Review:
Ronu Majumdar is one of India’s most renowned musicians and in the past three decades, has cemented his position as one of the world’s premier flautists. Last evening, he launched his latest album, aptly titled Breathless Flute at Landmark. Press documents on the man praised him to the skies, as was expected; going so far as to say his work is like ‘Bach singing through a bansuri.’ I wouldn’t attempt to defend that statement, but would surely attach a string of favourable superlatives besides his name.
At around six, the Grammy nominee launched his album in the presence of celebrities like Jackie Shroff, Louis Banks, Shantanu Moitra and Madhushree. While it would have been great to see the celebrity musicians collaborate with him onstage, it was Ronu’s evening. During the launch, the guests of honour offered some thoughts on the musician. Jackie Shroff said, “I’ve always admired Ronu da’s music and when my friend Madan told me of Ronu da’s recital, I just could not resist coming here.” While Louis Banks said, “I have watched Ronu since he was a child. He is a prodigy.”
Ronu played songs from the album, which includes a rendition of ‘We Are The World’, a tribute to Michael Jackson. Fundamentally, it is a folk album influenced by Assamese music. ‘Ronu’s Theme’ is a light, ethereal piece that remains contemporary through its use of percussion but at the same time, has a traditional touch. Ronu was especially upbeat while performing ‘We Are The World’. This song really gave the crowd that extra something to cheer about since they knew the tune.
But even this didn’t motivate the crowd as much as what followed. Halfway through the performance, Ronu’s son Hrishikesh took to the stage and the kid wowed the audience with his command over the bansuri. But then the spotlight returned to Ronu, who played two more songs. The cheers weren’t as loud as they were when his son played, but that’s only because no one is surprised by Ronu’s skill on the instrument.
