Sanjay Raina (www.sanjayraina.com) is the promoter and organiser of the recent Freedom Concert 2009 which featured the brilliant performance of Ustaad Amjad Ali Khan. Sanjay has big plans for the future and has already laid his claim to the brand name of FREEDOM CONCERT series. Rohit Revo posed the following questions to him.

How did you come up with the idea of organising the Freedom Concert 2009?
I have been doing entertainment related work in this sector for some time, and always felt that there are some important days in the life of every community, which need to be celebrated in a different way.

Amongst so many global cities why did you choose Sydney for the venue?
Well, ever since I have formed my company, Core4 Entertainment in Australia, my emphasis is to do work here, and Sydney with the maximum number in the community seemed to be the perfect city for the 15th of August, also a Saturday, convenient to all.

Your critics say you are as a rank outsider when it comes to organising such shows in Sydney and that you have no prior experience of doing big shows in this market. Are they right in pointing this?
I am glad I already have critics here in such a short span of work. Event management is an art, a business, and a skill, and needs no boundaries or fixed locations. In fact event management as a term is very global in itself, so one does not really need to be living in Rome to do events in Rome.

I as a singer am 400 plus shows old, and my company in India has organised shows for several corporates. We have been associated with artists like Sonu Nigam, Shaan, Jassi, Harbhajan Mann, Sagarika,Mehnaz, Pankaj Udhas, Daler Mehndi, Rajpal Yadav, Shibani Kashyap, Annamika,and not to forget to mention that we also got the famous band BONEY M to India. Perhaps my critics are ill informed.

What other events are you planning to host in Australia?
I have the next two years nicely lined up with very interesting events and concepts that people in Australia will love. You ill hear about them soon as soon as our marketing activity starts.

What is the kind of feedback you have been getting after hosting the Freedom Concert?
Would like to say it in just the words that have been told to me:
Amazing,awesome, unforgettable,brilliant,fantastic. That should say it all  I guess.

Where do you see the market heading off to. Do you think there is appetite for more quality shows? Also people are saying the ticket costs are too high for them to afford such performances.
The market will only grow. Quality shows always have place and cant fail. As regards the ticket prices, they vary from artist to artist.

Some of the artists from India complain of getting a raw treatment from show organisers in Australia and abroad? What is your view about this?
It is most important for organisers to keep their word, and not think of short term gains. Only then would artists give their best and only then can an organiser succeed. Our artists are very proud to be associated with us.

How appealing is the Australian market to artists and performers in India?
The Australian market is very inspiring, to say the least. I myself as an organiser love the vibrant audience here, and so do the artists.

Would you like to tell us which other shows are you planning for the next year in Sydney.
Well, we are going to have some events prior to next year too, but most certainly would we have our flag brand THE FREEDOM TOUR every year.

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