Dear Rini Congratulations on the job very well done. We missed it. Best wishes.
Montuda Rajen (Raj) Barua Ph: 713 677 9162 *"Never regret the past, but learn from the past;* *Don't worry about the future, but plan for the future;* *And enjoy the present."* On Fri, Nov 23, 2018 at 2:55 AM Rini Kakati <[email protected]> wrote: > *Indian High Commission pays tribute to Dr Bhupen Hazarika on his 7th > death anniversary at London* > > The Indian High Commission in collaboration with FASS (Friends of Assam > and Seven Sisters) paid tribute to Bhupen Hazarika, Shrandhanjali event at > Gandhi Hall, India House on 16th November, 2018, was initiated by Rini > Kakati, Assam Co-ordinator for UK, FASS (Friends of Assam and Seven > Sisters) > > Syed Iftikar Ahmed, medical specialist, actor and a singer was invited > from Assam to deliver a power-point presentation on Dr. Bhupen Hazarika - > his life, works and achievements. Among the dignitaries present were Lord > Dholakia, > Navin Shah, London Assembly Member for Brent and Harrow, Mr. A.S. Rajan > Minister Co-ordination, High Commission of India , Richard Blurton, curator > of British Museum, Lalit Mohan Joshi, Editor / Director, South Asian Cinema > Foundation, Kailash Budhwar, Former Head of Hindi and Tamil Section, BBC > World Service, Vijay Mehta, United for Peace and Ayesha Hazarika, MBE, > Scottish comedian, broadcaster, political commentator, and former political > adviser to senior Labour Party politicians The meeting was chaired by Rita > Payne, President, Emeritus, Commonwealth Journalists Association. > > Dr. Nilmoni Sikdar, Bhabani Kakati, Sandip Sen and Shahadat sang the > beautiful songs of Bhupen da were rendered in Assamese, Bengali and Hindi.The > highlight of the event was 'Namami Brahmaputra' dance was performed by > Ragasudha Vinjamuri and has also presented the Indian Classical Dance eight > times on different themes and occasions at the Houses of British > Parliament. Bihu dance was performed by Lata Upadhya and joined by the > crowd. > > Prabin Hazarika, the younger brother of Bhupen Hazarika from Leicester > wrote an emotional poem ' A Departed Soul' which was recited by Rita Payne, > President, > Emeritus, Commonwealth Journalists Association. > > Brahmaputra, Bihu and Bhupen - The 3 B's that constitute the > Nortrh-East.The restless jajabor or wanderer, the great cultural hero, the > great Assamese, the believer in the power of the nation is no more. Now > that mighty voice has fallen silent. Assam is poorer for it. The world is > poorer for it. > > The doyen of Assamese culture, wanted to dispel the age-old anathema of > racism and communalism through his works and drew inspirations from a > plethora of socio-cultural events as well as a galaxy of great > personalities of the world. Often hailed as a visionary, Dr. Hazarika was > greatly influenced among others by Karl Marx, Maxim Gorky, Lenin, Paul > Robeson, Martin Luther King, Abraham Lincoln, Nelson Mandela and Mahatma > Gandhi. > > The themes of social justice and revolution crystallised at a defining > moment in Hazarika's life when he befriended US civil rights activist Paul > Robeson, who told him the guitar was not just a musical instrument but an > instrument for social change. Under Robeson's influence, Hazarika wrote and > set to tune the evergreen Assamese song "Bistirno Parare" ("Bistirno > Dupare" in Bengali and " Ganga Behti ho kyon" in Hindi that had an echo of > Roberson' masterpiece , "O Man River" > > A poet and lyricist whose vision has always been uncompromisingly > humanistic. It is no doubt for this reason that his music has always been > relevant, no matter at what point of time the lyrics were originally > penned, no matter what language they have been later translated into, no > matter what culture away from the once tranquil now turbulent lifestyle > beside his beloved Luit ( The river Brahmaputra) > > We must celebrate his life. We must establish his place in the soul of > humanity, whether it be India or UK. We must echo his belief that we are > all one, we need to reclaim the voice which once spoke of and inspired the > working classes, by singing his songs and carrying his flag - "Ami Asomiya > Nohou Dukhiya". > > Rini Kakati > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > > -- > You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups > "FASS-USA" group. > To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an > email to [email protected]. > To post to this group, send email to [email protected]. > Visit this group at https://groups.google.com/group/fass-usa. > For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout. >
