An activity on BIG 92.7 FM that had been on since a month, culminated in five concerts over five cities in India (Delhi, Bangalore, Kolkata, Chandigarh and Mumbai), on the 16th, 17th, 18th, 19th and the 20th of April, the grand finale being in Mumbai.
Apart from launching Sonu Niigam’s single “Punjabi Please”, the activity was the first ever attempt at a reality show on radio, in India, hunting down the best singers of the respective cities, and selecting one each from those cities, to perform with Sonu in the five concerts.
The concert in Mumbai was a special one. Although it started late, with the six contestants from five cities singing a song each; once the star performer stepped on stage, he dazzled the Mumbai audience with his talent, and left them zapped and breathless.
With a short alaap and an instrumental medley, Sonu made a dramatic entry with awesome fireworks, accompanied by an ear-splitting cheer from the audience. Starting with his hit Bollywood songs like Falak Dekhoon, Chak De Saare Gham and Dil Dooba, the veteran exhibited his command over the technical aspects of singing, and made the audience dance, cheer, and sing with him.
Once he had the audience standing on their toes, Sonu cooled it down with some slower, soothing hits like Ab Mujhe Raat Din, Sooraj Hua Maddham, etc. The specialty of the concert was the ease with which Sonu involved the audience. From stunts like fitting names of vegetables in songs like Aaja Nachleve, making the audiences sing and dance at his varying tempos, merging oldies like Mera Saaya, Maine Tere Liye Hi Saat Rang Ke and Phholon Ke Rang Se with his famous Bollywood number Main Hoon Na, he did everything just right to make the concert one of the most memorable ones.
But when big names like Sonu Niigam, Big FM and Close-up come together, how can an event be aloof of any controversy? Inspite of the strong security present around the stage, a damsel, Sonu’s fan, ran up to him, kissed him and presented the star with a huge scratch on his throat which was bleeding quite fervently till the end. Assuming the act was not known to the singer, he did do well to remain unperturbed, and continued his performance, rocking the city with his experiments in songs like Just Chill and Staying Alive (Bee Gees).
The whole point of the BIG 92.7 FM Punjabi Please concert was to find that One talented singer, who would have the fortune of cutting an album with the idol, Sonu Niigam himself. So, after a performance of the single Punjabi Please that he released with BIG Fm, Sonu declared Manjira Gangully (from Mumbai) as the winner.
Probably the only performer who can meet international standards, a complete entertainer, and a superlative singer, Sonu concluded the concert with his greatest hit Kal Ho Na Ho, leaving the audience in awe, and completely in love with him.
