A Caged Bird is Free (Sujatha)

I had mentioned in my previous post that had I access to Rabindrasangeet recordings earlier on, I might have been able to appreciate them better.The example of lovely singing that I linked to was a rendition of a song by two of the Rabindrasangeet Trinity, so to speak - Kanika Banerji and Suchitra Mitra. Of the two, Suchitra's voice was the one that intrigued me more. It had an edgier tone, combined with clarity of rendition that led me to click on more than one suggested link with her name attached.

Suffice to say, I have been listening to a lot of Suchitra Mitra songs over this last week. But today's news brought this saddening report: She passed away at her residence, aged 86. The BBC article sterilely states:

"A leading exponent of legendary Bengali poet Rabindranath Tagore's music, her appeal cut across national boundaries.

Mitra's rendition of the song which became Bangladesh's national anthem during that country's 1971 independence struggle won the hearts of millions."

She had also famously been associated with the leftist IPTA and sung some songs composed by one of its best-known luminaries, music composer Salil Chowdhury. One such song, released in 1950, was the pathos-ridden Sei Meye, which reimagined the  beautiful Krishnakali of Tagore's poem as a famine victim, inspired by the plight of millions during the Bengal famine of 1943. The tune is interspersed cleverly with musical shifts in raaga and taal, which are essayed by Suchitra with tremendous virtuosity and clarity.

From the article on Salil Chowdhury, he explained the rationale behind Sei  Meye thus:

" Let's talk about Rabindranath's song "KrishnaKali Aami Taareyee Boli", and the transformation of the girl in it to the one in my song, "Sei Meye". That girl from MoynaaParaa with the beautiful dark eyes who so inspired the poet - (in my music) that same girl is perhaps burnt and blackened in the hot sun, as she raises her thin-as-sticks arms wailing and begging for a bit of gruel. May we never forgive those who so harshly destroyed the lovely image that our great poet had once so exquisitely created. Such utter despair, such a waste of priceless lives. Can there ever be any compensation ?"

Through her life, Suchitra had been followed by accusations of politicking, and rivalry with Kanika Banerjee

But she has finally eluded it all, the caged bird is now set free, the one that she so famously sang about in Khachar Pakhi.

 

Comments

[Ruchira]

Thanks Sujatha for the links and the news of Suchitra Mitra's death. Her beautiful voice and crystal clear diction (the lyrics are a huge part of Rabindrasangeet) have charmed millions of Bengalis over the years, and now also you. As it happens, my last trip to India included a short hop to Kolkata from where I returned with a few Rabindrasangeet CDs. I am now listening to them while driving. One is of Kanika Banerjee's most popular (and best) songs and one other, love songs by several top singers, including Mitra. I had looked around for a CD of Suchitra Mitra's collection also. But in her case, my favorite songs by her were distributed over several different CDs and no one package was satisfactory. By the way, who is the third of the Trinity you allude to? I can think of several singers, including men. Whom did you have in mind?

[Sujatha]

The third was supposed to be Debabrata ('George-da') Biswas. If you click on the accusations of politicking link, there's a write-up about him, along with the (admittedly oblique) complaint that he has been shortchanged by Suchitra and Kanika in the Rabindrasangeet establishment.