Dhaka: Bangladeshi fans are anticipating the upcoming Riyadh Season concert by the legendary singer James, seeing it as an opportunity to showcase their pop culture to a Saudi audience.
A songwriter, guitarist, composer, and playback singer, James started his career with Feelings — currently known as Nagar Baul — a band considered to be the pioneer of psychedelic rock in Bangladesh.
One of the most popular artists performing in Bengali, he has been widely celebrated both in Bangladesh and in the Indian state of West Bengal since the 1990s.
He will perform in the Kingdom on Friday, as part of the Bangladeshi culture segment of the Riyadh Season — an annual series of entertainment, cultural, and sporting events running in the Saudi capital throughout winter months.
It will be the first time James will perform in the Kingdom — to the great enthusiasm of the Bangladeshi expat community.
“James is a Bangladeshi music icon. He is our superstar. It’s something like a dream that I will be able to watch his performance here. During my teenage years, I grew up listening to his songs, but I never got the opportunity to attend any of his concerts. This is like the experience of a lifetime,” Alamgir Hossain, a shopkeeper who has been working in Riyadh for the past seven years, told Arab News.
Other fans living in different parts of Saudi Arabia will be coming to the capital to witness the performance too.
“Two of my friends will travel to Riyadh from their workplace in Al-Kharj. All Bangladeshis in the Kingdom are excited. We are preparing to attend the concert in a group. I have already requested leave from my employer so that we can enjoy the event,” Hossain said.
“James is popular not only in Bangladesh, he has performed for the Bollywood industry in Hindi songs, so he is popular among South Asian music lovers also. Some of my Indian and Pakistani friends will also attend the concert.”
Nagar Baul’s manager Rubaiyat Thakur Robin told the local Bangladeshi media Prothom Alo that the show would be free for attendees, and he was expecting a big turnout, given that 3 million Bangladeshis were living and working in the Kingdom.
Some of them, like Abdul Hannan, a driver in Riyadh, were excited about the whole Bangladeshi culture segment.
“It will bring us closer and strengthen the bond with Saudi Arabia … I thank the Saudi authorities for giving us this opportunity,” he said.
But the concert was for him the most important highlight, also as his friends will drive to Riyadh from places as far as Dammam, over 400 km away, to take part as well.
“I am waiting to meet old friends from different parts of the Kingdom. We have been living here for many years, far, far away from family and friends. This concert gives an opportunity for us to meet. I am very excited about it,” he told Arab News.
“I am also waiting to hear my favorite song, ‘Amar sonar Bangla, ami tomai valobashi’ — ‘My Bengal of gold, I love you.’ I can’t hold my tears when I listen to this song. It’s the best patriotic song after our national anthem written by Rabindranath Tagore. I strongly believe that James will perform this song here as well.”
