I do not know the perfect English word for the term “Bangaliana” (inclination towards Bengali culture), however I am confident that Bangaliana always remains incomplete without the Love for Tagore. If I had chance to name this feeling, I would name it “Tagoreana”. Rabindranath Tagore needs no introduction. There is something special about him due to which Bengal’s GenY can easily abandon a filmy song and instantly switch to a Tagore’s Music with apt seriousness.
The works of Rabindranath Tagore have been sung by various artists across generations spanning over almost 100 years. Rabindranath Tagore once said “Whatever fate may be in store in the judgment of the future for my poetry, stories and plays, I am sure that the Bengali race will always accept my songs. They will sing my songs in every Bengali home, in fields and near the rivers… I feel as if music wells up from within some unconscious depth of my mind, that’s why it has certain completeness”.
Our music industry knows that supply and demand of Rabindra Sangeet have never gone down. Some of Rabindra Sangeet singers in Contemporary Age have acquired great fame for rendering amazing performances in this genre. Rabindra Sangeet is not just a genre, it is an emotion. Tagore songs have a distinct style of singing. The soulful and mesmerizing compositions of Nobel Laureate Tagore have found extraordinary soulfulness and immense expression through the Rabindrasangeet exponents who have recreated the real essence of these songs with their performances.
Several Rabindrasangeet singers have been successful in making their remarkable presence in Music Industry . Bengali music industry and Contemporary singers shall always keep the flame of Tagoreana Ablaze. Below we list down several such exponents known for their immense contribution to Rabindra Sangeet.
1. Iman Chakraborty is Nation Award Winning Bengali Singer, who is renowned in the field of Rabindrasangeet and Folk Music. Iman mainly sings Tagore songs and her uniqueness lies in her soulful voice and authenticity that she maintains while performing Tagore songs. Iman is well trained in Hindustani Classical Music, Rabindrasangeet and Indian Folk Music. She is a popular singer admired by audience for her capability to perform with both authenticity and modern arrangement with equal excellence. Iman’s versatility and tone quality is praise worthy and attractive indeed. She is a popular name in both Stage and Television shows.
2. Samantak Sinha started his career as an independent music composer and singer. He earned popularity with his amazing Rabindrasangeet renditions. Samantak’s popular renditions of Rabindrasangeet in a daily Bengali TV Serial became popular among audience of all age. His soulful voice made him popular among youth. He is an Independent Music composer who studied music production from London. He later came up with some popular Rabindrasangeet compositions in Bengali movies that gained him star status.
3. Soumita Saha is another popular Rabindrasangeet singer. Soumita has been in the musical world since her tender age. Blessed with a melodiously soulful voice, Soumita is well trained in classical music as well as Rabindrasangeet and has provided some of the most admirable renditions. Hailing from a musical background in Kolkata, music has always been her soulmate. She excelled in her studies too and nurtured a strong belief that she can maintain a balance between her passion and studies. She overcame lots of hardships to make her remarkable presence felt in the world of Rabindrasangeet. She gained further popularity owing to her unique style of singing that bridged the gap between the traditional style and new age presentation. The young singer is currently pursuing a degree in architecture and is a well-known Fasion Blogger. Being a popular name among youth, the singing sensation exhibited her uniqueness in the field of Rabindrasangeet with both authentic arrangement and modern arrangement numbers as well.
4. Manoj Murali Nair basically hails from kerala, but is deeply rooted in Bengali Culture. The love for Tagore’s Songs has made Manoj and his Sister Manisha choose music as a profession. His cause was helped by Shantiniketan which provided a perfect environment for him to pick up the nuances of Tagore’s songs. Manoj is known for his perfection and subtle experimentation that the Brother-Sister duo introduced without disturbing the emotions of Tagore’s song. The perfectionist singer became popular among Rabidra Sangeet lovers across the country and made his remarkable place in the field of Rabindra Sangeet.
5. Shomlata Acharyya Chowdhury is a famous playback singer in Tollywood, popular for bringing revolution to Tagore’s songs. Her playback numbers in Rabindrasangeet includes songs from several movies and her personal album. She amazed audience by introducing arrangements that were seldom used in Tagore’s songs. She received lots of criticism during initial days, but the storm of appreciation and stable fan base across the world made her the bold vocalist what she is today. Shomlata is well trained in the field of Shastriya Sangeet as well. She is also a Lecturer of Psychology.
6. Kaustav Goswami is another Rabindrasangeet singer of Contemporary Age. Kaustav started his musical journey in a very tender age and under the guidance of experienced Rabindra Sangeet Exponents he earned excellence in this field. Kaustav also belongs to a musical background. His grand father was a noted Hindustani Classical Music Vocalist Sangeetacharya Kumud Ranjan Goswami. Earlier, he worked as a journalist and music critic for a popular american website where he used to interviewe popular Musical personalities .
7. Jayati Chakraborty is another famous Rabindrasangeet Singer of Contemporary Age. Adept in classical music as well as Rabindrasangeet, the singer has provided some of the most admirable renditions. She has started performing since a small age and had sung in various television-serials and telefilms. She has also performed as playback singer in several movies. Jayati Chakraborty’s uniqueness is her soulful singing and versatility . Blessed with uniqueness she had always impressed Rabindrasangeet listeners with performance.
8. Shreya Guhathakurta is a prominent name in the world of Rabindrasangeet. She belongs to a renowned musical family known for its active involvement in Tagore’s Music and Play. She started singing since a small age. She also received training from popular Tagore Song Exponents. Shreya made a remarkable presence in the music industry with her fabulous style of singing Tagore’s songs.