On October 3, the Nita Mukesh Ambani Cultural Centre (NMACC) will complete six months since its first public shows at all the three halls. While the lavish Grand Theatre staged Feroz Abbas Khan’s The Great Indian Musical: Civilisation to Nation on April 3, Rajasthani folk artiste Mame Khan performed at The Studio, the intimate 250-seater. At the smaller Cube, sarod player Sarang Kulkarni was joined by percussionist Shikhar Naad Qureshi in a fusion performance.
The consensus was that the suburbs had got its much-needed cultural space, and that this would be a good alternative to the National Centre For The Performing Arts (NCPA) in south Mumbai. Obviously, there would be comparisons, even though the NCPA was set up in 1969, and has built many thematic events. Let’s restrict this debate by saying both venues have their own position, and that the NCPA has just continued what it’s been doing, getting full houses without change in strategy.
This column will focus on music events at NMACC, looking at the pluses and the areas of improvement/ disappointment based on discussions with visitors. Let’s look at the main auditorium first and then talk of the smaller halls.
The Grand Theatre, which accommodates 2,000, has hosted the long-running The Sound Of Music, attracting fans even from other cities. The overall response was amazing, even from those who hadn’t grown up on the film. The musical West Side Story, which followed, didn’t fill up the house, though it was fantastic in terms of production, choreography and live orchestra. In a surprising but welcome turn, singer Sona
Mohapatra’s show on August 12 was packed. There were a few Hindustani classical shows, and currently, Feroz Abbas Khan’s musical is on a re-run. A solo concert by pianist-singer Jacob Collier and the ABBA-inspired Mamma Mia! are slotted for November.
While the acoustics have been consistently good and the production grand, there have been other complaints. The most common is the exorbitant pricing. For the ground floor seats in the forthcoming shows, tickets range from Rs 4,500 to Rs 7,000. The Diamond Boxes are only for the filthy-rich. The Dress Circle, on the first level, is over Rs 3,750. The balconies, lower and upper, are cheaper and under Rs 2,000. But from The Sound Of Music experience, one can barely see the cast, and at times one is obstructed by railings. Agreed there are huge production, artiste and crew costs involved, but from the public perspective, one has to spend at least Rs 7,500 for two people, for a decent Dress Circle experience. For many, that’s a huge sum.
In contrast, The Studio and the 125-capacity Cube are truly affordable, at Rs 500 and Rs 250, respectively. Both have hosted fantastic concerts, covering Hindustani and Carnatic classical, folk, devotional, ghazal, Sufi, Indie, percussion, fusion, singer-songwriter, soft rock, blues and jazz. The sound is awesome and the musicians have a direct interaction, as was evident in kanjira player V. Selvaganesh’s communication while accompanying his father, ghatam maestro Vikku Vinayakram in April, and in the way ghazal singer Prithvi Gandharv had everyone sing along over a week ago.
These venues now host four shows each a week. Since they happen simultaneously, there have also been cases of gigs clashing. A classic example was when jazz guitarist Sanjay Divecha and piano prodigy Lydian Nadhaswaram played simultaneously on June 25. At times, there are two music events of different genres. Considering that some listeners have eclectic tastes, and may like to attend both, it would be ideal to have a theatre or dance event in one hall, while the other has a music concert. Also, it’s funny to see musicians storm social media with ‘Sold Out’ flyers. It’s not difficult to fill up such small halls. Pack the larger Tata Theatre, St Andrew’s or Nehru Centre, and ‘Sold Out’ can be worth boasting of.
That brings us to another point. Ideally, NMACC should have housed a regular-sized, 800-seat auditorium, which could be perfect for certain artistes and concerts. The prices would have been in order too. It’s also time to start some regular festivals. The possibilities are many.
