Woman leads Kolkata bagpipe band, breathes tune into it

KOLKATA: With less than three months to go for Durga Puja, 42-year-old Mili Dolui is busy fine-tuning her instrument in the company of Akota, her 18-member bagpipe band, that will play peppy Bollywood numbers at the state’s biggest festival. Mili, the only woman ‘tota’ player in Kolkata, plays the instrument which looks like a shehnai but is shorter in length and has a high pitch that makes it audible from a distance.Leading a men’s band is not easy, but she enjoys making music with the group, she says.
“As a woman, I had to overcome several challenges. But I am grateful to my family for supporting me,” said Mili, mother of a 23-year-old daughter who has just completed her graduation.
Dressed in long colourful shirts, trousers and fitting shoes, the bagpipe band is more disciplined than other bands. Mili’s 18-member team has 10-12 bagpipers along with drummers and hand cymbal players. They charge between Rs12,000 and Rs 15,000 for a two-hour performance on the street and often have three back-to-back performances at the peak of the festive season.
Playing a ‘tota’ requires years of training and powerful lungs. “I started playing at the age of 14 and till today, I have never come across a single woman playing tota”, says Mili, a Howrah resident, whose father was a popular drummer in a local club band.
A good quality ‘tota’ is made of seasoned wood with a brass bell attached to it and measures about 12-14 inches in length. It has eight keyless finger holes on its body. Meerut in India is the best hand-made manufacturer of ‘tota’ which can cost between Rs18,000-Rs 50,000 depending on tuning quality.
Mili has just bought a new one for Rs 28,000 and has started receiving booking proposals from Kolkata clubs to play during the Durga and Kali puja immersions.
Apart from popular Bollywood numbers from the 70s, the band gets requests to play popular Bengali songs like ‘Sohag Chand Badani Dhani’, ‘Lal Paharir Deshe Ja’ and other hits of the year.
“It’s more about passion than business as our demand soars only during festivals,” said Nirmal Sarkar (82), a senior ‘tota’ player from Bhawanipore. He last played the ‘tota’ in 1987, ending his 32-year-long pipe major career.
“Lack of good ‘tota’ players and stringent competition with the brass bands of Harrison Road have made it difficult for the bagpipe band,” rued Prasenjit Dey (53), a veteran ‘tota’ player who runs his own bagpipe band, Kalighat Balaka, at Kalighat.
Traditional bagpipe bands are struggling, with a few like Mili’s still doing well. “The swelling number of Sitala and Ganesh pujas in Kolkata have helped to keep the contracts coming throughout the year,” said Mili.