Koena's 'unforgettable night' with Nelly Furtado

Jan 3, 2007 Subhash K. Jha

Mumbai, Jan 4 (IANS) Koena Mitra, who is still struggling to find a foothold in Bollywood, is going ga ga over her New Year's Eve performance with renowned Canadian singer Nelly Furtado.

"It was a night I'd never forget. It wasn't just the best live show I've performed in, but the best live show I've ever seen," Koena told IANS.

Hours after she finished performing with Furtado, composer A.R. Rahman, Priyanka Chopra and Shahid Kapur, Koena can't stop raving about the experience at the Andheri Sports Complex.

"For four hours the young crowds were on their feet. I had never performed in front of a standing crowd before. Normally, when you've a seated crowd you could end up with the worst deal... audiences eating, or worse drinking, as you perform. For once the crowds were totally with us.

"All of us - Nelly, Priyanka, Shahid, Rahmanji and me --felt so alive. There was no room to get tired. The audiences' enthusiasm just kept our energy level going."

Koena's medley of all her hit songs was followed by a together act with Priyanka.

"And at the end we were all invited by Rahmanji on stage to bring in 2007 at midnight. We all sang 'Humma humma' (from 'Bombay') to bring in the New Year. Really, it was four hours of undiluted fun. I can't think of a better way to bring in the New Year."

Koena is bowled over by the sheer professionalism of the firangis.

"I'm not just talking about the sound and equipment, but also the sheer ambience created."

After the show Koena had no energy to do anything else.

"I just came home and kept watching clippings of our show on television. The next few days, I'm just chilling at home visiting friends and shopping."