‘borderland’ // soumik datta

BORDERLAND is the name of a spectacular show commissioned by the DSC South Asian Literature festival. Inspired by the poem of the great Nobel Laureate, Rabindranath Tagore, ‘Borderland’ is an exploration and interpretation of the many ‘borders’ present in our lives.

The show has been orchestrated by the Sarod maestro, Soumik Datta, who brings together not just poetry and music, but film, lighting and the art of storytelling to the stage. Last Thursday, Embrace Arts, Leicester hosted an intimate performance of ‘Borderland’ which served up a fiery audio-visual encounter.

Borderland begins with Soumik on the demanding fretless Sarod, narrating a story throughTagore’s words. As the performance evolves, he is joined by other musicians; by Rahel on vocals,Guiliano Modarelli on electro-acoustic Guitar and on Tabla, Souvid Datta. Laced into the mix are vivid, uniquely crafted visuals that give the spoken words more depth and dimension.

The four musicians, led by Soumik, really brought Tagore’s poetry to life in a truly classical-meets-contemporary manner. Different genres of music ranging from Indian classical, flamenco, Indo-Jazz, blues and folk combined subtly to create a musically opulent atmosphere with contemporary soundscapes. All was married impeccably with electronica, culminating in a chic and elegant display of intelligent cutting-edge music.

A massive thank you to Soumik Datta, DSC South Asian Literature festival, Kala Kahani and Embrace Arts for putting on an amazing show!