While events and shows all across the world are turning online now, here’s a musician from West Delhi’s Rajouri Garden who has turned his balcony into a temporary stage amid lockdown, to entertain his neighbours. Hitesh Madan, who is also the founder of the award-winning Delhi-based rock band Eka, had his first balcony concert on 22nd March 2020, on the Janata Curfew day. He conducted another concert on 19th April, after getting multiple requests. After the huge success of these first two musical gigs, Madan planned a third show on 2nd May.
How Did It Start?
As people were told to stay indoors to combat the spread of coronavirus, Hitesh Madan started singing from his balcony with a microphone and guitar to uplift people’s spirits during the dark hour. His two sons, Ariv and Advay have been accompanying him in the performances. 11-year-old Advay plays the drums while Ariv, a year older, plays the bass guitar. Hitesh kickstarted his band performance by changing the lyrics of Gulabi Aakhein to “Humara ghar hi, o mere yaaron, humara stage ab hogaya”(Our house, oh my friends, has become our stage now). For his upcoming concert, the singer-songwriter has created a Facebook event named, ‘Balcony Concert 3.0 Hitesh Rikki Madan featuring Ariv & Advay’.
Speaking about the balcony gigs, Madan said that he found it to be a good way to cheer up the neighbours, and also engage his children in a constructive way. He added that he had received phenomenal responses from his neighbours. Also, since the videos were being live-streamed on Facebook, the performances garnered praises from all over the world. Madan thinks that these concerts will be the most memorable ones in his lifetime.
https://www.facebook.com/HiteshRikkiMadan/videos/247564153061306/UzpfSTU0OTc3NzI0MzoxMDE1ODQyMTc4MjAxNzI0NA/
Here's what my sons and I did for #JantaCurfew today. Expressing gratitude to the soldiers fighting #Covid_19india and making #Social_Distancing a little entertaining. @AnupamPKher @SrBachchan @juniorbachchan @iHrithik @anuragrao123 @SunidhiChauhan5 @K_K_Pal @ItsAmitTrivedi https://t.co/aph709MAyv
— Hitesh Rikki Madan (@HiteshMadanHRM) March 22, 2020
Also Read: Combating Covid 19: Dubai Based Musician Will be Performing a 26-Hour Virtual Concert
What Else?
The songs performed at the concerts were essentially a mix of Punjabi music and old Bollywood hits. The father and sons also played the heartfelt instrumental of Vande Mataram. Apart from that, he has also released a Rock On parody ‘Stay Home’ on YouTube, urging everyone to remain indoors now. Madan had started his career at the age of 17 as the lead guitarist for the renowned Hindi band Euphoria. Till date, he has performed in more than 1800 concerts in about 16 countries.
Also Read: Covid19 Quarantine: Vida Hotels Dubai Launches Live Balcony Concerts
We need more artists like Madan, who perform not only for popularity but also for the well-being of others. The zest in his voice makes it clear that his songs are coming right from the bottom of his heart. Listen to them right away and we can assure it will instantly refresh your moods.
First Published: April 29, 2020 1:21 PM