SFC: Shiv Fan Club

"We were staying back just to hear you sing". She caught me totally offgaurd with this remark. I tried to hide my embaressment and managed a feeble "Ohh!!"
"Its a pity you did not sing." She was referring to the bhajan conducted in the ashram on behalf of Shivarathri celebrations.

Towards the closing session of the bhajans, I thought I would sit in the corner of the stage with the singers, as they were my friends. But as soon as I got on stage, I noticed a small group come and occupy the front row. Somehow I knew that they wanted me to sing.

Yeah I've had my share of experiences with singing on stage. Some were very pleasent and I wish I could take some pill to forget some other experiences. The shows with our college band "Gasoline" were always memorable. Rafeeq fuming away on the lead guitar, Nambolz doing a Lars Ulrich on the drums, and me trying hard to carry the heavy bass guitar with a cheap plastic rope for support, while trying to remember the next line of the song. During the final show, all of us were pretty excited and for some reason beyond our understanding, the audience were really enjoying and cheering us. The crowd was driving me over the edge. Towards the end of the show, I shouted "THANK YOU, GOOD NIGHT BABYYYY" over and over again, until some people from the audience decided it was really time to say good night to Shiv. They carried me off stage along with the rest of the band.

Then there was this rock show competition in Cochin University of Science and Technology. There was this group who came all the way from some remote place. We asked them the name of the college and they replied
"We are from Guruvayurappan College". I could'nt help laughing.
I could imagine the speakers blaring "Judges please note, next rock band on stage is Guruvayurappan College"
Somehow the idea that there is a rock band from a college named as Guruvayurappan College was smashing my funny bone to pieces. But that silly grin was soon wiped off my face when I saw the band do a practice session. While we were planning to do some soft songs, these guys were blasting away with material that would rock the devil himself. The competition was over for us soon. We exited through the back stage, and we did not wait to listen to the others.

Life in Poornam was different. I used to break into songs at the drop of a hat. I tried to make the "shift weary" techs understand that music is a really powerful phenomenon. Pretty soon, I was forced to confine its power to the small limits of the lonely training room.

And so when this lady in her late sixties came and told me that she and the other ladies, also in their sixties had come just to hear me sing, I had every right to be shaken. But since I am a gentleman, I assured them that I would oblige them with a bhajan anytime they wanted.

I had always imagined myself singing in front of a woodstock audience with people shouting, waving their hands and taking over the chorus at times. So what if I can't sing at Woodstock, I will always have a group of grandmothers cheering for me.