Md. Hasan Khan :
Father of Nation Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman is the greatest Bengali of thousands of years. He is very wellknown as a politician. Beside this identity he was known for many activities. He is a fan of sports, literature and music. His love for music identified from his autobiography ‘Unfinished Memories’, ‘Karagarer Rojnamcha’ and from the reminisce of peoples. He always liked to listen patriotic songs and honour the musicians. He liked to murmur songs in his own.
Sheikh Mujib loves music from his youth. In 1950, a musical fest was arranged at Krishnanagar, Brahambaria. Famous singer Abbasuddin, Soharab Hossain and Bedaruddin Ahmmed presented at the festival. Bangabandhu was invited at that festival. He wrote that, ‘We saw that hundreds and thousands of people gathered there to see N. M. Khan and Abbasuddin. Abbasuddin was very famous in country side. People were crazy to hear his song. His songs are for the peoples of Bengal. As like, he had a very close relation with soil. But sad news is, to earn for his livelihood he had to work in government’s public relation office.”(Osomapto Atojiboni Page no. 110-111)
Bangabandhu loved the songs of Abbasuddin. He listened his songs with deep attention. He wrote that, “Life would be incomplete if I did not hear his vatiali songs,sitting beside the bank of a river. When he sang slowly it was like the waves were hearing his song. His disciples Soharab Hossain and Bedaruddin carried his name. I have become a fan of Abbasuddin. He told me, ‘Mujib, a conspiracy is going on against Bengali language. Bengali civilization and culture will be gone if Bengali won’t become a state language. Today, the song you love will lost its sweetness and dignity will be lost. No matter what goes on, Bengali should be the state language.’ I promised him and kept my promise.” (Osomapto Attojiboni, Page no. 111)
Like Abbasuddin, he also loved Abdul Jobbar. Abdul Jobbar used to call Bangabandu as father and Bangamata as mother. Bangabandhu used to call him ‘Pagla’. In his memories Abdul Jobbar said, “Baba asked me to create a song for Muktijoddha’s as like the song ‘Amar Vaier Rokte Rangano’ for Twenty First February. I didn’t wait and went to poet Fazal-E-Khoda. So, we wrote the legendary song, ‘Salam Salam Hajar Salam’. When I sang the song in front of my baba, he gave me a hug with his astonishment. He said, ‘What do you want from me. Do you want to be a minister?’ I said ‘no’. ‘Can I give a bigger position at radio?’ I said, ‘no’. Then he asked me again, ‘What do you want then?’ In replay I said, ‘There are many songs left for me to sing. I want sing songs for the rest of my life.’ Baba put his hand upon my head and to me, ‘Oh pagla you keep singing for all of your life.” (Bangla Insider, 30 August 2018)
Bangabandhu used to call Baul Samrat Shah Abdul Karim as ‘My Karim vai’. He wrote a song for Bangabandhu. He sang songs before Bangabandhu’s speech in several public occasions. In 1969, in a public rally at Sunamganj’s Jubilee High School field; Bangabandhu said, “I am a big fan of Karim vai’s songs. If Sheikh Mujib lives, Karim vai lives. When there is Karim vai, there is Sheikh Mujib.” Saidur Rahaman Baiati got affection from Bangabandhu. In 1972, he presented a song for Bangabandhu at BDR Darbar Hall. Bangabandhu gave him a wrist watch as he fascinated after hearing his song.
In 1967 Bangabandhu was in jail on Bengali New Year. He described how he celebrated the New Year in his book ‘Karagarer Rojnamcha’. There is a description that the prisoners sang song during the new year. Bangabandhu wrote, “15 April, today is Bengali New Year. In morning I woke up from bed and saw Nur-e Alam Siddique, Nurul Islam and many other political prisoners came to me with some flowers in my cell. They wished me for Bengali New Year by giving some roses. At dusk, Nur-e Alam Siddique, Nurul Islam and Hanif Khan arranged a musical night in front of old twenty number cell. Babu Chittaranjan Sutar, Sudhangsu Bimal Dutt, Shah Moazzem Hossain, some DPR and some prisoners sat there. I had to go but I did not have any permission to go there. But I sat there by breaking rule. Some songs sang and a normal prisoner also sang some song. He sang brilliantly. (KaragarerRojnamcha, Page No. 222-223).
Bangabandhu used to sing songs of legendary Hemanta Mukherjee. Hemanta Mukherjee’s daughter Ranu Mukherjee gave this information. She said, I have to tell about one person. He is Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman. I heard that, he used to sing my father’s song while he was in prison. After the independence, we went there, I remember that his eyes were watery when he saw my father.” (Jele Babar Gaan Gaiten Sheikh Mujib/Ranu Mukherjee).
Bangabandhu’s favourite song was Rabindra Nath Tagore’s ‘Amar Sonar Bangla Ami Tomay Bhalobashi’. He made this song as a national anthem. After his homecoming he said, ‘Neither plays nor novels, I love the songs and poems of Tagore. I have spent eleven years in jail altogether. ‘Sanchaita’ was my companion for all the time. I’ve read poems after poems and memorized them to my heart. For the first time in Mianwali jail, I did not have Sanchaita I felt sad for that. I have made my favorite song ‘Amar Sonar Bangla’ as our national anthem. And yes, DL Ray’s ‘DhanadhanoPushpoVora’ is also my favorite. I mumble these two songs in my work. (Sonar Bangla Tomay Valobashi/Muhammad Sabur). On Bangabandhu’s decision Kazi Nazrul Islam’s ‘Chal Chal Chal’ has become the war song of Bangladesh.
Bangabandhu’s another favourite song was ‘Ma Amar Sadh Na Mitilo, Asa Na Furalo’. Bangabandhu’s daughter Sheikh Hasina said about this. Bangabandhu used to hear Panna Lal Bhattacharya’s this song for many times. This song has been used in ‘Hasina: A Daughter’s Tale’ for many times. Sheikh Hasina told that, “When father returned from Karachi, he listened Panna Lal’s song ‘Ma Amar Sadh Na Mitilo, Asa Na Furalo, Sokoli Furay Jay Maa’ for many times. I don’t know how many times the song used to play in a day.”
For his entire life Bangabandhu was always on the side of artists. The artists also loved him lavishly. Today, Bangabandhu is not with us, but his ideal remains. His daughter Sheikh Hasina is with us. She is also like her father. She looks after the artists, poets, writers and others who are working in the field of culture. For this the Bengali culture is taking place in the world.
(Md. Hasan Khan, PhD, Writer, Columnist & Politician)
