Taking classical music to new heights
Chairman of Bengal Foundation, Abul Khair is a man of art and culture. He initiated the Bengal Classical Music Festival in 2012. The much awaited event has since gone from strength to strength to be known as the biggest festival of its kind in the world. Aside from the festival, he also started the Bengal Parampara Sangeetalay, to nurture the practice of classical music in the country.
He dreams big for good reasons. As he says, “Internationally renowned music legends like Allauddin Khan, Ali Akbar Khan, Ravi Shankar, Nikhil Banerjee, Vilayat Khan, Ajoy Chakrabarty, Kushuki Chakrabarty are from Bangladesh. So, Bangladesh inherently carries the legacy of classical music. I personally want to revive the lost pride and heritage of our country.”
“Bengal Foundation works on diverse scales and dimensions. A person can become a great scientist, a bureaucrat, politician or teacher; but nobody can become a complete human being without a sensitive, cultured, artistic and humanistic soul. To be a thoughtful person, one needs to study with appreciation art, music, theatre, film and more. One cannot become a great person without reviving their inner self. For bringing about social change we need to engage more people with good things.”
“For example, when I thought of holding the first Bengal Classical Music Festival, many people suggested that I organise it on a smaller scale. Now it has turned out to be the largest festival of its kind. I believe creating apt ambience is the prerequisite to achieve the goal. Bangladesh Army, the government, media and everyone supported the good cause. This is the only platform where ministers, ambassadors, bureaucrats, army officials, students and overall music lovers spend five nights together.”
“The festival has augmented our country's image, as people all over the world talk about it. About 3,200 people have written to us that they have rescheduled their yearly visit to Bangladesh keeping the festival timing in mind, as they don't want to miss the grandest classical music festival in November.”
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