A.R. Rahman fever that gripping the port town Kakinada reached the peak on Thursday with people enjoying him as he performed on the final day of Kakinada Beach Festival. There had been a rush for passes which many could not get. A number of educational institutions declared a half-day holiday while some gave a full holiday on Thursday. Students and teachers, like everyone else, were eager to be at the beach for the show. Police made elaborate security arrangements. Rahman prover the star attraction of the beach festival overshadowing all others.
Deputy Chief Minister Nimmakayala China Rajappa, District Collector Karthikeya Misra, Kakinada MLA Vanamadi Venkateswara Rao, Government Advisor Parakala Prabhakar and others arrived at the site by 4 pm to oversee the arrangements. According to sources, some of the district officials gave a lot of publicity to the show. On Wednesday, some officials had raised the expectations that Bollywood star Salman Khan would arrive at the festival site on a special helicopter. That, however, could not be worked out and the star could not make it.
Rahman, meanwhile, arrived in Kakinada on Wednesday night. The management of the hotel where he was hosted gave a grand welcome to him. From the morning on Thursday, people, many accompanied by family and children, from East and West Godavari and Visakhapatnam thronged Vakalapudi Beach trying to occupy the front seats right behind the VIP rows. Traders who set up their stalls are happy over their business. Many visitors spent some money to play different types of games while women were seen busy shopping. The district collector enjoyed his favourite dish `panipuri’ at one of the food outlets.
Meanwhile, students from different colleges, traditional artists and others showed their talents at the venue while the District Sports Authority organised sports competitions. Superintendent of Police Vishal Gunni reviewed the security arrangements at the venue in view of the huge rush. He set up a Police Seva Dal with college going students and youth. Mr Gunni said that the members of Seva Dal have helped to provide security at the beach.
Melody silences sound of the sea
The sound of the sea was, on Thursday evening, overshadowed by the melody being generated by cine music director and singer A.R. Rahman. People swayed to the rhythm of Rahman who captivated the hearts of the thousands gathered on Kakinada beach to listen to him and cherish the lingering memories in future. Rahman’s melody prompted people dance to his tunes. Even a man who know little dancing has unconsciously become a choreographer.
Though he was introduced to the film industry with Tamil films, A R Rahman remained a household name in the Telugu States too with several movies getting dubbed into Telugu. Known for composing both soothing melodies and foot-thumping dance numbers, Mr. Rahman created the same magic on stage with the selection of songs from a variety of genres. The event attracted great crowds as expected by the officials, prompting the police to impose restrictions on the traffic movement en route the beach. The visitors’ rush started from the post-lunch session; people stuck around at the food stalls and entertainment avenues till the evening. As the sky turned dark and the anchors began to announce the gala show that was in the offing, people competed with one another to find place in the gallery, where security was tightened.
Kakinada Beach Festival came to a conclusion on the note of this melody and a feeling of joy among those present for the event. Rahman started his show with his Hindi song Nada Parindhe from Rock Star movie, he moved to Telugu with the famous Musthafa Musthafa. The people ecstatically responded to the song. Shakespere had said, if music be food of love, give me excess of it. As the concert progressed, people of Kakinada kept demanding it go on and Rahman singing.
The people were united as an audience and in their generous applause fior the captivating music and Rahman and his team. The District Collector Karthikeya Misra was appreciated for arranging the music event as part of the festival with Rahman in the fete. Rahman earlier on Wednesday night arrived in Kakinada. Late last night, he and his choir team and practiced until 4 am and observed the the sound affects and other effects. It shows his commitment and devotion to the music and hard work which brought to him Oscar Awards, say some of the audience.
Article Credits: Deccan Chronicle
