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Going beyond labour of love

The need to take Nazrul Sangeet out of its niche, and to the masses

Cultural Correspondent
To music enthusiasts in our country and West Bengal, it is common knowledge that a Nazrul Sangeet artiste can render a song belonging to virtually any genre. It is their background that empowers their vocal abilities. Nazrul's compositions are ornate with every raaga under the sun: the poet even created some original raaga. Inevitably, an aspiring Nazrul 5 artiste has to go through years of rigorous taalim and reyaaz to groom his/her voice, to be able to make the intricate compositions sound effortless. Perhaps this is the reason a lot of music students start off their lessons with some familiar Nazrul Sangeet and then move on to other genres. In that sense, Nazrul Sangeet bolsters their foundation.
Rationally, Nazrul Sangeet should have a certain standing, a sizeable following, mass popularity and Nazrul artistes should enjoy a pride of place in the Bangladeshi music arena. Reality, however, is not quite that. Nazrul songs do have a certain standing and has its admirers and connoisseurs but it has yet to possess popularity among the masses. A general griev-
ance from Nazrul artistes is that they rarely get the kind of treatment and encouragement they deserve.
Three accomplished Nazrul singers, representing three generations, discussed their perceptions and views on the issue. Excerpts of what they said:
Rebeka Sultana emerged as a vocalist in the mid '60s. A student of Ustad Phool Muhammad, Sudhin Das and Feroza Begum, Rebeka belongs to a family of accomplished artistes (among her sib-I ings is Ab i da Sul tana).
According to Rebeka, Nazrul s works do not get adequate exposure and promotion overseas. "I've lived in several countries for 27/28 years, as my husband worked as a diplomat. I met many foreign diplomats who were not that knowledgeable in Bengali culture or literature but were aware of Tagore and his w orks," said Rebeka.
"Thal made me contemplate how our National Poet’s works can be introduced globally. Bangladeshi embassies can hold cultural programmes highlighting Nazrul Sangeet and can translate his works in major languages like Spanish, French, Arabic and Chinese," she added. "NRBs (nonresident Bangladeshis) can play a
key role in this mission."
Yasmin Mushtari, sister of Shabnam and Parveen Mushtari, attained nationwide recognition as a Nazrul artiste in the '80s. A stu-
dent of Ustad Fazlul Haque, Ustad Akhter Sadmani, Ustad Phool Muhammad and Ustad Mithun De. Yasmin outlined the difference between taalim back in the day and
now: "When we were students, ustads were totally proactive and treated us as their most important responsibilities. If for some reason, we missed a lesson, they'd come
over to our home straightaway. There was no traffic jam: life was easier, more relaxed. Going to music classes was never a hassle.
"Now. everyone is in a rush. Students try to do ten things at once. Most teachers are also performers, so they rarely have the time to bond with students outside classes." .
"However, today more youngsters are learning Nazrul Sangeet than ever. Perhaps, they are taking lessons in Nazrul Sangeet to groom their vocals, many may not continue or move to other genres, but the fact that these aspiring singers are starting their musical journey with the National Poet's compositions is certainly something positive." Yasmin said.
Nasima Shaheen, who has been teaching Nazrul Sangeet at Chhayanaut for the last 15 years, emerged as an artist in the '90s. "There is a sense of contempt, on national level, when Nazrul Sangeet and artistes are concerned," Nasima said.
"Nazrul was made the National Poet of Bangladesh and seemingly that was it! National events and major programmes often end with the national anthem, but none of the events starts with or even includes a Nazrul Sangeet.
"A young singer goes through years of painstaking training to become a Nazrul artiste but rarely gets any exposure in the media. It seems that Nazrul is remembered nationwide only on tw o occasions -- his birth and death anniversaries. These practices need to change," Nasima said.
All three artistes however agree that the general standard of Nazrul artistes in Bangladesh is far superior to Indian (West Bengal) vocalists.
"There is rampant distortion of Nazrul's tunes and artistes from West Bengal often sing wrong lyrics," saidYasmin.
Rebeka felt that promising Nazrul artistes should be included in cultural delegation to major international events and the cultural ministry in association with Bangladeshi embassies overseas should arrange Nazrul Sangeet classes conducted by seasoned singers.
Nasima stressed on the need to promote and encourage upcoming Nazrul artistes with initiatives like talents hunts (specifically on Nazrul Sangeet) and more media coverage.
All three singers agreed that it's imperative to take Nazrul Sangeet out of the niche it’s imprisoned in and take it to the masses, as that's w hat the National Poet intended.