Sounak a young rising star of Indian music
BCS presents concert by Indian artistes on Oct 18
OBy Chaitali B. Roy
n Oct 18, Bengali Cultural Society (BCS), Kuwait will present a concert featuring Sounak Chattopadhyay, a young rising star of Indian music, and Samya Karpha, a gifted elocutionist at the Indian Community School Auditorium in Salmiya. Bengali Cultural Society is one of the oldest non-profit association active in the field of education and culture in Kuwait.
Sounak is a leading vocalist of the present generation who has made a place for himself with his deep understanding of Indian classical music tradition, and his distinctive style in the hearts of many classical and Bengali Art music lovers. Over the years, he has carved out a niche for himself with his regular stage performances for prestigious concert stages in India and abroad, his regular television appearances, and his well-received albums. According to Sounak, he was destined to be a musician. “I had a tuneful voice, and a very sincere and genuine affinity for music from my childhood,” he recalls. “My teachers in nursery school sought an assurance from my parents that no matter what I pursued in life, they would ensure that I learn music, and that is how it started. I started training in music but taking it up as a profession came much later. I don’t belong to a musical family. Although my family listened to music, there was no precedence of anyone taking up music as a
Explain
career,” said the first generation musician. “When the time came, my deep love for music compelled me to make a choice, and I unhesitatingly chose music.”
Having given in to his inner calling and chosen a profession beset with uncertainties, Sounak proceeded to dedicate a lot of time, practice and commitment to his passion.
“No matter how much people tried to explain the pros and cons of the situation rationally, I was steadfast. Music is what I wanted to do and ended up doing,” he says. Sounak spent more than two decades learning and practising different genres that gave him a range not many of his contemporaries have. His years of hardcore, systematic learning of pure classical music from Ustad Mashkoor Ali Khan and Ustad Mubarak Ali Khan stood him in good stead and helped him inculcate traditional musical values.
Since he chose to specialize in classical and art music, commercial success seemed difficult but not impossible. In the course of his career, Sounak has built a niche audience with an orientation for more serious music. “I have been performing for a while, and the Kuwait trip is my 30th international trip, which by modest standards is not a bad number,” he muses. “I don’t think I am a star, but I have received a lot of love, affection, blessings and a reasonable amount of popularity that keeps me going.”
Over the years, Sounak has made a name for himself as a performer of serious music which also includes Rabindra Sangeet, the music written and composed by Rabindranath Tagore. What sets Sounak apart is his fresh approach to the genre. Unlike the sonorous, melancholic and affected presentations of some artistes, his approach is more melodious, and soul-stirring with the ability to build a bridge between the restrained classical style and a more contemporary approach. Most practitioners and admirers of Rabindra Sangeet are fiercely protective of traditionalist practice, with novel interpretations and variations drawing severe censure, but Sounak has not only impressed the pundits but also won over a large audience across India and the Diaspora. “I try to think a lot about the kind of fusion that may suit a particular song and what the song is trying to say,” says Sounak who started working on fusing Rabindrasangeet performance with classical music in 2008.
Knowledge
“I started doing this when it wasn’t so common, and to the best of my knowledge, I am the only person till date who sings both Rabindrasangeet and Hindustani classical genre together. Musicians from the previous generation or my peers have experimented or collaborated with other instrumentalists, but I have done it in vocal music.” However, he is quick to point out that despite the mashup and fusion, he keeps the purity of the composition intact. “I maintain the structure and the sacrosanct notations, but I add a bandish sometimes before or after a song or as interludes even.” Sounak’s experimentation has helped him develop a signature style which is a fusion of Rabindrasangeet and classical music. “Rabindrasangeet has its all-pervasive, ubiquitous appeal, and the addition of classical music without distorting its essence makes it sound different and beyond the stereotype.”
Building a profession in music is difficult, and Sounak Chattopadhyay is no exception. Like other talented musicians from musically humble backgrounds, he has had his share of struggle. “It is definitely difficult and challenging,” he shares. “A country needs hundreds and thousands of engineers and doctors to run, but it does not need so many musicians. Demand is not at par with supply. Supply is well more than demand. Lots of new talents are entering the field. Many of them are very good and competent, but this has created a crisis. There are too many singers and too few listeners.
Moreover, the temperament of the audience to pay for music has critically gone down. There used to be a time when there was no option but to pay for music in terms of buying LPs, cassettes, CDs and concerts. Now YouTube and social media makes us more available, and that again has its own benefits and inconvenience,” says Sounak voicing the concern of not only the artistes but the music industry in general.