Akhilbandhu Ghosh never got his dues.
There is a harsh truth in respect of success of musicians in India. It is said that talent alone is not the determinative factor for the success of a singer. Contacts, combination with notable composers, record companies they had equally important role to play in the success of singers.
It had happened with Akhil Bandhu Ghosh, a gifted classical singer of Bengal. Classical music reached its zenith during the 40s and 50s. With the performances of genius singers like Ghyanendra Prashad Goswami, Bhiswadeb Chatterji and Tarapada Chakravarty, the next generation were encouraged to learn classical ragas. Akhil Bandhu Ghosh used his classical touch in modern Bengali songs during the 50s along with Dhanonjoy Bhattacharya, Manobendra Mukherjee, Satinath Mukherjee, Manna Dey and others.
His song “mayamrigo sama” did reach the music-lovers of Bengal. He sang even songs having folk tunes embedded in them like “banshariya banshi bajayo na” and “emni dine ma je amar”, etc. His songs “piyal shakhar phake o se” and “shipra nadir tire” displayed the dawn and dusk of rural Bengal in the 50s.
But most of his classical records were recorded in less known companies like Megaphone and Hindustan. He did not get the patronage of HMV during the 50s if compared with the other classical singers. Yet his classical songs had class and style. The landmark songs included “keno praharo na jete moromer bina baje”, “aaji chandini rati go”, “tomar bhubane phuler mela”, etc. He even sang songs based on orthodox ragas.
Many of his songs were sung again by Indranil Sen in the 1990s. His song “o dayal bichar koro” had not lost its appeal after 50 years of its creation. Inspite of his free flow of voice, he did not get the recognition he deserved.
Other than Manna Dey, Manobendra Mukherjee and Dhanonjoy Bhattacharya there were hardly any other singer like Akhil Bandhu Ghosh who could reach the complicated ragas to the listeners in a lucid manner. His songs should be preserved.
There is a harsh truth in respect of success of musicians in India. It is said that talent alone is not the determinative factor for the success of a singer. Contacts, combination with notable composers, record companies they had equally important role to play in the success of singers.
It had happened with Akhil Bandhu Ghosh, a gifted classical singer of Bengal. Classical music reached its zenith during the 40s and 50s. With the performances of genius singers like Ghyanendra Prashad Goswami, Bhiswadeb Chatterji and Tarapada Chakravarty, the next generation were encouraged to learn classical ragas. Akhil Bandhu Ghosh used his classical touch in modern Bengali songs during the 50s along with Dhanonjoy Bhattacharya, Manobendra Mukherjee, Satinath Mukherjee, Manna Dey and others.
His song “mayamrigo sama” did reach the music-lovers of Bengal. He sang even songs having folk tunes embedded in them like “banshariya banshi bajayo na” and “emni dine ma je amar”, etc. His songs “piyal shakhar phake o se” and “shipra nadir tire” displayed the dawn and dusk of rural Bengal in the 50s.
But most of his classical records were recorded in less known companies like Megaphone and Hindustan. He did not get the patronage of HMV during the 50s if compared with the other classical singers. Yet his classical songs had class and style. The landmark songs included “keno praharo na jete moromer bina baje”, “aaji chandini rati go”, “tomar bhubane phuler mela”, etc. He even sang songs based on orthodox ragas.
Many of his songs were sung again by Indranil Sen in the 1990s. His song “o dayal bichar koro” had not lost its appeal after 50 years of its creation. Inspite of his free flow of voice, he did not get the recognition he deserved.
Other than Manna Dey, Manobendra Mukherjee and Dhanonjoy Bhattacharya there were hardly any other singer like Akhil Bandhu Ghosh who could reach the complicated ragas to the listeners in a lucid manner. His songs should be preserved.
