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Sunday, September 6, 2015

LORNA CORDEIRO WINS GOAN HEARTS IN KUWAIT

LORNA WINS GOAN HEARTS IN SOLD OUT EVENT IN KUWAIT


Over a thousand die-hard Lorna Cordeiro and Konkani music fans crammed inside the American International School Auditorium in Hawally to witness the living legend otherwise called the nightingale of Goa, perform live on the 28th of August 2015 in probably the best organized Goan program in Kuwait in a long long time.

Norman Cardozo - Lorna's pillar on stage
Launching their first ever event in Kuwait, ‘Celebrate Entertainment’ a newly formed Event & Media management company under the headship of young and dynamic Cheslee D’Souza,  ‘an evening with Lorna’ was an astounding success and the mainly second and third generations of young Lorna fans, most  of whom had never seen her but had grown up listening to her famous songs playing in their parents cars or at some Goan function or a party,  enjoyed an evening of wonderful performances, not only from Lorna who was accompanied by the very talented Norman Cardozo on the keyboard, but also all  other performers  that participated in the program as well.  The fact that barely three months ago a Konkani film loosely based on the life of Lorna,  ‘Nachom-ia Kumpasar’ featuring many of her famous songs was shown successfully in Kuwait,  added to the mystery and aura of the legend.

The Classix - Good performance by them
With the audience having already packed the hall well before the scheduled starting time, the program kicked off,  with Kuwait’s expatriate Goan band ‘Classix’ made up of talented Goan boys  who warmed up and jelled the audience with some retro English renditions and the all time Goan favorites Mira Mira and a medley of classic Konkani hits.  By the time the Classix ended their set, the audience were already anxious to see Lorna and the excitement and anticipation  reached fever pitch when the evening’s host, the dashing and flamboyant Lloyd D’Souza came on stage and asked the eager crowd  ‘Ladies and gentlemen….. Are you ready for Lorna?’  The response was unanimous, "Lorna Lorna" they screamed,  the lights dimmed, the magical music of Norman played and on stage glided in  Lorna with her trademark arms raised,  flawlessly rendering ‘Denem’ (gift) a new composition, wherein she thanks the almighty for the gift of her voice.  Incidentally the song was composed by Nevis Olivera, Superintendant of Customs in India, and was the perfect build up for other all time favorites like ‘ Sorge tojea doleanim’  and ‘ Ker Korina’ which followed.

Master of  Ceremony - Lloyd D'Souza
Taking a short breather during which time local talent Jhankar Acadamy took centre stage to perform some amazing dance routines, Lorna was back on stage for the second set.  One of the highlights of the evening was the interaction Lorna was able to have with the audience through emcee Lloyd D’Souza, who every now and then got Lorna to share some trivia about herself.  Her song ‘Sorga Rajeanth’ a sad ballad was composed by the late Souza Ferrao, Lorna informed the audience.  She then ended the session with an upbeat version of all time favorites, ‘Calangute’  and the foot tapping ‘ Nachon-ia Kumpasar’.  

Celebrate Entertainment CEO - Cheslee D'Souza (above) & the Crew
After intermission, popular Kuwaiti singer Mubarak Al Rashed who is a lover of Indian music, made a guest appearance on stage and surprised and impressed the crowd with his flawless and charming rendition of Senorita from a popular Hindi film. 
Popular Kuwaiti singer Mubarak Al Rashed
The novelty of Lorna who started her career as a Jazz singer in a popular nightclub in a Mumbai hotel is her intense power packed voice which she uses to easily cover her lack of stage glamour.  It’s this voice along with the popular Chris Perry compositions that have got her performing for her fans all over the world including the Middle East, USA, UK, France and Portugal.   To prove her versatility and taking on the challenge of emcee Lloyd she jammed with the Classix to sing the title song of her comeback album after 25 years in 1995 ‘ Portun aikat mozo tavo’ which she followed up with the timeless ‘ Sopon’  and ‘Amerikak Paushi’.  The audience was also given an opportunity in between to watch Penny’s Dance group performing the Kulti fogdi a traditional Goan harvest dance.
Penny’s Dance group performing the Kulti fogdi a traditional Goan harvest dance.
Chief Guest for the evening Mrs. Jawhar Al Bader thanked the organizers for inviting her and paid glowing tributes to Cheslee D’Souza  who she said she had known as a little boy, and was happy to learn that today he is running an event company at this young age by organizing such a big event.  The guest of honor Anand D’Souza was also invited on stage and presented with a bouquet of flowers.  Both Lorna and Norman Cardozo were honored by the organizers towards the end of the evening with plaques and Cheslee thanked them for accepting his invitation and making the evening such a success.  Lorna also cut the ribbon to release the program souvenir which was freely distributed to the audience.
Jhankar Acadamy took centre stage to perform some amazing dance routines
Dashing through the aisles to give away spot prizes on Lorna trivia, Lloyd asked Lorna if she would ever return to  Kuwait and the diva responded with raised arms, of course I will, I love you all and look forward to seeing you all again.



