By Usha Wagle Gautam

The Nepalese and Filipino communities got together to host an unforgettable cultural evening at Al Arabi Sports Club last weekend. More than 7,000 music enthusiasts attended the free show as artistes from both communities performed.
Folk singer Purna Kala BC was the first to perform. With already 20 albums to her name, the Nepali veteran artiste performed two of her popular songs. This was the fourth time she was performing in Qatar, though this time she was not happy with the sound system at the venue.
Her performance was followed by a dynamic dance by 18 members of the Filipino group Beats and Bytes. One of the dancers, Armond, said the group — founded in 2010 — rehearsed the routine for a month.
Their performance was followed by Filipino D Force group. Eighteen dancers came up on stage to engage the audience with a yet-another thrilling dance sequence.
Nepalese actress Rupa Lama donned a cinematic garb and danced to a folk tune. She was, however, not happy with the rather small size of the stage. “It is quite different to dance on a small stage and before a large audience; I feared falling off the stage,” she said about her performance.
Another Nepalese actress, Khusbu Khadka danced with youthful verve and energy on a soundtrack selected from one of her movies. “Such a pool of audience inspires me just to focus on my dancing,” Khadka said.
Bhojpuri singer and dancer Keshari Lal performed two songs. Dubbed as superstar by his fans, Lal has already acted in more than 35 movies and has recorded more than 300 songs. “I would like to thank the audience and the organising team for this unforgettable day of dance and music,” Lal said.
There was also a lucky draw conducted during the show, where people got a chance to win Doha-Kathmandu plane tickets, cell phones and gift hampers.
The collaboration between Nepali and Filipino artistes was well appreciated and many in the crowd were all praises for the performances. The technical aspects of the show, however, were criticised.
Manoj Yadav, an audience member, said he came to see Keshari Lal perform live. But he was unable to her his voice clearly. Ramesh Thakur, another audience member, complained that the organisers had promised transport to people attending the show, but backed out at the last minute. Filipino audience members were similarly unimpressed with the weak management of the event.
Al Ahli Sports Club is organising another musical programme and a friendly football match between Nepalese and Indian communities tomorrow at the same venue. The programme will feature Nepalese pop artist Pramod Kharel and folk singer Debika KC, and two national football players from India are coming for the match. The programme will start at 2pm.