Kher’s Kailasa band gives a heady touch to Alva’s Virasat

Moodbidri: Curtains came down on the three-day national cultural fest — Alva’s Virasat — in this Jain Kashi of the South on Sunday.

A massive crowd gathered at Puthige to listen to singer Kailash Kher who lost no time in getting his act together reeling out songs from his albums and films that have endeared him to the masses and legions of fans across the country.

If Ekka Raja Rani from Jackie was a wakeup call to the gathering in excess of 45,000, Kaun Hai Wo from Baahubali was living up to his earlier words of how he was in ‘Divyalok’ in front of a ‘Baahubali’ crowd at the Smt Vanajakshi K Sripathi Bhat stage. Paying tributes to the disciplined yet discerning music lovers, Kher with his crew that included locals Yash Kamath, Naresh Kamath and sound engineer Jovian kept the crowd grooving.

With Mohan Alva, chairman, Alva’s Education Foundation, making it clear that all celebrations have to be disciplined, the crowd never dared cross the line. Yet the music kept them true and alive as Kher picked up from a wide repertoire of songs, including Sufi offering Piya ke Rang Dini Odhni. His word play was as true as his singing, one of which brought out his relation to Manmohan Shetty, his neighbour in Juhu.

“You will get a lot of television. Don’t get lost in the world of machines. Learn to enjoy the live concert situation which one gets on rare occasions,” Kher reminded a generation that was hooked to Facebook live rather than the life surrounding them. “This – the live stage – is where we the Kailasa band has learnt our ropes, experimented and are earning our livelihood,” he said much to the liking of the aficionados who eagerly anticipated the next song that he offered.

A soulful rendition of Akka Mahadevi’s vachana Akka Kelava Naan Ondu Kanasa Kande was his way of ensuring that needs of every section of the audience was catered to in equal measure. With Yash proving to be his wingman in song selection, Kher pulled out all stops to ensure that Alva’s Virasat was truly an event for the young generation to savour. Earlier, Dr Alva presented the Alva’s Varna Virasat award on artist Shobha Broota in a brief awards ceremony.