High Scores

“We are working round the clock to finalise all the arrangements and create a carnival atmosphere so that the audience can enjoy his two-hour-long gig,” says Sujit Jain,CEO of Netsurf Entertainment. Surprisingly,a host of Indian DJs will open for the Canadian rockstar instead of the usual performances by Indian bands. “We don’t want to run down anyone but I don’t think any band will be able to match up to Bryan Adams. DJs will be a better option to keep the crowds entertained,” he says.

But before the Rebel singer takes centrestage,another foreign act will have metal fans indulging in some headbanging. UK-based electronic dance group The Prodigy takes over the NSIC grounds on January 15 with their rasping vocals and sub-sonic growls. The band will headline a new music festival called Invasion,which aims to bring contemporary live acts to India. The festival is being organised by Mumbai-based Motherswear — a division of a company called Only Much Louder and UK-based UKNY,owned by Zak Biddu,composer Biddu’s son. “There have been performances by Backstreet Boys and others in India,but my aim is to get the best contemporary acts to the country,” says Zak.

In March,bands from various countries will converge in the Capital for the International Jazz Festival being organised by the NGO Seher in collaboration with ICCR.

Amid the rock and electronica,the strains of ragas and sound of ghunghroos will also fill the winter air. Odissi exponent Sonal Mansingh will unveil her latest dance production called Eco Purana. “I have tried to raise questions about the ecological disasters by putting across several themes,parables and allegories to them. Purana means ‘held in collective memory’,” says Mansingh.