Fighting for the country with music

Liberation War of 1971 ignited patriotic passion of many artists, singers and cultural activists who, on their front, fought for the country. Eminent artiste Shaheen Samad joined Bangladesh Mukti Sangrami Shilpi Sangstha during the War of Liberation, and inspired millions with her sonorous voice raising funds for the refugee camps and boosting the morale of Freedom Fighters. The cultural troupe used to travel to refugee camps and different areas in Mukta Anchal, perform patriotic songs, arrange puppet shows and stage dramas.

“Liberation War has always been an inspiration for me. I sang a lot of songs during that time and feel honoured to have been able to inspire our Freedom Fighters. The memorable harmonium that I played while performing the spirited songs is still with me. I take great care of it every day. I wish to hand it over to Liberation War Museum (LWM),” said Shaheen Samad.

Shaheen Samad vividly remembers the turbulent days in 1971; on a truck with fellow members of Bangladesh Mukti Sangrami Shilpi Sangstha -- Lubna Mariam, Naila Zaman, Bipul Bhattacharjee, Mahmudur Rahman Benu, Dalia Nausheen, Debu Chowdhury and others -- she went from camp to camp, singing to refugees and Freedom Fighters to boost their morale. The 1995 documentary film “Muktir Gaan” (The Song of Freedom), directed by Tareque Masud and Catherine Masud, explore the impact of cultural identity on the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971, where music provided a source of inspiration to the Freedom Fighters. Tareque and Catherine Masud used original footage by American filmmaker Lear Levin, as well as other archival footage collected from the UK and India.

According to Shaheen, “We used to sing the Tagore song 'Oi Pohailo Timir Rati', Nazrul song 'Karar Oi Louho Kopat', Mushad Ali's 'Shonen Shonen Bhaishob', 'Barricade Bayonet Berajaal', 'Jago Jago', 'Bishom Doirar Dheu' and many more.”

“This was our contribution to the War. The sight of Freedom Fighters being moved to tears while listening to these songs is something I'll never forget,” said the artiste.

“I was touched while approaching wounded Freedom Fighters at refugee camps. At one night around 1:30am, I was immensely moved by the sight of a hundred freedom-loving faces waiting under a tree for us to cross them with our truck. They insisted us to perform.”

The eminent artiste wants live performance of those moving songs on TV channels, at least one song in a week and thus covering all the year round, and not only in the months of December and March.

One of the torchbearers of Nazrul Sangeet in Bangladesh, Shaheen Samad has an illustrious music career over five decades. Taking tutelage in classical music from Ustad Ram Gopal, Ustad Fazlul Haque Mia and Ustad Ful Mohammad, she attended BAFA and later on, entered Chhayanaut where she found Sheikh Lutfur Rahman, Sohrab Hossain and Anjali Ray as mentors. At one point, she also learned from Dr. Sanjida Khatun, one of the troupe leaders of Mukti Sangrami Shilpi Sangstha.