When? Eid | Event? Musical performance | Venue? Indian School

In its fourth consecutive year, Centrepoint Desert Symphony is all set to wow the audience with its line-up of musical stalwarts.

Lovers of music have something to look forward to. For along with the joyous celebrations during the festive season, the first day of Eid will also see the musical extravaganza ‘Centrepoint Desert Symphony’ unfold in Bahrain.

An annual event, Desert Symphony sees legendary singers from India perform in front of appreciative audiences to raise funds for local causes. This year, the star line-up includes the timeless diva of pop music from India, Usha Uthup; Tamil playback singer Mano; and singer Anwar Sadath, supported by Asianet reality show Idea Star Singer finalists Hisham Abdulwahab and Lekshmi Jayan.

Known for her distinct style, Usha Uthup sings in more than 13 Indian and eight foreign languages. Besides singing in several Indian languages like Hindi, Punjabi, Bangla, Assamese, Oriya, Khasi, Gujarati, Marathi, Konkani, Malayalam, Kannada, Tamil, Telugu, she also sings in French, German, Italian, Sinhalese, Swahili, Russian, Nepalese, Arabic, Creole, and of course, English.

This award-winning singer has performed in front of many world leaders including Indira Gandhi, Jomo Kenyatta, Daniel Arap Moi and Nelson Mandela.

The event, which has witnessed a great response in the past, is expected to be bigger and better this year. “We are targeting people from South Asia, and especially Indians. We are expecting more than 5,000 people to attend the show,” say the organisers.

The event is being managed by Synergy Middle East, with Centrepoint as its title sponsor. The emphasis, like previous years, is on raising money for a worthy cause.

“In previous years, the concert raised BD5,000 for the Bahrain Down Syndrome Society, Bahrain Mobility International for Disabled and Alia for Early Intervention.

This year, we are hoping to raise BD5,000 and companies are being invited to come forward and support the event as sponsors or buy donor passes.”

The proceeds will go to a local charity. Ticket prices for the show are being finalised and will be announced soon, which will be available at Marina Mall and at the venue.

Audience members can also get a taste of authentic Indian cuisine with a food court presenting famous dishes from all parts of the country. A word of advice, don’t miss the famous street food of India, which will be available at the venue.

Discussions are underway to launch a SMS contest, like last year, which will allow the audience to decide which songs they would like to hear. “This is the largest Indian event which takes place in Bahrain annually. We are expecting the event to be a bigger success than even previous years!” Call 3 9523-983 or 3 6066-022.