Bengali music on London trip eve - ALBUM LAUNCH AND SOIREE AT HOME FOR SKIPPER AND SANA

Sourav Ganguly with daughter Sana and Bhoomi band members at his Behala residence. Picture by Aranya Sen

From ?now or never? to Tomar dekha nai re. From Sandy Gordon to Soumitra Ray and Surajit Chatterjee. From the sound of the blade, it is the sound of Bhoomi now for beleaguered Team India skipper Sourav Ganguly.

In a first-of-a-kind function on Tuesday evening, popular folk Bangla band Bhoomi?s new album Dekhte Dekhte was launched at not a music store or an auditorium, but at Sourav?s Behala house.

And it turned out to be nothing short of a musical blockbuster. Despite Sourav in a triple role and stellar support from Bhoomi members, the scene-stealer was baby Sana, in a special appearance.

Playing harried host, chief guest and doting dad all at one go, Sourav had his hands full.

But there was little wrong with his timing on a different pitch: ?I have been listening to Bhoomi for some time now and loved their music. While I don?t get much time at home, it is mostly on foreign tours that I get to sample their songs.?

From a tense team meeting before the Rawalpindi Test against Pakistan to a relaxed evening in with Sana, Bhoomi?s all-time chartbuster Baranday roddur has been a fixture with the Prince of Calcutta and a favourite of his three-year-old daughter.

For Bhoomi, it was a toast to the best of Bengal.

?We have grown up listening to myths like Bengalis can never make good cricketers and here we have Sourav who has defied all odds and become India?s most successful cricket captain,? said vocalist Surajit.

The band went on to present Maharaj with a special dhuti-panjabi set.

?I don?t even remember when I last wore dhuti-panjabi,? quipped the captain, only to swiftly recall: ?Must have been on my wedding day!?

Sourav might be all over television lip-syncing to Shankar Mahadevan?s Breathless for a telecom commercial, but he admitted to being no singer. ?Let me enjoy as they sing,? he said, lounging on a sofa with Sana on his lap, for a live round of Baranday roddur.

If the album launch in the hall room of the Biren Roy Road mansion was a tribute to Calcutta?s most famous citizen, it also marked Bhoomi?s bid to go international. ?We have already become popular in most Bengali homes. Now, it?s time to cross the borders,? said Surajit.

That?s something Sourav will do early on Wednesday as he boards the morning flight for London with family. ?We?ll try and catch the French Open if we get tickets.?

And what about cricket? ?I?ll be back whenever I can play,? was Sourav?s straight drive.