B-towners to perform in cultural prog on ex-PM Vajpayee's bday

Mumbai, Dec 18: A host of Bollywood actors and singers would come together to celebrate former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's 91st birthday in a cultural programme to be held in the city, a BJP leader said on Friday,Dec 18.

The former Prime Minister, who has been a celebrated poet and journalist, was born on December 25, 1924. "Actors and singers, such as Padmini Kolhapure, Manoj Joshi, Sudha Chandran, BJP MP Manoj Tiwari, Anup Jalota, Kumar Sanu, Deepika Chikhalia, Shabbir Kumar would be among the prominent figures who would lend their voices during 'Atal Geet Ganga', a poetry evening to celebrate former Prime Minister Atal Bihari Vajpayee's 91st birthday in Mumbai, on December 25, 2015," Amarjeet Mishra, General Secretary of Mumbai BJP, said.

The event would be held at Dinanath Mangeshkar Auditorium in suburban Vile Parle.

"Besides recitation of the BJP veteran's cherished poems, recorded versions of his poems by Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh, Uttar Pradesh Governor Ram Naik, Union Tourism Minister Mahesh Sharma, Union HRD Minister Smriti Irani, Mathura MP Hema Malini, singer Udit Narayan, music composer Anu Malik, actor Vivek Oberoi, etc would be played on the occasion," Mishra said.

The event would be a gesture to express reverence for the Bharat Ratna awardee, the BJP leader said.

Amarjeet Mishra, who runs a cultural organisation 'Abhiyan', further said noted journalist, literary figure and former Vice Chancellor of Makhanlal Chaturvedi National University of Journalism and Communication, Achyutanand Mishra, would be bestowed with 'Atal Samman' by the organisation for his outstanding contribution to the society, at the hands of the Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on the occasion.

PTI