| A born teacher “I am a born teacher and so my birthday  falls on September 5 which is observed as Teacher’s Day,” the great music composer Salil Chowdhury had told this writer some four decades back. I had the great opportunity to come into contact with the musical genius in Assam and Mumbai, during the recording of the Assamese film Aparajeyo. He was a passionate listener of music of every sort and also advised his students and followers to do so. I found out that he used to listen to folk music of India, Indian classical music, western music (both classical and modern), symphonies of Beethoven and Mozart, etc.Music is harmony and it is not appreciated by those who have a rigid mind, he said. Music washes away the dirt of every day life from our soul, he quoted. A brilliant flute and piano player, he recalled how he used to play the flute during his childhood in Hatikhuli tea garden of Assam, where he was born and brought up. Salilda was an avid reader. It was a rare experience to see him compose. He sat quietly on the harmonium and started humming the tune and within minutes, the tune was ready. This was in Guwahati, when he was tuning songs for his singer-wife Sabita Chowdhury. The songs O Phagunore Utala Baa and Mon Posowar Baa, Goongoonai Ja still ring in the ears. A scholar, a poet and a composer par excellence, that was Salil Chowdhury. His death anniversary was observed by several organisations all over the country recently. |
| TV serial Mor Sahodar The first phase of TV serial Mor Sahodar, produced by Doly Das under the banner of Sri Surya Production, was recently completed under the direction of actor-director Kripal Kalita. The story of the family drama, depicting the affection and conflict among brothers, has been written by Kalita, who has also penned the script and dialogue. Incidentally, Kalita has a good number of video films and TV serials to his credit. He has also written the songs and scored music for Mor Sahodar, arranged by Rajib Kalita. The songs are rendered by Ramcharan Kalita, Nabamallika Bhagawati and Madhusmita Haloi. The roles in the serial are portrayed by Mridul Barua, Niranjan Bhuyan, Narendra Kumar Das, Lakshmi Barthakur, Mausumi Barua, Sewali Neog, Bibha Talukdar, Karishma Mazumdar, and others. The cinematography is by Pijush Narayan Chowdhury, and Kishore Deka is in charge of editing. The serial is slated for telecast on Guwahati DD from December 14 at 7:30 pm every Monday. |
| VCD Bhajan Tarpan A VCD titled Bhajan Tarpan recently hit the stands as a Durga Puja presentation from Auditek. The VCD contains eight devotional songs in Hindi and Sanskrit sung by Krishna Goswami. The highlights of the VCD are three traditional songs — Om Namah Shivay, Devi Dayanari Ma and Hey Mata Meri. Composer Bimal Dev Medhi deserves kudos for suitably tuning the songs. Bhupen Uzir’s music direction has enhanced the appeal of the songs, impressively rendered by the singer. |
| Global festival in NE The Prajapita Brahmakumari Ishwariya Vishwa Vidyalaya, a socio-spiritual organisation, is organising a global festival for receiving God’s powers and blessings from the beginning of October next to the third week of November in the North East. The festival is being held in Guwahati from October 1 to 4 at the Assam Engineering Institute Ground, Chandmari. On the occasion, a ‘soul elevating’ cultural show will be held on October 4. The highlights of the programme include flute recital by five artistes, led by internationally acclaimed flautist Deepak Sarma, Bhakti Bhavana group dance in Satriya form composed by Nrityacharya Jatin Goswami, and a dance with 151 pots on the head by Kumari Priya Patni from Bhilwara, Rajasthan. The national launch of the festival will be held in Delhi on October 3 and 4 and would be addressed by Dadi Hirdaya Mohini, Head of Delhi zone, Didi Sudesh, director of Brahmakumari Centres in Europe, Brahmakumari Mohini, permanent representative to the UN and Marc Fourcade from Paris. |
| Musical evening The nascent, but versatile fusion music group Hangsadhwani impressed the audience with their performance at a musical evening at the B Barooah Cancer Institute, Guwahati recently, as the group, with some lively compositions, regaled the audience, which included patients, their attendants and doctors of the institute. The function was jointly organised by Hangsadhwani and Saptasur music school of Raju Ansari. Rhitam Changkakati, the gifted blind instrumentalist, who is a member of the Hangsadhwani group, seemed to have amply delighted the audience with his performance on the keyboard. Earlier, songs were sung by Kula Barua, Manisha Hazarika, Ipshita Bora and Tridip Barua, the president of the Hangsadhwani group. |
Apurba Kumar Das