THROUGH THE EYES OF KUMAR BISHWAJIT
A legendary singer, composer and television personality of Bangladesh, Kumar Bishwajit was born in 1st June. He started his music career by performing on a radio show in 1977. He was first associated with the band 'Rhythm' in 1977 for two years. Then he founded his own band in 1979 and performed his first television show on BTV in 1980. He has earned many prestigious awards including 'Bangladesh National Film Award for Best Male Playback Singer' in 2010 for 'Swami Strir Wada' and also won the 'Best Music Director' award. He also earned 'National Film Award for Best Male Singer' for “Jhum Jhum Brishti” from the film “Jaago” and has earned another 'National Award for Best Male Playback Singer' for the film “Projapoti”.
INSPIRATION
The first inspiration of my life has always been my mother. I always dreamt of being a singer. When I was a student, it was a challenge to take singing as a profession and that time, the social atmosphere was not that favorable for me. But I am blessed with people who have always been very motivational. Though I used to sing in Chittagong when I was a student, my indomitable thirst for singing reached a new dimension after entering Dhaka. Happy Akhand used to be one of the closest co-artists of mine. Happy Akhand and Lucky Akhand have made a history of my life in Dhaka as it was our first work together in composing and recording songs. Also, our honorable Md. Abu Taher, Swapan Bhattacharjee, Golam Mustafa, Alauddin Ali, Al Mansur and Sakina Sarwar have always been very supportive and inspirational.
PHILOSOPHY
I believe in being unique. One may be inspired by someone, but he should not lose his selfhood. I also believe in patriotism. We may improvise and update the culture but only for the enrichment of our own culture. We have to keep the root of our culture in mind and then contribute as much as we can for our nation.
VIEWS ON HIS PROFESSION
Music is a strength which can express the immense depth of happiness, anger, sorrow and many more. Moreover, music can define one's capability, intelligence and stability as well. I think, one can't be an artist forcefully, it's a spiritual matter that can even make a dying patient feel better. Nowadays, our young generation is focusing more on their personal benefits which is not a very good sign. It's a message to the new comers: "Do not run after short-term popularity, rather, create a standard to enrich the culture." I think we all should be concerned and take necessary steps to uplift the taste of our future generation together.
MUSIC
I do not consider any limitations in case of listening to music; but of course, there are some preferences. I am a die-hard fan of Manna Dey. "Ami Ajibon Shudhu Bhul Kore Gechi" is one of my top most favorite songs of him. Also, the songs of Hariharan and Adnan Sami enchants me a lot.
FILMS
Though I do not usually watch movies during leisure, but there are some movies which have been my favorites for unique stories. "Hirak Rajar Deshe" by Satyajit Ray, "Bancharamer Bagan" by Tapan Sinha and "Ora Egaro Jon" by Chashi Nazrul Islam are my favorite Bengali movies. A Hindi movie named "Kissa Kursi Ka" is also my favorite.
BOOKS
I have a different taste for reading books. I prefer more to read the books of poems; specially the books of "Sher O Shayari" have an amazing charm which never fails to baffle me. By reading those, I can find some new words and themes which have been giving me the platform to create something new.
FUTURE PLANS
My supreme passion for music has always kept me busy composing and singing new songs. Some solo tracks are releasing soon. Some folk projects with the songs of Kanu Shah and Ramesh Shil are on processing. I have a plan to release 3 to 4 contemporary songs before Eid.
IDOLS
Manna Dey and Kishore Kumar have always been my idols. They are like my teachers of all time and these two legends have left deep impressions on me.
By Shawreen Rahman