MUMBAI: Oxford Bookstore, Mumbai hosted today, a musical evening with the renowed urban folk singer Susmit Bose, whom we all know as the â€?Indian Bob Dylan’. The singer with his electrifying performance around his new albums namely â€?Song of the Eternal Universe’, â€?Public Issue’ and â€?Be the Change’ captivated the listeners at the store compelling them to think about various social issues ranging from human rights, women’s empowerment to global peace. The musical performance was followed by a discussion which highlighted non violence and echoed the expressions of the common Indian. Using just a guitar and harmonica the singer regaled the listeners around the store with his unique compositions, strains of which also delighted both the booklovers browsing at the store.
Susmit’s music is metropolitan, reflecting our country’s social, cultural and political milieu. Singing songs on social issues such as AIDS, Child Abuse, and Human Rights, his powerful lyrics makes us stop, listen and think. He has performed in several folk festivals in India and abroad and sung with legends like Pete Seegar and flautist Paul Horn. Bose has also produced several TV shows for Doordarshan, the best among them being “Surabhi…. Bose, who has been singing for the past 30 years, released his first album “Winter Baby” in 1973, which dealt with child abuse.
About the album:
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This album Song of the Eternal Universe is the song of the Bauls of Bengal. Inspired by the Vaishnava saint, Chaitanya Mahaprabhu in the 12th century, the Bauls are wandering mystic minstrels, singing and dancing in pursuit of bliss and divine ecstasy, endorsing the goodness of all mankind and seeking freedom from the cage of illusions. The foundation of their spiritual journey is the worldly and divine love of Krishna and Radha that transcends all egos and merges in blissful union. They seek partnership with the divine feminine and the mysteries of the creative energy. Their music is allegorical, metaphorical and couched in profound analogies within the corporeal.
This album brings together two languages, Bengali and English, both expounding a philosophy of universal love and enlightened activism. It is a radical experiment to link two completely different styles – traditional 12th century Baul music and my contemporary folk music style called Urban Folk Music…. Song of the Eternal Universe incorporates three musical styles of the Bauls – Darweshi, Lalan Geeti and Birbhumer Gaan with the urban folk style in English. This album, as it turns out, is almost a dialogue between the Bauls, the recording engineer and Bose.
This album was born out of the conviction that two completely different genres, Urban Folk Music and Baul Music can have some common meeting grounds, stylistically and thematically. Both styles are commentaries on life, and echo each other in its nature of subaltern dissent against dominant practices of sectarianism, unilateralism, discrimination, religious conservatism, materialism, classicism etc. Both exhort a change within for a change without.
About the Singer:
Susmit Bose is an Indian musician who has sung about social issues ranging from human rights, global peace and non violence for more than three decades. Often referred as the ‘Indian Bob Dylan’, Susmit has a special gift of singing about what he believes in and echoes the expressions of the common Indian.His songs are the very root of a new change that is beginning to dawn on young India in the new millennium.
His new studio album ‘Song of the Eternal Universe’ is an experimental album with the Bauls.’Be The Change’ is a follow up to the hugely successful ‘Public Issue’ released in 2004 which incidentally was a return to the studio after many years. He is now working on a rock album on HIV/AIDS in the North East to be released on December 1 2009. He is also working on his other album ‘Essentially Susmit Bose’to be also released this year.
