MUMBAI: West Bengal based NGO, Freed, organised a concert 'Standing With Nepal' on 28 June, 2015 at Nazrul Mancha, in Kolkata. The event featured performances by artists like Pandit Shivkumar Sharma, Kavita Krishnamurti, Pandit Ajoy Chakraorty, Ustad Rashid Khan, Babul Supriyo, Anushesh Anandil, Akriti Kakkar, Indranil Sen, Violin Brothers, Suha Khan and Tanmoy Bose. The concert was conceptualised by Freed secretary, Somanth Pyne, and the amount generated from the event will go to the victims of the earthquake in Nepal.

“Since we are based in West Bengal, and Nepal is our neighbour, we thought about helping them. So we got in touch with the Consulate of Nepal, and were told that the country needed funds and a little restoration. While contemplating different ways to raise funds, we came up with the idea of organising a concert. Tanmoy Bose, being an old friend of mine did the job of getting all the artistes on board,” informed Pyne. It took the NGO more than a month to organise the event, and fortunately, every company that was approached was open to sponsoring the event.

Air India sponsored flight tickets for artists, while ITC Hotels chipped in by offering lower tariffs for the performers. Meanwhile, the Government of West Bengal supported the event by arranging a venue. “Some of our sponsors are our old time friends, so it was not difficult to get them on board. I thank the media for promoting the event on a large scale. Most of the artists did the concert for free, and even donated towards the cause and were so very cooperative,” he further revealed.

The event witnessed a turnout of around 2,000 people. The organisers offered free entry for attendees, however, asked them to donate as much as they could towards the cayse. The biggest challenge for them was the paucity of time for arranging the concert. “It was a little difficult, considering we were organising a concert for the first time and in a very short span of time,” he commented.

Organisers have considered ‘Standing With Nepal’ a successful endeavour and are tallying the funds raised through it. Currently, the NGO is mulling over forthcoming concerts for other causes.