Valentine bandwagon, Bangla style

valentine’s day has finally been kolkatanized, if you may allow the expression. the erotic roman festival of lupercalia, which, after the birth of christianity was toned down under the name of saint valentine, has evolved from the days of billet doux to e-mails. so has the idea of the celebration — if one is to go by the now-famous paraspathar song “bhalobasha mane archies gallery...�. discos, clubs and private parties notwithstanding, what’s of interest is that this year, it would be for the first time that city bands would join the valentine bandwagon.
at rabindra sarobar stadium, the main attraction would be a performance by cactus, kolkata and bhoomi, preceeded by a fashion show. bharatdwaj dey, dance and model co-ordinator of the show said, “the participants will be walking the ramp in traditional bengali dresses.� why that? “because we are in kolkata.� but then, why do you have to do it on february 14? “simple, our target is the youth and this is one day when they will buy almost anything.�
banglanatak.com on behalf of the west bengal state aids prevention and control society has taken another stance. within the latter’s family health programme that started from february 7, they are organising a rock show at the dakshinapan shopping complex with fossils and abhilasha. the underlying message is awareness against sexually transmitted diseases. “we aren’t against love,� said ranjan sen, editor of banglanatak.com. “play safe is the message,� he added. are we heading towards a bacchasian celebration? “nothing so heavy,’ said amitava bhattacharya, director of banglanatak.com. “anything that sells is a celebration.�
and chandrabindoo knows the game. “we’ll be proposing for timid lovers like us,� said anindya, vocalist and lyricist of the band. chandrabindoo will be organising a solo programme at rabindra sadan on the day. the evening called ‘jadi balo hae’, is also special in the sense that it is for the first time that the premier auditorium is being used solely by a single band in the city. light ice, a group of young energetic people, will be selling caps and t-shirts inscribed with these lines, which spring form one of the band’s songs. asha audio will be offering the band’s cds and cassettes at the venue at a discounted price.
shibaji, drummer of cactus finds the entire celebration full of fun. “the amusing part is the way we let our hairs down on the slightest pretext,� he says. but then, it also makes a lot of business sense.