Shahrukh will host Indi-Pak-concert at Independence Day ***CANCELLED***

[Satrangi]

No LoC at Wagah this August 15!

India and Pakistan unite for concert at Attari-Wagah border.

War is not the only thing that takes place at the India-Pakistan Attari-Wagah border. This August 15 (which marks the 60th year of independence for both India and Pakistan), instead of gunshots and bomb blasts, you will see, rather hear, the sweet sound of music at the border.

For the first time in 60 years, both the nations will celebrate their independence days together, through the universal language of music.

This cross-border musical extravaganza will have musicians from both the countries — A R Rahman, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Atif Aslam and Shafqat Amanat Ali — performing from 11 pm on August 14 to 1 am on August 15, on twin stages on either side of the border.

Live performances will alternate from one stage to the other, visible to the entire live audience, no matter which side of the border they are seated. More so, the concert will also be telecast live across the two nations, thereby enabling India and Pakistan to be able to witness it together.

Elaborating on this one-of-a-kind unison, Rakesh Gupta, Secretary of the NGO Routes 2 Roots that has put this show together, says that the aim of the concert is to help bring harmony between warring countries. “Friendship and harmony can only come from people to people contact.

Different cultures should come together to celebrate their differences, therein finding their similarities,” says Rakesh, continuing, “For the first time in three generations, Indians and Pakistanis will unite to commemorate their shared struggle and ultimate achievement: the birth of two free nations.”

Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, who strongly believes in the power of music, adds, “Music transcends all boundaries and this concert truly has that, with people of both the countries attending the event. For years, artists have travelled to the other side to perform, but now, artists from both the countries will perform together. It’s a great honour to be part of such a historical event and to use our talent for a noble cause that tries to bring together two long lost friends.”

And that’s not all. Bollywood stars Shah Rukh Khan and Juhi Chawla and former Pakistani cricketer Wasim Akam and Pakistani designer Shaiyanne Malik will also be present there, to host the event. “It will be a historic occasion of unparalled magnitude. For the first time ever, people of both the countries will come together to celebrate their independence. India and Pakistan are like siblings and through this concert we can show the world that people of both the countries truly love each other, irrespective of any other perception. By coming together, we can be an example of peace and harmony to the world,” says Shah Rukh Khan of this mega musical event.

In this day and age of war and terror, this musical endeavour to promote global peace and harmony and build heart-to-heart connections amongst India and Pakistan, is something that will make this Independence day that much more special.

http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/Bombay_Times/No_LoC_at_Wagah_this_August_15/articleshow/2253067.cms

[senorita]

wowwww!!that's just greatt!!!am soo looking forard to this now! :yes:

[Sema]

Wow! A fantastic idea to celebrate the event! And what host would fit better than SRK, a superstar in both countries, a patriotic Indian, but with strong ties to Pakistan.

Gruß,
Sema

[SRKExtremist]

This is sooo awesome. I am happy to hear this news.

[palacerani]

What a fantastic idea. Kudos to Rakesh Gupta for organizing it. I wonder which channel will broadcast this? I really want to see it.

[triniangel]

wow sounds great! It'd be great to see this :boogie:

[Jalda]

That is SRK for you...I love you!:kiss::kiss:

[rEd_cHilli3z]

thats wonderful!!! :kiss:

[Gosha]

That is wonderful, fantastic news! :yipee: :woohoo: The fact that SRK will be part of such a great historic event is truly special. Hopefully we'll be able to see it. :)

[SRK_Super_Fanatic]

:excited: YESSS!!!! THIS IS AMAZINGGG!!!! :woohoo:

[iluvsrk]

Thats very sweet...but I wish Shah Rukh would come here to Vancouver more often :sad:

[TopazSLC]

FANTASTIC!:banana:

[sandidi]

I have always thought that Shah Rukh would be a wonderful instrument for Peace...he is just so caring, sharing, loving...:love: God bless him

[Govinda]

wow that's fantastic news...I hope everything will be fine on that day ...people of both countries deserve a peacefull event!!!!!!
And who is better than Shah Rukh to be part of the hosting team, I'ld like to watch it also, maybe someone is able to record it.

:yourock:

[mohney012]

I want to kill myself right now.........i was suppose to be in lahore for august i would have left today.......i could have been there at the concert watching him live!!!!........my mom was against it ......so i bought into it because she said i can go for three months next summer!!.......Why didn't this news come out sooner.....i don't believe this!!!....just my luck.....can't beat myself enough over this......this is a once in a lifetime opportunity!!!

[TigerEyes]

:aww: he's truly a ambassodor for love and peace, perfect choice for the event :aww:

Does anyone know if they gonna broadast it? :hmm: i hope they do :bow:

[mohney012]

The whole celebration is being called Dil se Dil..........and here are the times for the channels showing it
Watch Dil se Dil!

On the Web:

LIVE on August 14th (11pm IST, 10:30pm PST)
IBN Live
Rebroadcast on August 15th
IBN Live
On Television:

LIVE on August 14th (11pm IST, 10:30pm PST)
ARY Digital
CNN-IBN
IBN 7
CNBC
CNBC AWAAZ
Doordarshan
National
Bharti
International
Urdu
Sony Entertainment Television
Rebroadcast on August 15th
ARY Digital
CNN-IBN
IBN 7
CNBC
CNBC AWAAZ
Doordarshan
National
Bharti
International
Urdu
Sony Entertainment Television
source: (dil se dil website) http://www.dilsedil.org/watch.html

[srk_girl501]

wow, great news:excited: I can watch on Sony TV:wink:

[jabarbi]

This is a wonderful idea. Shah Rukh Khan as ambassador of peace between both contries is truly fitting.

