For a city which receives a fair amount of attention from performers, here's why Mohit Chauhan's upcoming show stands out
For a city which receives a fair amount of attention from performers, here's why Mohit Chauhan's upcoming show stands out
Recently, the co-founder of the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA) Mark Featherstone was in town, (okay in Gurgaon), chewing over a panel discussion topic, "Is Formal education essential to achieve your potential as a performer?". Quite a few performers we have loved and seen evolved over time were present.
One guy perhaps should also have been there. Mohit Chauhan, the man who sings, plays the guitar, the flute and the harmonica, all without a 'formal' training.
We are not sure how Mohit would have reacted to the debate, but the only formal training we are aware of that the man has, is a Masters in Geology from Dharamshala College. Imagine what would have happened if the man had chosen to answer his 'formal' calling.
Since he didn't, we had a Dooba dooba we could croon to our beloved over the phone at the dead of the night. We have a Masakkali which refuses to leave our lips, long after we have gotten over the film. Add to the list numerous others which stop you from changing the channel on your car radio.
Mohit Chauhan's popularity can be genuinely gauged in Himachal Pradesh, where St Beads girls sitting in Devicos in Shimla fight over his Guncha koi for hours or young boys smoking pot in tea stall in Chamba go on a dizzy high listening to Babajee on a battered stereo. But girls go equally berserk in Bangalore when they hear him and a rural Jat in Ludhiana loves his Shiv Kumar Batalvi and Chamkila but can sing Pehli baar mohababt ki hai by his 'motor' (tubewell) over his whiskey.
That perhaps, is the gratification we haven't had for a while. Delhi is lucky, for if not a lot but receives its fair share of attention from artists from all genres. Unfortunately, in our race to embrace them all, we miss the simple yet powerful performances. Mohit Chauhan is that one performer we haven't paid attention to. Yes, the college crowd has seen him perform him in fests and other shows. But it's time others from different walks of life, who have loved him but felt to shy to attend a college fest, to catch him.
Time to end 'Yeh dooriyan!'
On : April 6
Venue: Siri Fort Auditorium
Timings: 7pm onwards
Entry: By invitation (To win Invite tune in to 94.3 Radio One or Sms ONE<space>MOHIT and send it to 53650)
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