Mere Sapnon Ki Rani - A Tribute To Sharmila Tagore

A beautiful program with songs featuring the enchanting Sharmila Tagore was presented by Raghu Saranathan, Sankar Gangaikondan, Sharanya Sarkar Verma, Ashutosh-Tejal Patel and Meena Sundaram. The show was produced by Meena Sundaram and Abhinaya Arts in support of the Worcester Refugee Assistance Project. The event was held at the Parish Center for the Arts on Saturday, Jan 21st 2023.

Pallavi Nagesha and Venki Nagesha served as emcees for the event. The event was originally held as a fundraiser for Asha for Education. The popularity of the program motivated the team to present it again. It was a sold out show both the times.

The event started of with a beautiful rendition of 'Mere Sapnon Ki Rani' by Ashutosh-Tejal Patel. For the attendees, the song evoked beautiful memories of the time when Sharmila Tagore stole the hearts of millions in her role in Aradhana. Lovely audio visuals and excellent sound management by Sanjay Jain and Rajesh Puranik made the event a special treat for the audience.

Songs from famous and not so famous films were presented. Songs from Aradhana, Sawan Ki Ghata, Safar, Anupama, Yakeen, Kashmir Ki Kali, Amar Prem, Mere Humdum Mere Dost, Raja Rani, Daag, Chupke Chupke, Mausam, Evening in Paris, Anand Ashram and Aa Gale Lag Ja were sung A wide variety of styles of songs were presented. Serious pieces like Raina Beetha Jaye and fun pieces like Ab Chahe Ma Roothe Ya Baba were sung beautifully and with ease.

â€œI have always been a big fan of Sharmila Tagoreji since the Aradhana days when I was a young child and remember this gorgeous lady sitting on a train being serenaded by this handsome dude. I was hooked! I have loved her roles in a variety of films like Amar Prem, Mausam, Amanush and Anupama. Musically, her films have had music by so many legendary music directors like SD Burman, RD Burman and Laxmikant Pyarelal, literally a wealth of songs to choose from. It has really been fun to do this showâ€ said Meena Sundaram.

The show was a fund raiser for WRAP. â€œThe Worcester Refugee Assistance Project (WRAP) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization committed to assisting refugees and resettled migrants achieve sustainable self-reliance through mentoring, advocacy, and educational assistance. WRAP expanded its mission in 2021 to assist and augment the efforts of the Worcester Together Collaborative to serve the Afghan and Ukrainian refugees. We are currently serving Haitian refugees as well. The ticket sales from Mere Sapnon Ki Rani : A tribute to Sharmila Tagore and generous donations from the event will help us increase access to our after-school program for children and youth, fund summer enrichment programs and increase availability of scholarships to graduating seniors and college bound adultsâ€ said Mythili Rao, who along with Dr. Anushay Mistry serve as volunteers for WRAP.

â€œSharmila Tagore, for me has inspired me with her courage and conviction. She is a feminist, through and through. Her grace and beauty is rivaled only be her talent. My husband Venki is probably her greatest fan and I am so glad Meena roped us both into this creative and fun project! We had a blast interacting with the audience!â€, said Pallavi. The two of them presented fun facts about the films and about the personal life of Sharmila, that added a lot to the presentation.

Kudos to the singers, who did a great job with each song. The hard work that was put into the event was visible and the funds raised went to support a great cause.