Sourendro-Soumyojit, the dynamic musical duo, has always mesmerised audiences with their innovative experimentation, seamlessly blending classic melodies with diverse instruments and medleys of nostalgic tunes. Their recent tribute to Lata Mangeshkar at the Science City auditorium, featuring A.R. Rahman’s compositions, exemplified their dedication to preserving and reinventing Indian musical heritage. Jiya jale to Hamma hamma accompanied by live instrumentalists, and chorus singing groups made the ambience worth remembering. Finally, at the request of the audience, they rendered Bhanusingha Thakurer Padabali’s song Aju sakhi muhu muhu.

Sourendro (left) said: “We have always loved performing in Calcutta as it has a very vibrant audience who are open to experiments and love varied forms of music. We were happy to assemble so many instruments of varied origins — when the sitar, sarod flute played together it resonated with our Maihar band, when the chorus harmonised, it reminded one of Salil Chowdhury and when we sang Tagore, the full audience joined. We were thrilled with a full auditorium.” Soumyojit added: “As musicians, we are privileged to perform all over the world. Many evenings, many cities, different people, and different stages, but there are some evenings which keep a long resonance in your memory for quite some time. I think this performance we had in Science City auditorium celebrating 100 years of Income Tax Bar Association is one of those special evenings.”

Sagnik Roy (centre), curator of the musical evening, said, “I am very keen on Indian art, music, and culture. I always try to incorporate them into my events. It was very exciting to put up a musical show, its set, and design its costumes, lights, and makeup. We invited Sourendro-Soumyojit as their presentation is very comprehensive in nature with many underlying layers, and the whole team made this evening memorable with their outstanding performance, as always.”