Stage set for Zubin Mehta's Srinagar concert

Mehta's concert has been facing opposition from separatist politicians

As India-born world renowned conductor Zubin Mehta has said "Kashmir chose me", the authorities in Srinagar were working at breakneck speed to make the Bavarian State Orchestra's concert on Saturday a grand success.

Mehta is scheduled to conduct a 90-minute concert in 17th century Shalimar Mughal Garden on the banks of the Dal Lake.

The orchestra is one of the oldest in Germany and its origins can be traced to 1523.

Hoping to spread the message of love and peace through music, Mehta told reporters in New Delhi after receiving the Tagore Award for Cultural Harmony: "I didn't choose Kashmir, it chose me.

"I hope to have the blessings of the people as music is the only language I know and hope to spread the message of peace with this performance."

Conferring the award on Mehta, President Pranab Mukherjee said he has brought a mission of optimism to mankind.

"We are recognising his untiring efforts, over the decades, to convert music into an instrument of peace and harmony. He has made it his mission to bring hope and reason wherever there is conflict and discord," the president said.

"His music has the power to transcend boundaries. He has earned for himself a unique position in the musical narrative of the world," he added.

The award comprises Rs.1 crore, a citation in a scroll, a plaque as well as an exquisite traditional handicraft or handloom item.

The first Tagore Award was conferred on Indian sitar maestro in Ravi Shankar in 2012, nine months before his death.

Speaking at the ceremony, Mehta said that one should never underestimate the power of inner peace.

"It was in 1994 that I had played in Sarajevo during the Bosnia war. During those two hours there was peace. This doesn't mean that we brought peace, but the soldiers engulfed in the war felt that inner peace," he said.

"Never underestimate the power of inner peace that comes with music," he added.

Mehta's "Ehsaas-e-Kashmir "(The feel of Kashmir)" concert has been facing opposition from separatist politicians.

Jammu and Kashmir Police Thursday arrested two guerrillas from Chanapora locality in Srinagar following guerrilla threats to the concert. Police sources told the news agency that one of the guerrillas had come to Chanapora area from north Kashmir's Sopore town, while the other belonged to the area from where the duo were arrested.

Arms and ammunition have also been recovered from the arrested guerrillas.

Intelligence officials told IANS that the guerrilla group Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) has often in the past used names of lesser known guerrilla groups to carry out threats and attacks in Kashmir.

Three lesser known guerrilla groups, Al-Nasreen, Farzandan-e-Milat and Shuda Brigade issued a statement here earlier this week threatening to target foreigners visiting Kashmir in the authorities decided to go ahead with the concert.

A civil society group has announced it would hold a parallel concert in Srinagar on Saturday to oppose the Zubin Mehta concert.

The authorities have not yet given permission to the organizers of the parallel concert.

Mehta, however, refused to comment on the opposition to his concert.

Security measures have already been beefed up in the Kashmir Valley for the musical performance that would be telecast live in 104 countries.

Diplomats, corporate magnates, film stars, law makers, civil servants and politicians are on the list of 1,500 invitees to the concert.

The list of invitees is a virtual Who's Who of movers and shakers. Union ministers, ambassadors of European countries, Pakistan High Commissioner Salman Bashir, industrialists Mukesh Ambani and Anil Ambani, actors Amitabh Bachchan and Shabana Azmi, cricketer Sachin Tendulkar, state government ministers, legislators, top bureaucrats and military officers and select journalists are among those invited to the concert.

Also on the list are Bombay Dyeing chairman Nusli Wadia and union Minister of State for Human Resource Development Shashi Tharoor and his spouse Sunanda.

The concert is being jointly organised by the German embassy and the 'Incredible India' campaign of the union tourism ministry, with assistance from the state tourism department.

The 90-minute concert will start 5 p.m.

All roads to the venue were sealed Friday afternoon, and a high security alert has been sounded.

"The entry of invitees would be strictly regulated. No uninvited person would be allowed to enter the venue," a senior security officer said.

The official said CCTV cameras are being installed inside and around the Shalimar Garden. Sharpshooters will be posted at vantage positions around the garden too, he said.

Security forces in motorized speed boats will patrol Dal Lake to provide an outer ring of security to the audience and performers.

Days ahead of the concert, Shalimar Garden had been declared out of bounds for visitors.

BMW cars and bullet proof vehicles will ferry invitees to the venue. Its gates will be closed after 4.30 p.m., security officials said.

No cameras, electronic equipment, foodstuff or drinks will be allowed inside the garden.

Two high-end five-star hotels in Srinagar, Hotel Lalit Palace and Taj Vivanta, have been booked for invitees from outside the city attending the concert.

Zubin Mehta and over 100 other members of the Bavarian State Orchestra are staying at Taj Vivanta while other invitees would be staying at Hotel Lalit Palace.

After performing in Srinagar, Zubin Mehta is scheduled to hold two concerts in Mumbai Sep 9 and 10.