NEW DELHI: It's going to be a Spectacular Sunday.
As the curtain finally creaks up on the Commonwealth Games, the world will get a glimpse of India's great heritage and tradition during an elaborate but closely guarded opening ceremony, featuring light, music and dance.
TOI managed to steal a sneak preview of the sounds, colours and action that will mesmerise over 60,000 spectators, including President Pratibha Patil, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Prince Charles at the Nehru Stadium.
On the agenda is a three-hour long show highlighting the rhythms and ragas of the nation and performed by over 7,000 artistes drawn from across the country.
"The whole ceremony is divided into seven segments. It will be a dazzling show," informed sources, who are part of the rehearsals, which began at the venue on September 20, said.
The segments - Rhythm of India (ROI), Great Indian Journey (GIJ), Celebration, Yoga, Swagatam, Rajasthan Puppets and The Knowledge Tree - promise to bring the arena alive and make it a mesmerising evening for one and all, including lakhs of television viewers. The acclaimed artistes, incidentally, have been preparing for the show in the high security Cantonment area, oblivious to the controversies plaguing the show.
ROI, an 18-20 minute show, will take the stadium decibels to a new, incredible range, with nearly 1000 drummers reaching a steady crescendo. The segment will showcase traditional drums from Ladakh, Punjab (dhol), Kerala (chenda), Manipur (pung cholom), Meghalaya (wangla), Andhra Pradesh (koya) and Karnataka (dhollu kunitha).
The GIJ is a more than half-an-hour long train journey through the heart of India , which will capture life in the hinterland through bazaars, blacksmiths, milkmen , street circus, street vendors et al. "It is an impressive show which will bring alive the life in our villages," sources revealed.
The part titled Celebrations will also run for around 30 minutes and will transform the entire stadium into a dance floor. On stage will be several hundreds of exponents of the classical arts, including the flower dancers of Ladakh from up north to Mohiniyattam from down south.
The yoga, the physical and mental discipline that originated in India, will be another item which will be performed by around 2,000 students from various schools and colleges of the Capital.
The welcome song, Swagatam , which will run for around 10 minutes, will be rendered by a group of 1000-plus students while 'Welcome' will come alive on the giant screen in all languages.
Another highlight of the show will be the puppets from Rajasthan. The giant string puppets, made out of teracotta , measuring 15-20 feet dressed in vibrant colours and costumes of the desert state, will hang from the Aerostat and will be controlled by a group of trained persons.
"This show will be done in such a way that spectators sitting in the top-most tier will be able to get up close with the puppets," sources added. The highly secretive buildup to the opening ceremony has increased the curiosity quotient among the people.
THE 7 WONDERS
Swagatam (The welcome song presented by thousands of school kids running almost 10 minutes)
Rhythm of India (listen to nearly 500 drums from all over the country: 20 mins)
Great Indian Journey (explore India travelling in the CWG rath: 30 mins)
Yoga (get a feel of all the yogic poses: 20 mins)
Puppets from Rajasthan (the highlight of the show)
Celebrations (Enjoy the rich tradition of Indian dances in a 30-minute capsule)
The Knowledge Tree (Learn about the vedas and Indian classical music)
TOI
As the curtain finally creaks up on the Commonwealth Games, the world will get a glimpse of India's great heritage and tradition during an elaborate but closely guarded opening ceremony, featuring light, music and dance.
TOI managed to steal a sneak preview of the sounds, colours and action that will mesmerise over 60,000 spectators, including President Pratibha Patil, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh and Prince Charles at the Nehru Stadium.
On the agenda is a three-hour long show highlighting the rhythms and ragas of the nation and performed by over 7,000 artistes drawn from across the country.
"The whole ceremony is divided into seven segments. It will be a dazzling show," informed sources, who are part of the rehearsals, which began at the venue on September 20, said.
The segments - Rhythm of India (ROI), Great Indian Journey (GIJ), Celebration, Yoga, Swagatam, Rajasthan Puppets and The Knowledge Tree - promise to bring the arena alive and make it a mesmerising evening for one and all, including lakhs of television viewers. The acclaimed artistes, incidentally, have been preparing for the show in the high security Cantonment area, oblivious to the controversies plaguing the show.
ROI, an 18-20 minute show, will take the stadium decibels to a new, incredible range, with nearly 1000 drummers reaching a steady crescendo. The segment will showcase traditional drums from Ladakh, Punjab (dhol), Kerala (chenda), Manipur (pung cholom), Meghalaya (wangla), Andhra Pradesh (koya) and Karnataka (dhollu kunitha).
The GIJ is a more than half-an-hour long train journey through the heart of India , which will capture life in the hinterland through bazaars, blacksmiths, milkmen , street circus, street vendors et al. "It is an impressive show which will bring alive the life in our villages," sources revealed.
The part titled Celebrations will also run for around 30 minutes and will transform the entire stadium into a dance floor. On stage will be several hundreds of exponents of the classical arts, including the flower dancers of Ladakh from up north to Mohiniyattam from down south.
The yoga, the physical and mental discipline that originated in India, will be another item which will be performed by around 2,000 students from various schools and colleges of the Capital.
The welcome song, Swagatam , which will run for around 10 minutes, will be rendered by a group of 1000-plus students while 'Welcome' will come alive on the giant screen in all languages.
Another highlight of the show will be the puppets from Rajasthan. The giant string puppets, made out of teracotta , measuring 15-20 feet dressed in vibrant colours and costumes of the desert state, will hang from the Aerostat and will be controlled by a group of trained persons.
"This show will be done in such a way that spectators sitting in the top-most tier will be able to get up close with the puppets," sources added. The highly secretive buildup to the opening ceremony has increased the curiosity quotient among the people.
THE 7 WONDERS
Swagatam (The welcome song presented by thousands of school kids running almost 10 minutes)
Rhythm of India (listen to nearly 500 drums from all over the country: 20 mins)
Great Indian Journey (explore India travelling in the CWG rath: 30 mins)
Yoga (get a feel of all the yogic poses: 20 mins)
Puppets from Rajasthan (the highlight of the show)
Celebrations (Enjoy the rich tradition of Indian dances in a 30-minute capsule)
The Knowledge Tree (Learn about the vedas and Indian classical music)
TOI
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