[TigerEyes]

tnhx mohney, im gonna be glued to sony those to days :excited:

oh damn, its working days :wall: hope they show it in the evening :bow:

[rEd_cHilli3z]

thanx!! :excited:

[SRK_Super_Fanatic]

YAYYYYYYYY!!! I was so worried I won't be able to see it play live..but thank god they're playing it on Sony too :excited: :yahoo:

Thanx for the info mohney!

[Sema]

I hope the website owners will manage to deal with the high demand. The concert should start around 7:30 pm MEST, and I'll definitely try to see parts of it, or even whole, depending on the availabilty on the web.
Thanks for posting those times!

Gruß,
Sema

[Charla]

OMG ! I cannot wait to see this show!

[Neeran]

Great!!!!:excited: I can watch it...:dance:

[Scorpion_Honey]

coool... i hope we can see this on tv:)... SRK is always supportive with something that brings people together

[maryah]

Gala India-Pakistan concert at Wagah called off
Jaideep Sarin, Indo-Asian News Service
Wagah, August 14, 2007
First Published: 12:45 IST(14/8/2007)
Last Updated: 12:53 IST(14/8/2007)

A star-studded concert - featuring the likes of Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan, composer AR Rahman and Pakistani Sufi singer Rahat Fateh Ali Khan - to mark 60 years of India's independence and the birth of Pakistan has been called off due to security concerns.

The unifying concert - Dil se Dil (Heart to Heart) - was supposed to be held close to the fenced international border between both countries with film stars and artistes from the two countries performing on their respective sides.

The concert was to start 11 pm on Aug 14 - Pakistan's formation day - and go into wee hours of Aug 15 - which is India's Independence Day.

Punjab's Inspector General of Police (border range) RC Meena confirmed that no concert was taking place at the border - though the organisers claimed that both the Pakistani and Indian governments had given their permission.

The organisers - South Asian NGO Routes 2 Roots and the US-based Friends without Borders - had planned the "historic" event to make people from both countries celebrate their independence jointly for the first time in 60 years.

"The concert stands cancelled for now. We will re-work that to a later date and seek permissions all over again. There were some security issues involved," Rakesh Gupta of Routes 2 Roots told IANS from New Delhi.

At one stage, the organisers were expecting a crowd of nearly 150,000 people on both sides of the border to watch the concert. The event was also to be broadcast live on one of the TV channels in India and Pakistan with the use of advanced broadcast technology.

"The concert will provide a larger platform to spread the message of universal humanity and oneness to people across the world. We are thrilled to be organising such a historic event and with the kind of cooperation we have received from the authorities of both the countries, the concert is sure to meet its purpose," Gupta had announced Aug 7 in New Delhi.

The event - sponsored by mobile giant Nokia - was to be held in such a way that live performances, alternating from one stage to the other, were to be made visible to the entire live audience, no matter which side of the border they were sitting.

The expected crowd of so many people right at the border was a security issue with police in India, Border Security Force (BSF) and intelligence agencies.

"What if all the 150,000 people, in the frenzy of the event, decide to break the man-made fence at the international border and try to cross it? This could be a catastrophe," a senior Punjab police official told IANS.

Sources in the BSF - which guards the 600-km international border with Pakistan - vehemently denied that there was any move to organise the event right at the border itself.

"How can we risk so many people in the night right at the international border? We have heard of the concert but no permission has been granted from our side. We allow only a few midnight candlelight vigil activists to go up to the zero line on the border.

"We have faced a problem one before when hordes of candlelight vigil activists came right up to the border and wanted to cross to the other side," a BSF official said.

On the Indian side, the stars expected were Shah Rukh Khan, A.R. Rahman and actress Juhi Chawla. From Pakistan, the names included Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, cricketer Wasim Akram, singers Ali Azmat and Shaqfat Amanat Ali and TV star Shaiyanne Malik.

http://www.hindustantimes.com/storypage/storypage.aspx?id=7dccf685-f755-417b-9caf-9ef4c0d06af9&&Headline=Gala+India-Pakistan+concert+called+off

[peace]

Awww, that is a shame. But I guess security for both sides must come first.

[Sema]

oh no... :(
Thanks for the update, Maryah.
Why do these security problems come up on the day of the concert, not before?

Gruß,
Sema

[Ariadne]

That´s realy sorry. This had could be a great sign of peace.

[SRKFanatic]

What a shame. But safety does come first.

[SRK_Super_Fanatic]

Awwe man....:( That's sad...but it's good. They better arrange all the security they can get before doing something like this.
I just wish they had thought this through and planned several months beforehand.

[rEd_cHilli3z]

:( thats sad. it was such a wonderful idea, but safety is a reason to stop :(

[palacerani]

Awww too bad. That would have been such a historic event. I hope it happens sometime.

[Mashra]

Better safe than sorry! as much as everyone would have loved to see the event, it's better that they called it off if they knew there would have been security problems. & where Shahrukh is concerned, they HAVE to take the utmost care of his saftey!

[anna_k]

Im sorry that everyone is disappointed but I dont think that ANY risk to our sweetheart is worth it...so Im personally glad theyve called it off...It seemed like a nightmare event to police!

[sandidi]

OMG, how did I miss this news? what a shame, such a beautiful opportunity for peace and unity. But understandable...150,000 people, uncontrollable!

[jabarbi]

I'm sorry to hear that it's cancelled, but I wouldn't want anything to happen to our SRK, or anyone else. Safety comes first.
It would have been a unity of peace, such a pity it didn't happen, but hopefully in the future maybe they will come up with something similar.

[srk_girl501]

Sorry to hear about the cancellation of the concert.
But better as Shahrukh safety comes first before anything happens if security not tight.