Rockstars unite for a great cause. Dr. Shirin Sharmin Chowdhury (C) in their company. Photo: Mumit M.

Leading rock bands of the country played to the delight of young music enthusiasts at a major concert on December 3. The concert at Army Stadium was arranged by Bangladesh Musical Bands' Association (BAMBA) and United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA). The call was, “Say No To Violence Against Women: Be A Real Man!” Apart from the concert on October 1, this was arguably the biggest musical event of the year. This time, popular rockstars came together for a great cause -- generating awareness on violence against women and sexual harrassment. The gig featured 12 seasoned and emerging bands. Though queues outside the venue started forming around 3pm, the concert started couple of hours later. The first phase of the concert, which ran until the evening, featured upcoming bands such as Cryptic Fate, Metal Maze and Power Surge. Heavy metal bands, Metal Maze in particular, did a good spadework at the stadium teeming with music lovers. The evening break was a respite. A formal announcement was made. State Minister for Women and Children's Affairs, Dr. Shirin Sharmin Chowdhury, delivered a brief speech. She said, “The process of generating awareness on violence against women does not only involve women. Rather, men and women should work together on putting an end to this.” She also observed that December, the month of our national victory, is a good time to take a vow that we shall put a stop to harassment and abuse of women. Hamin Ahmed, president of BAMBA, reiterated the call to stop harassment of women, thanked Spotlight for their commendable event management and Sound Storm for their sound system and light effects. During the second session of the concert, the audience geared up to be rocked by their favourite bands, beginning with Prometheus. The band is celebrating its 25 years in the music arena. The band performed a number of its old songs along with an unreleased track from their new album. Miles, with Shafin (who recently rejoined), started well. Their old smash hit, “Jala Jala” seemingly stirred the audiences' interest. The audience also apparently liked Miles' unreleased RnB track “Phul Noy Projapoti”. LRB rocked the audience with its old hits like “Hashtey Dakho Gaitey Dekho”. Ayub Bacchu got the audience swaying and head banging to his able guitar playing. The band also performed the Deep Purple classic “Smoke on the Water”. Lalon, with its front-woman Shumi, also did well with their psychedelic, fusion style. James' loyal fans cheered of the “Guru”, reminding many of the old days. James rocked the stadium with his popular songs, “Lace Fita Lace”, “Jhakanaka Jhakanaka”, “Dushtu Chheler Dol”. He also performed the Bollywood hit “Na Jaane Koi”. Souls started with its classic “Mon Shudhu Mon” and played some of their popular oldies. They, however, had the audience shouting for more rock n' roll. That shout out was reciprocated by Artcell. This current favourite band of the youngsters performed some pure rock numbers.