When Michael Jackson Rocked Mumbai

(This is a guest column by Roger Alexander.)

Michael Jackson performed in Bombay, in fact India, only once – on October 31, 1996 – as part of the HIStory tour that year.

The concert was organised by Raj Thackeray’s Shiv Udyog Sena with the objective of providing jobs to 27 lakh youth in Maharashtra. That the money never reached the intended beneficiaries was the subject of controversy later.

Though MJ was already embroiled in the child abuse cases, he was treated like royalty when he landed at Sahar airport. (Mumbai was Bombay then and the Airport had not been renamed.)

Sonali Bendre, who wore a traditional Maharashtrian sari for the occasion, welcomed MJ by performing ‘aarti’ and applying ’tilak’ on his forehead, at the airport. He was then driven to the Oberoi in a 20-car cavalcade.

That night he gave an electrifying performance to a sell-out crowd at the Andheri Sports Complex. MJ pulled no punches. The then unheard of Rs 1000 entry fee for the aam janata in the stands was hundred per cent paisa vasool. MJ in full flow with a 50-piece orchestra and back-up crooners, a mind-blowing laser show and ear-splitting megawatt sound was an experience of a lifetime.

As Shobhaa De wrote later, “Those of us who were lucky enough to catch his concert will never ever forget the magic of those golden hours when Jackson enthralled a crowd of over 5,000 with a performance that was staggering in its impact.

It still makes my hair stand on end. I have never seen such energy, such commitment and such excellence. He was stupendously brilliant and I watched his final encore with tears steaming down my face.

The transparent sincerity of the man’s performance wasn’t missed by anybody present at those vast grounds. He could so easily have lip-synced his way through three or four numbers and moon-walked out of our lives. Instead, he chose to belt out over 20 hits back-to-back, complete with on-stage costume changes and dazzling special effects.

When he repeatedly whispered, ‘I love you’ to the mesmerised crowd, you believed him — of course, he loved us all. Individually, at that.

It was one glorious evening. And I went away with the feeling, I had been privileged enough to witness a historic performance by one of the world’s greatest entertainers.”

As Raj Thackeray’s guest, MJ also visited Sena chief Bal Thackeray’s residence, Matoshree, in Bandra. The Thackerays presented him with a silver tabla and tanpura.

There’s a lovely story connected with the visit. MJ had to go to the loo and was zapped when he stepped into the Tiger’s Indian-style toilet. No knowing how to use it, he had to seek Raj’s help to relieve himself!

During his stay at the Oberoi, MJ surprised the entire staff by mingling freely among his fans who thronged at the hotel to catch a glimpse of the King of Pop. And on his departure, he left a priceless gift for the housekeeping staff – a signed pillow with a thanks-a-lot message. Devika Bhojwani got that ’scoop’.