When the Jazz goes down
MUMBAI: With artistes like Wayne Krantz, Beatle Jazz, and an open air venue like the Priyadarshini Park – Mumbai's jazz music lovers couldn't have asked for more.
The 100 Pipers Jazz Utsav 2009 however wasn't destined to happen the way it was planned. But just when things were looking up for one of the best �Jazz' music festivals in India that had to be called off last year, they took a bad turn in the unpredictable city that is Mumbai.
As the audience sauntered in to enjoy the music, they didn't really know they would have to stand outside the gates of the south Mumbai sea facing park and hopelessly wait for someone from the management to tell them what was happening. The show was supposed to start around 7:00 PM but the audiences were informed to come back at 8.30 pm as due to some seating arrangements issues, the show had to be postponed... – of course, that didn't quite satisfy anyone. It seems the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation had locked down the venue well before the scheduled time (around 2 pm) and pasted a notice outside the gate that said, The organisers don't have requisite permissions to carry on this event....
The notice was in Marathi, and many didn't know how to read it! However, people soon figured out that there was more than just the seating arrangement issue... at the much awaited Jazz Utsav 2009. The crew hesitatingly told that the organizers were still hoping to get permissions and were in a meeting with the BMC officials... – but again, they were not sure, if the show was on or off. For those had bought the tickets, the only way to figure that out was to just wait and watch, and hope that someone from the organisers would help with some information. Some desperately wanted their money back!
Though the organisers must have had a very tough time, people questioned if the organizer ever ensured they had permissions before they put up a show of this kind.... Then there were a bunch of individuals who had travelled from Pune to catch the show and a French man who had scheduled his India trip so that he could watch Wayne Kratnz and the group in action. Meanwhile, through word of mouth, people frantically called up their friends who were on their way to inform that they can take their own time... as nobody was sure about the concert. Roughly after two hours of drama, Amit Saigal and Ashok Gulati from Capital Jazz arrived at the venue to inform that the show was shifted to popular live music hub BlueFROG at Lower Parel. Though the day was saved, but the damage was already done. This was the sorry state of the much celebrated Jazz Utsav that was in its twentieth year.
Who's to blame?
These �once in a year' concerts have had a sword hanging on them almost every time – especially when organised in Mumbai – this is not the first time that a concert had to be canned or shifted or postponed to some other venue. Rock music lovers would recall when the Independence Rock show that was scheduled to take place at the Gateway of India in September 2005 got canned because they were short of some permissions. But why do the organisers wait for the permissions till the very last second? And what's with the fancy venues? Doesn't it make more sense for organisers to arrange for a venue that don't create last minute complications?
Wouldn't that save the inconvenience for the people who look forward to such events? And isn't the Government of Maharashtra interested in improving the cultural scene or at least show respect to the musicians who look forward to perform in India? Probably, the organizers have gone through this abuse several times, but it's now imperative that Mumbai has a single window clearance when it comes to permissions.
In the long run, such episodes could only spell doom for the city's live music scene as most international musicians will now think twice before setting their feet in Mumbai. Of course it's a great lesson for organisers as they now know one more thing that they need to be aware of... while organising concerts. BlueFROG, on the other hand, deserves a pat for accommodating the event at a short notice.
