Abdul
Gani
Guwahati:
Wishes poured in heavier than rains as 5,406 fans of Bhupen Hazarika strapped
with guitars stormed into the Limca Book of Records at the Sarusajai Stadium
here on Sunday. Strumming along in unison to the tunes of Bistirno Parore, they
managed to obliterate Shillong’s feat in the Limca Book of Records for the
‘Largest Guitar Ensemble’.
 |
| The gathering. Pic by: Subhamoy Bhattacharjee |
“It’s a lifetime achievement. It’s not just about
making a record, but such a huge gathering and that too to pay musical tribute
to the bard is simply awesome. I will cherish this moment forever,” said
Prasanta Bora, a grey haired guitarist who teaches yoga and meditation at
Maharshi Vidya Mandir School.
Even though the weather threatened to play a
spoilsport to the much-hyped event as the sky started pouring heavily since
morning, the organisers expressed a sigh of relief after the event went off
smoothly. Even as dark clouds hovered in the sky, sharp at 4.45 in the evening,
the army of 5,406 participants took their positions and made sure they don’t
fail to disappoint the enthusiastic crowd which had gathered to cheer them up.
In the process, they surpassed the previous national record that was created in
Shillong in 2007, when 1, 730 guitarists played Bob Dylan’s Knockin’ on
Heaven’s Door.
After the event, Limca Book of Records’
representative Smita Thomas handed over a ‘provisional’ certificate to the
organisers for scripting a new national record. “We are extremely happy that we
made it to the Limca Book of Records. Now, we will aim for a Guinness World
Record,” said Ankur Dutta, chief advisor of the megaevent who is also the
secretary of Assam Football Association (AFA).
The Guinness World Record for the ‘Largest Guitar
Ensemble’ in the world is currently held by Poland with 6,346 guitar players,
who assembled together at the historic city of Wroclaw on May 1, 2009. Besides
NE states, guitarists from several other parts of the country also came all the
way to take part in the event.
“We had several participants from New Delhi and
other parts of the country. This itself indicates the popularity of Bhupen
Hazarika among people,” Dutta added.
Renowned artistes, including JP Das, Nanda Banerjee,
Bhupen Uzir, members of Northeast Breeze and others, were seen on stage as they
led the event to a success. Seven Sisters Post was the print media partner of
this event. (Seven Sisters Post)
