SPECIAL BONDING: Ghazal singer Srinivas interacts with Malli, an inmate of the district jail, in Guntur on Tuesday.

GUNTUR: It was a musical evening for inmates of Guntur district jail on Tuesday. They sat through the programme unmindful of the heavy downpour. Telugu ghazal singer Srinivas, true to his reputation, regaled them with soulful numbers with a social message.

Srinivas enlivened the jail atmosphere as part of his mission to perform in prisons across the State.

The prisoners they listened in rapt attention broke into applause whenever there was a reference to their life in the jail. Srinivas attracted many by singing about their feelings of remorse. He even called a prisoner, Malli hailing from Siripuram on to the stage and hugged him, drawing huge applause. Another prisoner Mariadas' name was included in the songs.

"We are humans and need to dream about a life of dignity and hope after the end of this sentence, ensuring that we do not repeat the mistakes," he told the audience. He imparted a bit of moral education to the inmates.

A song describing the love and affection of a mother who was eagerly waiting for her son to return home after serving the sentence in prison moved many of the inmates to tears.

Another song welcoming God to the jail and the inmates' uneasiness about the simple life in the prison was an instant hit. Despite heavy downpour in the middle, Srinivas continued to perform and the audience listened while getting drenched. We loved the programme, exclaimed the inmates in unison at the end of the show.

"I have decided to instil hope and give a good time to the inmates of the prison by my singing."

Inspiration

It all started during an interaction with a fellow passenger in a train, who claimed that he had to serve a three-year term in a prison for no fault of his. "He said despite all welfare measures undertaken in the prison, he suffered loneliness," Srinivas said. Thus began the mission of going around the prisons in the State and giving a performance at his own expense.

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