Ayub Bachchu's dream becomes a reality

Legendary musician Ayub Bachchu had a vision of creating a band music fest, which would feature popular bands from Bangladesh coming together for an enthralling musical experience. Nine years ago, he requested Channel i to arrange Band Music Day on December 1 of each year, with elaborate functions to celebrate the joyous union of Bangladesh's top bands.

Since then, every year on December 1, Channel i has celebrated Ayub Bachchu's vision with an annual mega concert.

However, this year Channel i joined forces with Bangladesh Musical Bands Association (BAMBA) to create one of the biggest musical events of all time, "BAMBA- Channel i Band Music Fest 2022"—powered by Gaan Bangla—which will feature 16 popular bands coming together under one roof in Army Stadium on December 2.

A special press conference was organised on Tuesday to announce this initiative. As part of the press conference, it was also shared that an initiative is in place to declare December 1 as Band Music Day. Additionally, each year, the "BAMBA Channel i Band Music Fest" will be organised on the first Friday of December.

An announcement will be made on Channel i by the Honourable State Minister of Cultural Affairs, K M Khalid on December 1, declaring December 1 as "Band Music Day."

Present at the event, from the organisers, were Channel i's managing Director, Faridur Reza Sagar; Shykh Seraj, Director and Head of News at Channel i; Izaz Khan Swapan, Project Director of the Programme; and Hamin Ahmed, President of BAMBA. Additionally, organisations like Chittagong Musical Band Association, Rangpur Musical Band Associations and Gazipur Musical Band Associations, among others were also in attendance.

Popular musicians including Naquib Khan (Renaissance), Foad Nasser Babu (Feedback), Sheikh Monirul Alam Tipu (Warfaze), and Maqsoodul Haque (Maqsood O' dHAKA) presented their speeches at the event. Cryptic Fate's Shakib Chowdhury and Aurthohin's Shishir Ahmed were also in attendance.

Project Director, Izaz Khan Swapan said, "We have organised this programme to fulfil Ayub Bachchu's dream. We wanted to organise an event on a large scale, with even more bands. So, we are hopeful that both BAMBA and Channel i will be able to make this dream a reality, come next year. I am thankful to Shykh Seraj for creating the logo of Band Music Fest. Let's make this event a wonderful one to remember for the ages."

"Ayub Bachchu is a visionary and he had a dream of taking Bangladeshi band music to the next level. Every year we have been celebrating 'Band Music Fest' on December 1 and we did it because December is the month of our Victory. In order to celebrate December 16, we have brought 16 bands together for a huge concert this year," said Channel i's managing Director, Faridur Reza Sagar.

Shykh Seraj, Director and Head of News at Channel i said "Bangladeshi bands rule over the hearts of the people of the country, with their unique songs and powerful lyrics. We have been celebrating the 'Band Music Fest' for almost nine years, and for the first time, we will be collaborating with BAMBA for this year's event. Thus, it will be a milestone for us and we are hoping that at least 15, 000 people will show up in the audience at the festival."

"We want to promote original Bengali songs which enthrals the audience and also enriches the vision of Ayub Bachchu's dream. We want to remove the notion of band music being a form of 'counter-culture'. While selecting bands for the festival, we tried to ensure groups who have contributed largely to the band culture scene—with their iconic songs—were selected. We are hopeful that young audiences will appreciate this event," added Hamin.

The programme will showcase some of the popular names including Nagar Baul, Renaissance, Miles, Warfaze, Aurthohin, Artcell, Feedback, Souls, Dolchut, Vikings, Obscure, Cryptic Fate, Shironamhin, Maqsood O' dHAKA, Pentagon, and Powersurge, among others.

The gates of Army Stadium will open at 12:00 pm on December 2, with the concert officially starting at 2:30 pm. Tickets are available for purchase on Get Set Rock's website, being priced at BDT 500 only.

Somewhere up in the sky, Ayub Bachchu will be smiling down at Army Stadium, as his dreams of Bangladeshi band music going to the next level becomes a reality this December 2.