Palestinians celebrate Women's Day with Indian music

Ramallah (West Bank), Mar 9: A well known Indian female artist left hundreds of Palestinians spellbound with her soulful Santoor recital at an event here to mark the International Women's Day.

Varsha Agrawal from Sufiyana Gharana enthralled a jam-packed auditorium at Edward Said National Conservatory of Music as she weaved a web of melodies.

"India for me so far meant Bollywood culturally. Most of us Palestinians have been unaware of this facet of India. It touches your soul directly and takes you away from all worries", a Palestinian woman, Ghada, who came with her young daughter told PTI.

Representative of India to the State of Palestine Mahesh Kumar dedicated the performance to the "Empowerment of Women", something Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has recently emphasised on in order to strengthen Palestinian society.

The audience often broke into applause as Agrawal performed at the event supported by Palestinian Ministry of Culture. She performed with Raga Rageshwari accompanied by Pandit Lalit Mahant on Tabla and Asit Goswami on Sitar.

"When I talked to Palestinians about the rich Indian musical culture, all they could think of was Bollywood films and songs which are hugely popular here," said Essam, who has studied engineering in India.

"I enjoyed Indian classical music during my three years of stay in India as a student and this was a refreshing experience to re-live those memories. I hope the Indian mission here continues to arrange such programmes," he said.

"Absorbing, is all i can say", Hisham, a self-described huge Amitabh Bachchan fan, said about the event.

PTI