Fatematuz Zohra Ritu, an up-coming singer, welcomed the crowd with several numbers hailing from the old-gold days, Nazrul's compositions and several modern numbers.

At around 8:00 pm, Kanak stepped on stage to begin with her set of enthralling compositions. 'As an artiste, it's a pleasure to have an evening all to yourself,' she said to the crowd. 'Usually, after singing a series of Bangla numbers, the crowd requests for Hindi numbers. However, tonight I am sure I'll able to perform a few of my favourite compositions as well.'

She started off with a number by Rajanikant and went on to sing several numbers from her first few performances on the television, followed by golden oldies, Nazrul compositions and Tagore numbers. She held the audience captive with her melodious rendering of popular numbers such as Shagorer teer theke, Nijhumo shondhyay, Ey mon tomake dilam, Akaash eto meghla, Amaar bolar kichu chilo na, Prem ekbaar eshechilo nirobe and many more. Her singing also complemented the melodious flute played by Jalal, which seemed to speak of its own heart.

The audience clapped in appreciation and sang along with Kanak at times. Some of the spectators were seen giving in their own requests on cards, clearly enjoying the evening. In between her singing, Kanak dedicated a few of her numbers to her father and her husband, who were both present at the show.

Kanak is a household name in the country today. She has also travelled around the world where her music has been widely appreciated. Looking into the future, she said, 'I have received recognition by singing these memorable oldies of legendary artistes of our land. Likewise I hope there will come a day when artistes will perform my numbers on stage and receive the same adulation,' she said.