Bollywood Music Director Bhupen Hazarika Biography

Bhupen Hazarika was born on 8 September, 1926. He was born in Sadiya, Assam. He was an unusually talented kid. Bhupen was born into a family of teachers. Apparently, his grandfather had established the Bankshidhar Hazarakia school at Sibsagar.

His father was a teacher in that school. Since his childhood, he had a flair for journalism. He was also passionate about it. He was the favourite grandson of his grandmother. Later, his father taught at the cotton college in Guhati.

He had a brother who had died when he was very young. He wrote and sang the first song at the tender age of ten. He even worked for the second Assamese Talkie, Indramalati (1939), when he was only twelve. Interestingly, whenever Ghandhi and Pandit Nehru visited Assam, they requested Bhupens father to send him and his brother to sing for them.

His brother Jayanta, died a early death due to cancer. He used to sing tribal songs as a child. Since then, he developed a passion for singing. He thinks that he had inherited his singing skills from his mother. In fact, he had used one of his mothers lullabies in the movie RUDALI.

As a child, he was influenced by Shankardev, who sang bhajans. As a kid, he learnt music from Bishnu Prasad. He was trained in the Bhatkhande school of music. However, he soon left the school. He completed his intermediate in Arts from Cotton College in 1942. He graduated from the Benaras Hindu University in 1944.

He went ahead and completed his masters in Political Science in 1946 from the same University. He earned a PHD Degree in Mass Communications from the University of Columbia, situated in New York. It was there that he came in contact with Paul Robeson.

His genius can be well understood from the fact that he received the Lisle Fellowship from the University of Chicago in US. In 1954, he submitted a dissertation titled Proposals For Preparing Indias Basic Education to Use Audio Visual Techniques in Adult Education. By 1993, he was the head of Asom Sahitya Sabha.

Career
He is known for the comfort with which he sings in high and low pitches. He is also known for his perfect diction. As a Lyricist, he is also for his poetic compostions and parables.

He is famous for blending folk music with contemporary music and create his own style in music composition.

It has already been mentioned that while he was studying at the Columbia University, he came in contact with Paul Robeson. He learnt singing from him and later his music influence showed in Bhupens music composition. Bhupen is very popular among the Assamese and even in West Bengal and Bangladesh.

He has also sung in Bengali. He recently sang the north-east Anthem called Our North East Our Star. This anthem was apparently directed by Aniruddho Roy Chowdhury. It was composed by Shantanu Moitra.

Swanand Kirkire had written down the lyrics for the same. Sanskriti Media took up the responsibility to finance the making of the music video.
He has composed music for a handful of films like INDRAMALATI (1939), SIRAJ (1948), PIOLI PHUKAN (1955), ERA BATOR SUR (1956), SHAKUNTALA ( 1961), TITASH EKTI NADIR NAAM(1973), MERA DHARAM MERI MAA (1976), DEBDAS (1979), EK PAL (1986), SIRAJ (1988), RUDAALI (1993), DARMIYAAN: IN BETWEEN (1997), GAJA GAMINI (2000), DAMAN: A VICTIM OF MARITAL VIOLENCE (2001) and CHINGAARI (2006).

This multi talented person is ranked as one of the leading filmmakers. His outstanding performance secured him a seat in the legislative assembly. He has also produced a movie titled EK PAL. He has written the story for CHINGAARI.

Soundtrack
He has also created the soundtrack for a couple of movies. In the movie PIOLI PHUKAN, he has performed Asomir Mukhate Hahi Nai Etiya and Amare Deshlhan Hol Morisali. For the film SIRAJ, he has performed Phiriti Phiriti. For RUDALI, he has performed Jhuthi Muthi Mitawa, Samay O Dheere Chalo and Dil Huun Huun Karen.

For the movie DARMIYAN: IN BETWEEN, he has composed the soundtracks Nadiya Pe Lahren, Dekh Lun Jo Nazar Bar Ke, Koi To Jeena Ka Bahana, Pigalta Hua Yeh Sama, Hai Re Lahla Tera Jiyo Re Lehla. In the movie DAMAN: A VICTIM OF MARITAL VIOLENCE, he performed the soundtracks Gum Sum-11, Bahar Hi Bahar Hai, Sun Sun Goria, Sar Sar Hawa, Bhagwati Songs, Hoon Hoon Pagal Pawan, Gum Sum and Gum Sum II. For the film CHINGAARI, he performed the soundtrack Dank Maare.

Writer
He wrote the story for CHINGAARI.

Actor
He has also acted in the movie EK PAL. The movie was directed by Kalpana Lazmi. The dialogue and screenplay was written by Gulzar. Bhupens co stars in the movie were Shabana Azmi, Naseeruddin Shah and Farooq Shaikh.

