PHOTOS: COLLECTED

Over the years, evolving from that very laptop, he pushed boundaries by fusing traditional South Asian melodies with heavy electronic production, collaborating with vocal powerhouses like Shreya Ghoshal and Sunidhi Chauhan, and even crossing over into the K-pop phenomenon with GOT7’s Youngjae.

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT DESK

The Sanjoy we saw on June 12, performing SIIR SIIR alongside Nora Fatehi and French artiste Vegedream while donning a maroon jacket with Bangladesh’s iconic Bengal Tiger, Shapla, and the red circle representing our flag, was anything but accidental.

Over the years, Sanjoy Deb built up his reputation, collaborating with international artistes and even cracking the US Top 40 at a point where international fame was a fleeting idea for an artiste as young as him.

In 2023, Dameer & Fuad Present Sanjoy took place at Aloki – urging the notion among local fans that if the icon, Fuad Almuqtadir, is taking the effort to acquaint Sanjoy to the local scene, he must really be someone special. Sanjoy has publicly credited Fuad as the primary reason he began engaging with the Bangladeshi music scene, stating that Fuad was the one who personally convinced him to come back and perform in Bangladesh for the first time.

However, his story starts before that. Sanjoy Deb began internalising music subconsciously through lullabies sung by his grandmother. His primary musical influence was his mother, a trained singer who actively pushed him into music at a very young age. By age four, Sanjoy was learning Indian classical music and training on the tabla. He later picked up the keys, guitar, and bass, building an organic foundation long before he ever touched electronic software.

After his move to the USA in 2004, Sanjoy kept proving that he was, indeed, special. Having been trained under a rigid, strict classical gurukul system in South Asia, Sanjoy rebelled against the Western classical and marching styles taught by his American instructors. He constantly hijacked the school band’s pieces, infusing them with complex Eastern rhythmic structures.

After six months of clash after clash, his instructor asked him to give up his drumsticks and leave the school band. Cut off from formal music education at school, Sanjoy retreated to a second-hand laptop.

Over the years, evolving from that very laptop, he pushed boundaries by fusing traditional South Asian melodies with heavy electronic production, collaborating with vocal powerhouses like Shreya Ghoshal and Sunidhi Chauhan, and even crossing over into the K-pop phenomenon with GOT7’s Youngjae.

Yet, for all his international exploits and US Top 40 recognition, Sanjoy’s creative compass has reliably pointed back home. He has steered major projects in the Bangladeshi music circuit, including the Bangladesh Premier League (BPL) theme—or collaborating with local stars like Habib Wahid, Tahsan, and Xefer, he has consistently channelled his success back into the ecosystem that raised him.

As Toronto’s BMO Field stadium echoed with heavy drum beats and electronic synths, Sanjoy’s triumph became a monumental win for South Asian representation in global sports culture. Taking to social media shortly after stepping off the turf, he wrote, “My People. This is just the start of something beautiful.” If that moment was any indication, the world is finally listening to the beat of our drum.