BIOGRAPHY

from Winged Horse: 76 Assamese Songs of Bhupen Hazarika

From humble beginnings in Assam and at a young age Bhupen Hazarika was exposed to dynamic Indian freedom fighters but his inherited charge as a creative leader- type to emerge was not an easy path. But with a grounding in classical education and opportunity to travel abroad for higher education allowed him to cultivate a global perspective as a modern 20th century man who was Indian. He would use his training in mass communications to achieve his goal to help others attain that liberation from want and denial. Knowingly he chose to write in his mother tongue, perhaps in the spirit of ‘charity begins at home’, to his credit and certainly, due to his love of Assamese, his first culture.

Later he would compose in Bengali. And as he wrote of nature, people, romance, economics, science and historical epochs, he always reported and celebrated the humanity to be found in the legendary diversity of modern India.

Understandably he had a soft spot for the people of the northeast India as he created ways to simultaneously empower them while introducing them to the rest of India.

Thus, he chose mass communication to try to integrate Indians into a broader and more accessible and viable identity on the national and world stage than existed before. days after the popular and much loved Indian artist expired on November 5th, 2011, two states in northeast India were officially shuttered for the day to Mourn his loss—his home state of Assam and West Bengal. The same reaction was witnessed in neighboring People’s republic of Bangladesh. The emotional intensity of loss expressed by the people at his cremation defies easy explanations. it would not be an exaggeration to say that through his songs and vocalizations, he had touched his audience deeply across every divide.

Dr. Bhupen Hazarika, adoringly known as the Bard of the Brahmaputra, was a legendary singer, lyricist, music composer, scholar, artist and above all, a humanist who dared to dream of a classless society. Although fluent in Hindi and English, he wrote in Assamese, his mother tongue. His poetic soul ranged far and wide across many topics, from the human condition and its dependence on nature, history and politics to the detailed pathway to visionary rapture. His empathy for the people was not lost on them, and they knew he was including them in his vision for the future. For that he remains a source of inspiration for many who have heard his songs.

Wherever people speak Bengali he also became a household name, and of course they had a special affection for him as he composed and sang in Bengali. The neighboring state of Bangladesh holds dr. Bhupen Hazarika in high regard, crediting him for providing songs that Bangladeshi freedom fighters sang out in their bitter fight for independence from Pakistan. Late in his life, a handful of his songs sung in Hindi and featured in films brought him national recognition. But even now, a huge portion of his songs, over 600, remain unknown to non-Assamese speaking people. ironically it was only towards the end of his life that English translations of his songs started appearing in print.

On August 8th, 2019, the Late Dr. Bhupen Hazarika (1926-2011) was posthumously awarded India’s highest civilian award, the BHARAT RATNA, which I as his only son had the honor to received at an investiture ceremony in the Rashtrapati Bhavan from the President of India, Honorable Shree Ram Nath Kovind.