Director
He had also directed a couple of movies like ERA BATOR SUR( 1956), MAHUT BONDHU RE (1958), SHAKUNTALA (1961), PRATIDHWANI (1964), KA SWARITI (1964), LATI GHATI (1966),
FOR WHOM THE SUN SHINES (1974), ROOP KONWAR JYOTI PARSAD ARU JOYMOTI (1976), MERA DHARAM MERI MAA (1976), THROUGH MELODY AND RHYTHM (1977), MON PRAJAPATI (1979), SWIKAROKTI (1986) and SIRAJ (1988).

Producer
He has produced the movie EK PAL.

Personal life
In the late 1930s, he became a revolutionary. Apparently, he accompanied the Assamese Poet and Filmmaker, Jyoti Prasad, on all his trips to Calcutta. He made Bhupen aware of the works of George Bernard Shaw. The never felt so strongly about revolting before. His creative works reflected the wrath he felt within.

When he was only 21, he fell in love with a girl who was 16 but was too apprehensive to approach her. However, they were destined to meet. Coincidently, she was also a singer and both of them worked at the radio station. However, when they finally became vocal about their love interest, the girls family had already found a suitable groom for her.

Bhupen regrets not having fought hard in order to convince her parents. On his way to America, he got the opportunity to see Piccaso in France. This world renowned painter blessed him. When he was a student at Columbia, he became friendly with a girl named Priyamvada. She was a member of the famous Patel family.

The two were destined to fall in love. However, Bhupens parents rejected the match. So Bhupen got married to Priyamvada in America before they left for India. Bhupen worked as a teacher in America. Tragedy struck when Priyamvada was offered a job in Canada. Bhupen let her go as he was barely managing to sustain the two.

They parted in friendly terms. The couple was married for 13 years before they parted ways. However, they had no grudges and no hard feelings. The couple still meets once a year. He regrets having neglected his son, Tez Bhupen Hazarika. He is sure that his son also blames him for it. Tej has apparently taken up Buddhism and lives with his wife in America.

Bhupen tries to meet them as frequently as possible. He became an MLA later in his life. Post his return to india, he joined IPTA. He sang the famous number Ganga Behti Hai Kyun for Indhira Gandhi. The song conveyed the message of silent rebellion against the existing society and system. He sees his child in Kalpana, who is his secretary.

He never got a chance to nurture his own son so he wants to make amends by treating Kalpana as his son. Kalpana too executes her role with full devotion and loyalty. He has received the best compliments from M F Husain who told him "Your music paints but my brush cant sing." For Bhupen, music elevates him to a different realm of existence. He feels powerful yet modest.

Awards and Achievements
He has received several awards for his outstanding contribution in the industry. In 2001, he was awarded the Padma Bhushan by the government of India. In 1993, he bagged the Dadasaheb Phalke Award for his lifetime achievement in cinema. He has also been awarded the Sangeet Natak Academy Ratna Award.

For his contribution for bridging the gaps of unity and culture, nationally and internationally, he was given the" Assam Ratna" Award. He has also won the national Award as best music composer in India in 1977, recognizing his work in Assamese film Chameli. In 1977, he won the Bangla Chalachitra Prasar Samity award and the Bangla Chalachitra Purashkar Samity Award for his music direction in the film DAMPATI.

In 1978, he won two awards from Bangladesh in the category of Best Music Director for the movie SIMANA PERIYE. In 1979 and 1980, he won the Ritwick Ghatak Award for best music directors for two theatre plays Mohua Sundari and Nagini Kanyar. In 1979, he won the All India Critic Association Award for the best performing folk artist in India.

In 1987, he was conferred the National Citizens Award at New Delhi for his excellence in music. The Assamese government awarded him the Shankar Dev Award for his contribution to Assamese culture. In 1987, he won Assams Man of the Year Award. The Bengal journalists association awarded him the Indira Gandhi Smriti Puraskar in 1987.

In 1992, the West Bengal government honoured him with an award for his outstanding contribution to the World of Arts. In 1993, he was the first Indian music director to win an international Award for the best music for RUDAALI at the Asia Pacific International Film Festival in Japan. In 1999, he was awarded by the president of India as the Chairman of Sangeet National Academy for a span of five years.

In 2000, the government of India vested him the honours to be the trustee of Indira Gandhi Centre of Arts for a span of ten years. He had also been appointed by the Government of India as the trustee of ICCR for a period of three years. In November 2001, he was honoured as a doctor of Philosophy from the Tezpur University.

In 2003, he was appointed the member of the Prasar Bharati Board by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting of the government of India.