Pune: The semi-finals of the fourth season of the Idole Indienne, a French singing competition, held on October 24th 2015 at the Firodiya Hall Fergusson College, saw an overwhelming response. Thirty-seven students of French, from different colleges and institutes in the city, participated in the semi-finals. The event was organised by The Indian Association of Teachers of French (IATF), West Zone (Pune) with its official partners Alliance Française de Pune and Fergusson College.
The event kicked off with the ‘below 18 years’ category participants, who delighted all. The second half of the event saw participants from ‘above 18 years’ category. They enthralled the audience with some popular French songs such as La Pluie, Dernière Danse, Délit, among others. Mukta Dhere, F Y B Com student, Symbiosis College of Arts and Commerce, says, “I feel excited as it’s a privilege to get to sing a song in a language I am so passionate about!”
The panel of judges included Madame Anne-Marie Thuillier, Director of the AllianceFrançaise, Monsieur Arnaud Devic, President of the Poona Music Society and Madame Madhuri Purandare, noted writer, singer, theatre personality and Professor of French.
The programme ended with the prize distribution. Shreya Talegaonkar and Pradnya Phadtare bagged the first prize. The prizes for the event were sponsored by Alliance Française. The first prize included a course at Alliance, second was a membership of Médiathèque and consolation prizes included bags of goodies. The top winners of the semi-finals will now go to Bengaluru for the finale, which will be held on November 21. The final champion, at the national level, will get a ticket to France.
Monsieur Arnaud Devic remarks, “I am amazed that so many young people speak French and have the courage to perform on stage. They sing very well!”
This competition showed the enthusiasm and passion of the students for music and French, a language they come to learn in such large numbers. It also hallmarked the spirit of camaraderie that exists between the students and their respective teachers in all the institutions where this language is taught.
