Bhopal: ‘Bundeli Bawra’, the first online competition by folklorists organized by ‘Bundelkhand Troopel’, has been titled by ‘Ashwini Kushwaha’ of Chhatarpur. A grand finale of this music competition held on the virtual platform with a total of 6 contestants and with the consensus of the jury, selected one of the top 3 finalists as the first Bundeli Bawra of the country and state. Bundelkhand Development Board Vice-President Raja Bundela and actress Sushmita Mukherjee, who joined as the chief guests during the contest, praised the competition, wishing everyone the best for the future, and appealed for continued of such programs. It is noteworthy that the winner of the show and the country’s first Bundeli Bawra has been awarded with digital branding of up to 50 thousand and many attractive gifts.
More than 350 artists took part in this competition, which played an important role in giving a new direction to the heritage of folk culture and folkmusic. While the contestants who reached the top 3 category were given a chance to present the songs of Ala Udal without using an instrument, by the channel’s co-founder and special judge Mr. Atul Malikram. The top three participants performed admirably but Ashwini Kushwaha was the best in getting the magic of her voice across the judges. Eminent music composer, Paramlal Param and Bundeli artist Sachin Sesha, who were the main judges of the event, added the vitality and credibility to the stage for the talented youth to perform on.
During the program, Raja Bundela said, “There is a need to save the culture and art of Bundelkhand so that our future generations can understand it and the country can celebrate its glory abroad.” He said that the way in which the performance of Nari Shakti was seen through the show is truly praiseworthy. Describing the selection of the contestants as extremely difficult, Judge Paramlal Param said, “All the participants are very talented and understand the root of folk culture very well. But we have considered the complete illustration which includes the participants’ costumes, the instruments to the facts like internet connectivity and on the basis selection is done”
The Bundelkhand Artist Association and PR 24×7 were instrumental in making the competition a success, and the entire team of the Bundelkhand troupe and the online audience contributed significantly. At the same time, the main objective of the competition is to provide a strong and influential platform for folkmusic artists, keeping the folk culture of Bundelkhand alive, so as to establish a distinct identity of Bundeli art in the music world, which is left behind with time. More than 350 registrations and more than 70 participants auditioned in the contest in 5 rounds. Out of which a total of 5 contestants got tickets for the finals. All these come from the cities of Chhatarpur, Panna, Lalitpur, Mahoba, etc.
‘Bundeli Bawra’, the first online platform for regional artists, is making a remarkable effort to bring to light Bundeli talents and make them familiar with the country. Earlier, the channel had organized an online competition called Junior Jagjit Singh in memory of Ghazal Samrat Jagjit Singh. At the same time, three seasons of open mic have been organized by the channel to give new identity to the new and young talent.
