Jayati Chakraborty a rising star in Tagore songs
Tagore created magic through words
By Chaitali B. Roy
usic is the purest form of art ... therefore true poets ... seek to express the universe regarding music. The singer has everything within him. The notes come out from his very life. They are not materials gathered from outside.’ — Rabindranath Tagore Nobel Laureate India (1861-1941)
On Thursday, May 25, Bengali Cultural Society Kuwait presented a tribute to Tagore, the Nobel Laureate with a presentation of his songs by Jayati Chakraborty, one of India’s most gifted and rising Rabindra Sangeet performers at the Indian Embassy Auditorium, Kuwait. Tagore, who has the rare distinction of having penned the national anthems of two countries, India and Bangladesh was a diversely talented renaissance man, who explored probably every genre of literature. Poet, writer, playwright, musician, educationist, painter, spiritualist, philosopher, internationalist, cultural relativist, and an orator, he was the first Non-European to win the Nobel Prize for Literature. Hailed by Prof Amartya Sen, another Nobel Laureate, as “a towering figure in the millennium-old literature of Bengal”, Tagore inspired an age-old civilisation with his words and music to shed the burden of parochialism and dogma and to embrace pluralism. His writings transcended the mundane and the aesthetic, reflecting a profound understanding of the human mind and soul.
Jayati Chakraborty is an accomplished Rabindra Sangeet singer who has marked out a unique place for herself in what is considered India’s cultural capital. Most practitioners and admirers of Rabindra Sangeet are fiercely protective of traditionalist practice, with novel interpretations and variations drawing severe censure, but Jayati has not only impressed the pundits but also won over a large audience across India and the Diaspora. “My rendition of Rabindra Sangeet is definitely different from that of the traditionalists,” observes the artist. “I believe that as artists we belong to a different generation. The current generation of singers grew up exposed to a style of rendition that has been prevalent for generations, and we appreciate that. After all, one must be able to understand their roots, but having understood that if I feel I have something new to offer to the world in terms of originality, why shouldn’t I do that?” remarked the artist who has developed a distinct easy style of her own quite different from the heavy, stylized renditions one is generally used to. “I felt I needed to have a signature style of my own. My guru inspired me to find my own identity, and that is what I did. To be original, I had to break the traditional mould.”
Gifted
Jayati entered the world of music holding on to the hands of her musically gifted parents. Her mother was a trained singer while her father was naturally gifted with an ear for music. “My father did not receive any training, but he sang and played the mouth organ beautifully. My mother, on the other hand, was a trained singer who sang very well.” Inspired and guided by her parents, little Jayati took up music at the age of 5. As a natural progression of her musical training, Jayati, like most Bengali speaking youngster was introduced to Tagore’s songs at a young age. “I was introduced to Tagore’s songs in the course of my training. In fact, his music entered my life quite naturally, and it remained and became a part of my life.”
Jayati Chakraborty started her professional journey as an artist in 1997, and since then there has been no looking back. Her renditions won her accolades and mesmerized audiences transcending geographical boundaries. With more than ten solo albums and numerous assorted albums to her credit, Jayati rose to enviable heights within a short time. Speaking of her journey with Tagore’s music, Jayati says, “Although my parents forced my initial introduction to Tagore’s music, I realized its value and importance once I grew up. I realized I couldn’t live without it. As an upcoming performer, I embraced it as I realized that to gain acceptance as an artist and a singer, I needed Tagore’s music, but with time I realized that this music had become an integral part of my existence. Every time I fell, I felt his music lift me up. I was once told that if I could convert even one music lover to the songs of Tagore, my job as an artist would be done, and in fact, I did it when I introduced my husband to Tagore,” she laughs.
Today, Jayati Chakraborty is very strongly associated with a certain genre of music that is valued and respected by Bengali speaking people the world over, but there may be some limitation attached to this because of linguistic reasons. “Bengali is a regional language, and definitely there is a limitation when you sing in Bengali because reaching out to people musically through a regional language is not easy. But Tagore is a huge name, his repertoire and philosophy are vast, and many musicians both in India and abroad have experimented with his music. They have adapted it, adopted it and made it their own. We are very fortunate to claim this Man and his creations for our own. Music has a universal language, and so I feel that it is possible to transcend barriers and reach out to people through Tagore’s music.”
Jayati Chakraborty who has toured the US, Canada, and the UK gave her first performance in a Middle Eastern country yesterday. “I find listeners abroad hungrier for good music and culture. There is a purity about their desire and willingness to listen to good music.” Tagore created magic through words. His repertoire has a song for every season and every reason which makes it universal. To render the songs of Tagore, an artist needs a deep understanding of his life and values, and Jayati Chakraborty is trying to plumb the depth of Tagore’s music and philosophy.