Duck Curry, Curry Duck Meets SuperBlue
By Michael Derek Roberts
Nohar Singh is a businessman’s businessman. That’s who he is – period. But he’s also enterprising, innovative, and creative, which is the secret sauce driving this quintessential “Caribbean Man” born in Guyana. Best known for his leadership of TravelSpan Vacations – perhaps the premier Caribbean travel agency in the Diaspora – he’s now turned his attention to mixing one set of excellent foods with a sub-set of Caribbean music. The result is exotic and exciting menus of entertainment and fun with undergirding tourism and business potential.
A unique pairing, you say? Well, before this latest food/entertainment summer event (the second one; the first was in 2021), held in Punta Cana, the Dominican Republic, he told me (during the official launch of the 2022 event) that his goal was to take this brand new and exciting concept to the entire Caribbean region (read CARICOM) and South America with Guyana as the fulcrum.
“No matter how you call it curry duck or duck curry, this is a great dish and can be paired with roti, plain white rice, or rice, and peas. Or whatever you choose to do. And yes, Trinidadians say curry duck while Guyanese say duck curry…well if it tastes like duck cooked with curry, what you call it does not matter,” Nohar says jokingly. But seriously, this year’s “Duck Curry, Curry Duck” competition took place in Cancun’s picturesque Mexican tourist resort city around the end of July. From all accounts, it was a heated competition.
“There were eight contestants in the 4-day event. Great dishes, exotic presentations, and fun – lots of fun. It was like one big family affair. That’s the kind of ambiance and atmosphere that Nohar inspires and creates. He’s positive energy. I cannot wait for next year!” said Mike Babwar, publisher of Caribbean Times and one of the judges at the competition, who attended the annual event – for the second time. He said that everything was tip-top, top-class, and well organized. “A great staff, Allison Mason and Russell Saroop, that put on and organized a great event now two years in a row,” is how he put it.
But when the competition was finished, and the curry cooled down, the first prize went to a team of three (Trinidadian, Guyanese, and Suriname). The second prize went to Trinidad and Tobago, and another Trinidadian won the third prize. Apart from the curry duck/duck curry competition, the entertainment component of the event was just as stellar. Headlining the roster was versatile and talented Trini entertainer extraordinaire Raymond Ramnarine, who did not disappoint. And coming in as a great compliment to Ramnarine was the supremely gifted chutney singer Terry Gajraj of Guyana, who performed to an audience of over 100 “tourist families.”
Then it was off to Punta Cana in the Dominican Republic. Again, this was the setting for the “SuperBlue” concert. This event could be called “the Return of SuperBlue.” And he did not disappoint after a long hiatus from the calypso stage. The ole “Soca Baptist” showed why he’s such an exciting and electrifying entertainer. Punta Cana is still reverberating from the sweet sounds of soca from one of the last remaining maestros of the art form. All kudos must go to Norah Singh for having the foresight and ingenuity to “bring out” SuperBlue to the big stage again.
But wait, there’s more! Before SuperBlue took to the stage, another talented entertainer wowed the crowd with his powerlessness as a comedian, singer, and chutney soca artist. His name is Kenneth Supersad, and he will be a force to reckon with in the industry. All the reviews about him coming out of Punta Cana are positive, and the Nohar Singh Family will be hard-pressed not to invite him back next year.
About SuperBlue
Austin Lyons became famous from his first entry into the calypso tent world in 1980 with “Soca Baptist,” a song he penned in 1979. “Soca Baptist” won him his first Carnival Road March Monarch award in 1980.[1] He won the annual T&T Carnival Road March title ten times (in 1980, 1981, and 1983) under the moniker Blue Boy and as Superblue in 1991, 1992, 1993, 1995, 2000, 2013, and 2018). He won the Trinidad & Tobago Soca Monarch (now the International Soca Monarch) title seven times, making him only the second man in the English-speaking Caribbean to win the Soca Crown seven times after Grynner of Barbados, who the Road March crown in Barbados the same number of times (1983, 1984, 1985, 1988, 1989, 1990 and 1998).
Superblue is famous for wearing blue costumes and dancing on speaker boxes. He developed a reputation for performing daring antics while on stage for the Soca Monarch competitions.
and then 