![]() ![]() Wow! Now, can you tell us about your forthcoming films? And every time I go abroad, I am always fiercely proud to represent my country, sing for my country. Every time I hear Jana Gana Mana, my mind, body and soul are enraptured! Every Indian feels the same way! You know what? I am proud to have been at the Lokmat event in Aurangabad. It defines our unity, it evokes fierce patriotism. It is the greatest song that rules the Indian psyche! Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore’s Jana Gana Mana is an amazing poem, and so brilliantly composed! It is very difficult for any composition to be both, emotionally stirring and rousing, and to also induce peace. (Is overcome with emotion, takes a deep breath) Our National Anthem is the most beautiful and emotional piece of music I have grown up to. What does the National Anthem mean to you? You helped lead a hundred thousand people in Aurangabad in singing the National Anthem on 25th Jan. Oh, I had an event the same day at Nasik too, but I really didn’t want to miss being in Aurangabad for the National Anthem, so I flew in on a chartered flight. It was a never-before experience, a really, really massive crowd! And to think that I might have ended up missing it! Amazing experience! I still have the goose bumps just remembering it. It was great to sing the National Anthem with other entertainers and celebrities - there was Roop Kumar Rathod with Sonali, Mahatma Gandhi’s grandson Tushar Gandhi, Prashant Damle, Vaishali Samant, Swapnil Bandodkar, and many other singers too. I heard a lot of the radio while I was in the car, just waiting to reach the stadium! But it was truly worth it. Lokmat has such a strong connect with the people and the city, and the local Radio Mirchi station was going full on to, urging people to be part of the historic day, airing special jingles, RJs doing a great job of promoting the event. What was it like, singing for a non-commercial event in the service of the Nation, in front of a lakh of people?Īs I just said, it was unbelievable! And there must have been at least 40-50 thousand people outside the stadium, because the gates were locked as there was no space inside. It was a stadium with a 45,000 seating capacity, and it was jam-packed with people standing on every square-foot of the ground, in the stands… and you know what? Even though I came pretty early and - as I thought very much in time for the 8 am start - I was delayed by more than an hour, just trying to get to the stadium from the airport! The roads were packed with people, students, families, youngsters, elderly people, walking, cycling, on two-wheelers, in overcrowded public transport buses - it was awesome! I saw a really strong physical manifestation of patriotism today, and I am really glad I was there to be part of the historic day. There must have been around a lakh of people in the stadium. It’s unbelievable! Even in cricket matches one hasn’t seen such massive audiences. What was the feeling like, singing with and inspiring such a massive crowd for the world record for India? Soon after he appeared at the Aurangabad event, we caught up with Shankar Mahadevan, who spoke about ‘the most beautiful and emotional piece of music’ he has grown up to, his musicality, his favourite singers, his past and new projects, his music academy, and participating in Lokmat Media’s unforgettable Aurangabad world record initiative. ![]() Shankar, as he is fondly called by film fans as though they have known him all their lives, is constantly breaking new ground. Through his very own music academy, and through participating in socially uniting, relevant and powerful initiatives like participating in - and leading - close to one 100,000 patriotic Aurangabadkars on Republic Day-eve to set up a Guinness World Record for the maximum number of people singing the National Anthem in unison. ![]() Today, after numerous spectacularly memorable songs as a superstar singer, and a multitude of super hit film music scores as part of the top music director troika Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, Shankar Mahadevan is not only going to greater professional and artistic strengths, but is also giving back to society. ![]()
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