Societal Events Report :Oscar-winning Indian music composer AR Rahman and Senegalese-American hip-hop singer-cum-music composer Akon performed together in the opening ceremony concert of the T20 World Cup Cricket 2014 organised by the Bangladesh Cricket Board (BCB) in order to create hype ahead of the international tournament.The concert, held at the Bangabandhu National Stadium in Dhaka, was marked by great fanfare and enthusiasm, spectacular display of various combinations of dance, music and bombardment fireworks on March 13. Local bands and country’s leading singers also performed at the event. Both A R Rahman and Akon performed in Bangladesh for the first time in an event. The concert reportedly cost the BCB a whopping 3-million-dollars. After going for sale online on March 8, tickets for the event were sold out well before it was staged on March 13. Both AR Rahman and Senegalese-American enthralled the spectators with mesmerised performance at Bangbandhu National Stadium, fulfilling the BCB’s aspiration. The gates at the venue were opened at 3pm but those who reached the venue in time found themselves either waiting in long queues outside or rushing one gate to another as the volunteers failed to provide proper information. However, the show itself was stunning as nothing-from entertainment to amusement-lacked in the event that was split into a string of phases. The ICC, however, never demanded an opening ceremony but the BCB arranged the celebration concert at the cost of Tk 18 crore to stamp a benchmark in its history. They however masterminded the humongous celebration programme to make cricket the focal point over the coming three weeks. The programme began with the performance of Arnab and Friends at 4.45pm and gained its momentum. Thereafter popular band Souls and LRB rendered some of their hit songs, mesmerising the crowd in the stadium. With the thunderous sound of fireworks deafening the ear, Oscar winning music composer AR Rahman appeared on the stage to enthral the crowd further. Akon and A R Rahman then performed together and left everybody in the stadium awestruck. n Photo: Moin Ahamed
