Bollywood Golden Tunes

Founders/singers of Shanamo, Praveen Chaddha and Ritee Chaddha

Shanamo Entertainment, a talent development and promotion agency, will bring golden tunes from Bollywood to life in "Disha, An Evening of Melodies." Timeless numbers, romantic ballads, and contemporary, soft melodies from Bollywood will set the tone.

Disha will feature the founders/singers of Shanamo, Praveen Chaddha and Ritee Chaddha, and Bay Area poets/singers Phiroz Kazi, Subhen Khatua, Sumit Parimoo, and Safi Zikria. They will be supported by a live band.

Shanamo has built a reputation for talent development in the Bay Area since 1999.

From the initial offering of instructional programs in music, Shanamo has steadily expanded its repertoire to include promotional packages including pre-production and song-writing for amateur artists wanting to turn professional.

Praveen Chaddha says, "We accept musicians at all stages, somebody with just a song can approach us and we would work out future production and go-to market strategies together."

Interestingly, the Chaddhas have themselves etched an amateur-to-bigger-league path, maturing from singers-on-stage to composing and singing for a movie, "Khoya Bachpan Mila Pyar," a dubbed version of the 2005 British movie "Undertaking Betty." With Shanamo, they plan to use their experience to encourage budding artists.

"Working on your own career goals is fulfilling," says Praveen, "but promoting others is uplifting." Shanamo plans on hosting several Disha-style events this year, in a bid to build a quality brand that will draw in audiences and artists alike. Their website, www.shanamo.com, lets musicians upload their work and blow their own horn, literally.

"For me, it all started with a dream," says Parimoo. "I've always been musically inclined, but I've never trained formally before. Praveenji groomed my talents, and in just two years, I've been able to transform into a singer-songwriter," says Parimoo.

"My first album, Meet, will be released at Disha. It's indescribable, the feeling when your dream turns into reality."