Magical - Lorna
Going into her final set of songs, Lorna started with ‘Tuzo Mog’ by asking the very sporting audience to sing along with her and ended the evening on a high with ‘Lisboa’ and ‘Bebdo’.  For the mainly Goan audience hungry for some quality entertainment, the entire show was a novelty.   The timely start, the glittering on stage lighting and faultless sound system put together by Waves Sound and Engineering headed by Anand and his team was something that Goan audience had hoped one day to see and hear.  SB Media brought glamour to the event and took care of the videography.  The media coverage was handled by ‘Kuwait Today’.
A section of the very receptive audience
The main sponsors for the evening were ‘ Gulf Cable & Electric Industries Company ‘ and ‘Wrap It’.   Associate sponsors were Avanti Restaurant, Kapico, Caesars, Ali Alghanim & Sons, Gulf Spic, Burgan Bank, Malabar Gold, Reliance Technical and Waves Printing.  While thanking all the sponsors, and people who supported him in organizing the event, Cheslee did not forget to remember his two closesd friends Wazil and Abigail who both passed away tragically in a car accident a few months back.  He also thanked  Prashant and his family and friends for the support he received.

Honor to be in the same pic as the three stars of the evening
As people filed out of the auditorium, the huge impact Lorna had created and the success of the show was evident from the smiling faces, the happy chirpy laughter and the seemingly endless queue to take selfies with Lorna.  Celebrate Entertainment and particularly Cheslee  D’souza should take a bow for finally giving the Goans a mega event that was superbly organized. As a fan summed it all up ‘Lorna is the reason we listen to Konkani music’, thank you Celebrate Entertainment for letting us see her too!!!

Julio Cardoso
Kuwait

Thursday, April 23, 2015

Goa Maroons bid farewell to Leo Fernandes - Kuwait


Goan Overseas Association (Goa Maroons) Managing Committe with families at the farewell
There are quite a few Goans among us here in Kuwait who have done very well for themselves, are well placed at work, in  society, bright, trustworthy and capable, but have chosen to  do work that is largely behind the scenes and I believe they are better off for that choice.
A memento being presented to Leo Fernandes (white shirt) from G.O.A President Raymond D'Sa
Once such person is our good friend Leo Fernandes, a managing committee member of Goan Overseas Association (Goa Maroons) who bids goodbye to Kuwait today to settle back in Goa after 38 glorious years in Kuwait.  Quiet, unassuming, family oriented, helpful and forever smiling , Leo worked in a managerial position at National Bank of Kuwait and now returns to Goa to join his wife Josephine in Nagoa.
Leo Fernandes (centre) with G.O.A Committee members
L to R:  Kevin Vaz, Joe Pereira, Julio Cardoso, Jaime Figueira, Felix Mendes Leo Fernandes
Raymond D'Sa, Erin Pereira, Rolland D'Sa, Regi Rodrigues, Ian D'Souza & Steven Rodrigues
 There’s a saying ‘Life begins at retirement’ and this is exactly what we wish Leo.  A life full of happy adventures, amazing experiences, and good health & happiness for the remainder of the journey.  
Julio Cardoso
Kuwait