Kolkata, Sep 6 (PTI) An Assam government team on Sunday inspected a building in Kolkata, where legendary singer Bhupen Hazarika had lived for several years, and mulled over steps in coordination with the West Bengal administration to preserve part of the property to keep his memory alive, officials said. Assam Additional Chief Secretary B Kalyan Chakravarthy, a member of the delegation, said they were considering whether the matter could be taken up with the West Bengal government and cultural institutions to preserve a first-floor room associated with Hazarika.
“This is a very important place associated with Bhupen Hazarika. I have come here to see the place and will take up the matter at the highest level so that we can explore how it can be renovated and preserved,” he said.
The visit came when the country was celebrating the birth centenary of Bharat Ratna Bhupen Hazarika.
The legendary singer-composer had initially lived as a tenant on the first floor of the three-storey building at 77 B Golf Club Road in Tollygunge in south Kolkata and later purchased it in 1981. He sold his property in the late 1990s and relocated to Mumbai, said Tridib Sharma, a member of the Assam Association, a platform preserving Hazarika’s legacy in Bengal.
“Big names like Lata Mangeshkar and Manna Dey used to come here. This was not merely a residence but a platform symbolising how Hazarika was a unifying icon of music. He has composed and lent his voice to many Assamese, Bengali and Hindi songs, which endeared him to generations,” Sharma told PTI.
He said there are multiple owners of the property, which has made the process of turning it into a memorial difficult.
“The house is now inhabited and owned by multiple families. None of whom is related to Hazarika,” he said.
Sharma said former Assam CM Sarbananda Sonowal had wanted to start the process to set up a memorial, but the “previous TMC government here was not able to take it forward”.
“We hope the Suvendu Adhikari government in West Bengal will take necessary steps so that the room can be acquired and efforts be made to pave the way for a memorial in collaboration with Assam,” Sharma said.
The senior Assam government official, who could not have access to the inside of the building floors due to the presence of multiple owners and tenants, hoped that a “joint strategy will be chalked out to preserve Hazarika’s living room on the first floor and turn it into a memorial”.
“Hazarika’s music transcended linguistic and social boundaries. We need to pay due respect to the music icon whose songs always brought cultures together. He sang in many languages, and his music exemplified the spirit of going beyond caste, creed and religion,” the official said.
He said Kolkata and Bengal had historically been an important centre of Indian culture.
“How can the room where one of the great singers of Bengali music had lived lie in decrepit condition? Hazarika loved Bengal and its people and culture. He has millions of fans. The city must pay its due respect to him,” the Assam government official said.
To a question, he said the Assam government will raise the issue with the Bengal administration.
“The year marks the 100th birth anniversary of Hazarika, and the authorities are planning a series of programmes to celebrate his contribution to Indian music and culture. A special concert is being organised in Kolkata on September 6 as part of the centenary celebrations,” the Assam official said.
He said Hazarika’s work, particularly his folk-inspired music, continues to hold a special place in the cultural traditions of Assam, Bengal and the wider Indian subcontinent. PTI SUS BDC
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