The three-day convention of NATS was completed in New Jersey. The event went on really well for the first two days, but it all went wrong on the final day, according to the organizers, sponsors, and local talent among the children in the USA.
The major cause for this was attributed to the arrogance and ego of Thaman, as many criticized him using inappropriate language.
When we sought comments from some of the present and past organizers of NATS conventions, a large majority of them pointed fingers at Thaman.
An ex-NATS representative said, "Thaman doesn't deserve any invitation from any American Telugu Organization. He is unempathetic, irresponsible, and takes the entire event and the people running it for granted. He made all the events stop at prime hours just for his sound check, which his team conducted with irritating noises much to the chagrin of everyone. This annoyed the chief guests who were already seated in the auditorium. Sound checks generally happen early in the morning or during non-peak hours."
The parents of the children who came to participate on the stage said, "Our children, who are born and brought up here, learned Kuchipudi and other Indian dances. They prepared for months, rehearsing to showcase their talent through mass-appealing film songs. But Thaman's show is completely Western in style, with not even an iota of elements that suit Telugu culture and tradition. Organizers should not give space to such shows filled with arrogance. Our children hardly got the chance to perform. They waited for 6 hours with makeup and finally walked out with tears in their eyes just because Thaman taken away their time."
According to grapevine, Thaman didn't agree to give a break in his show for 10 minutes to pay tribute to NTR during the centenary event, which was scheduled. The organizers became infuriated and pulled him and his team off the stage for 10 minutes to pay tribute to NTR, as May 28th was his centenary birthday. Thaman arrogantly warned them that he couldn't give more than 10 minutes for the NTR Centenary event to take place on the main stage, as per sources.
Everyone was angry with Thaman for occupying the stage for hours without letting any other program take place on the stage.
"If Thaman feels that his show is greater than the legacy of NTR, no one can help him. It was May 28th, and the tribute for NTR was planned during prime hours. After forceful negotiation, Thaman agreed to let it happen, but during speeches by Suhasini Nandamuri and YVS Chowdary from the stage, Thaman's friends in the audience and team members made noises, implying that the tribute should stop immediately and Thaman's show should continue. In short, Thaman is a headache for any organizer," said an insider from the NTR Centenary committee.
An organizer said, "We paid a huge amount to him even after negotiation. He was cool and cozy as long as the deal happened and payments were made. But he has shown his true face of selfishness and sadism during the show. He may be good for audience because of the film craze. But he is a pain in the ass for organizers. The present NATS leadership would have done the right thing by donating the same amount to some charity instead of calling this guy"
When we tried to reach out to anyone related to the event, everyone was criticizing Thaman using offensive language.
"After all this, the irony is that Thaman's show was a big flop with poor sound and noise. Nobody knows what the so-called sound check he conducted for hours achieved, than disrupting all the events from the afternoon. The sound caused headaches for many. Some young audience members may shout and cheer as they enjoy film songs, but that doesn't mean the show was a hit," said a visitor who came all the way from Chicago to attend the NATS Sambaralu event.
"When people watch the event on TV, everything appears to have gone well. But the behind-the-scenes and the actual mood in the auditorium can only be known by those who experienced it by organizers. We miserably failed to honor the sponsors in the way they should be. We made NTR Centenary taking permission from Thaman. Is this not annoying!! My appeal to all Telugu associations in the USA, who run shows with the support of sponsors, is to keep Thaman away forever," said an organizer.
"We also need to question the leadership of NATS for not being able to handle the egoistic whims of a music director who came from India, putting the emotions of NTR fans and the parents of local talent at stake," said the parent of a child from Detroit who participated in the event.
