''A Musical Extravaganza''

Dear All,

As planned, a musical Extravaganza was organised by CNS at 13:00 on Sunday, 13 August, at Firstsite (Studios 1 and 2). Lok Shwor Samrat and Waristha Lok Dohori Gayak Raju Pariyar, Bahu Charchit and Waristha Lok Dohori Gayika Shila Ale and Charchit Hashya Byanga Kalakar Umesh Rai (Phulendiki Ama) arrived and gave us a memorable entertainment for almost half a day.

The day began with the Chair giving calls to Rubin Gurung and Jas Kumari Gurung to arrange last-minute refreshments for the evening, which Jas, Rubin, Nar, Dil Maya, and members of Gurkha Home prepared in good time, and Dambar Limbu provided drinks. At the same time, the Chair and Mitra were preparing and decorating the hall, assisted by Umesh, Rupa, Kamala, and a few others, including Siya Dube were setting up the PA system. Loknath Adhikari managed to fetch Raju Pariyar and Shila Ale, who were given some rest and refreshments at Gurkha Home after their grueling three and half hours of travel. Just after half past two, Rubin, with refreshments, escorted in the singers, and Kala Rai escorted in Phulendiki Ama.

The musical extravaganza began just after three with the introduction of legendary Sanu Subba in her style, officially starting the musical extravaganza by lighting the candles by the Chair and Advisor Umesh and Raju, and Shila did light the other candle. Sanu then asked Raju to begin with, followed by Phulendiki Ama and Shila, and then the Dohori song was sung. Every program was so good that everyone was dancing, listening to the artists, and laughing. At the same time, Rubin and his crew and Dambar and crew were feeding us refreshments and drinks. World Remit was also there to assist us in sending money to Nepal, and they sponsored £100 for using their services; Krishna Bhandari also sponsored £40 as it was his birthday, and members sponsored £700 in the nanglo, which we gave them to artists. It was a brilliant evening, and everyone thoroughly enjoyed it.

At around 7.55 pm, we moved to the Cinema to release the TEEJ song written by Kamala Khatri and sung by Sunita Dulal, and the music video was screened at Castle Park. Once again, the legendary Sanu Subba introduced the release of the TEEJ song. Kamala provided a bouquet and khada to all the sponsors; they were the Chair, Bhoj Kumar Shrestha, Dr. Mohan, Rita Magar, Tara Pun, Area Rep Gurkha Home, and also the leading artists, including Rupa and Suman.

We also gave khadas and tokens of our appreciation to Loknath for Sungava, Raju, Shila, Umesh, Rupa, and Suman for their dance.

The legendary Sanu requested Kamala to say a few words, and she succinctly rounded up her speech, thanking the whole community for being so supportive of her endeavors; with their support, she may be able to do more in the field of music for a long time. Sanu then requested the Chair to say a few words and close the release of the TEEJ song and musical extravaganza.

The Chair thanked Raju, Shila, and Umesh for their excellent talents, and it was so good to see them in person in Colchester and give us such entertainment; it was fabulous. He also thanked Kamala for her talent and for being able to write such excellent songs; he wished her success in the future and also thanked Sanu for her excellent way of running the program; without her dedication, the program would not have been flawless and such a success. He also thanked Rubin, Jas Kumari, Nar, members of Gurkha Home, Dambar Limbu, and two sons of Nimesh for providing food and drinks for the musical extravaganza. Finally, my thanks go to the Secretary for providing tickets and collecting monies from members, Mahesh, Mina and Hari, Dhan, Usha, and Jas Kumari for their dedication, commitment, and diligence; we were unable to gather more than 150 people; for which I am grateful to them. I also thank Usha for keeping all the monies safely.

We then cleaned where everyone gave hands and cleared out of Firstsite by 9:15 pm, for which I thank everyone. Finally, a big thank you to Umesh, Rupa, and Dan for their generous offer of an evening meal at their restaurant to the singers, comedians, and leading players of the evening; it was an outstanding meal.

Well done, everyone.

Udai B Gurung MBE

Chair/Trustee

CNS