Hindustan Times (Lucknow) - Hindustan Times (Lucknow) - Live
‘B’WOOD MOVIES ARE POPULAR IN SOVIET COUNTRIES’
Jet-lagged yet enthusiastic, the Ukrainian pianist Dinara Klinton still remembers how two decades back her grandmother watched the Hema Malini-starrer Seeta Aur Geeta (1972), for the songs and dances in the film. In India — where the movie was made — the Western classical instrumentalist talks about how her genre of music is making a strong hold, and why she’s looking forward to her performance in Delhi, today.
“I have heard Bollywood music before because Bollywood movies are very popular in the Soviet countries...,” says Klinton, 29, who was born in Ukraine and has recently completed the Artist Diploma in Performance at the Royal College of Music, London. She adds, “My grandmother adored Indian films and I would watch them when I was a kid. She watched them, of course, for the music and dances, and also the clothes, they were spectacular...” To rediscover the essential relationship of music and cinema, she accepted to perform in India, and bring here her project titled, Cinema in Concert, which she has been developing since 2013. “There was a time when silent films were often accompanied by piano. The concept of this concert is very similar to that,” says Klinton, who over the last weekend attended a concert in Delhi and couldn’t help rave about the magic of old Bollywood melodies. “The concert I attended was dedicated to the compositions of SD Burman. The songs from Bandini (1963) and Kala Bazar (1960) movies were the most memorable. I liked how the instruments were used, and the rhythms involved,” says Klinton. Since no Indian trip can be complete without a dose of touristy things, Klinton wishes to see the “Taj Mahal, if time permits”, and try some local food. She says, “I’m a big foodie, and have tried many things here. I enjoyed the halva, as it’s different to how it’s done in Caucasus, and to what is available in my homeland.”