Last weekend, Cottingley, home to the British Deputy High Commissioner, Chennai, was packed with guests gathered to celebrate the 90th birthday of Britain’s longest-reigning monarch, Queen Elizabeth II, and the 400th death anniversary of playwright, poet and actor, William Shakespeare.
The event, hosted by Bharat Joshi, British Deputy High Commissioner, showcased vignettes from Queen Elizabeth’s visit to India, especially Madras, and promotions from the Best of Britain to the guests drawn from the worlds of business, academics and the arts.
The evening’s entertainment kicked off with city-based theatre group Stagefright Productions’ five-minute tongue-in-cheek presentation of Romeo and Juliet. The all-girl dance ensemble High Kicks, which performs contemporary dance moves and has won global acclaim, took the stage next. They staged an interactive act to the James Bond theme songs from over the years, with clips and dialogues from the films filling the screen backstage.
Kalaimamani awardees and violinist-sisters, M. Lalitha and M. Nandini, renowned for their Indian as well as Western classical and fusion music, played the national anthems of India and Britain, much to the delight of the audience.
This was followed by a speech and a toast raised to Queen Elizabeth by Joshi, who also commended the resilience of Chennai during the floods.
The evening ended with music from around the globe — Blessing Chimanga and his band played jazz and rock, inspired by their roots in Zimbabwe, where Chimanga started his career as a percussion and piano player. DJ Exodus kept the music flowing with his acoustic and acapella fest.
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