From tradition to Tagore, Bangladesh High Commission rings in the Bengali new year

Ipsita Bhattacharya / TNN / Apr 17, 2019, 01:00 IST

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From tradition to Tagore, Bangladesh High Commission rings in the Bengali new year

Young girls take part in the Bengali new year celebrations at the Bangladesh High Commission in Delhi

An evening of Rabindra Sangeet and Nazrul Geeti, followed by a sumptuous dinner serving Bengali delicacies – the first day of the Bengali new year, Poila Baishakh, was ushered in at the Bangladesh High Commission in Delhi on April 14 in a true-blue Bengali style.
The event started with children, accompanied by women, staging the Mangal Shobhajatra – a mass procession that traditionally takes place on the first day of the Bengali new year in Bangladesh.Waving replicas of birds, animals, objects like boats, palkis and different kinds of masks, this procession symbolises the driving away of evil spirit to allow peace and progress.

CELEBRATING TRADITIONS

CELEBRATING TRADITIONS
Talking to us about the celebrations, Syed Muazzem Ali, Bangladesh High Commissioner to India, said, “We wanted to bring in an array of Tagore’s songs, Nazrul’s songs, folk songs and songs of Bangladesh to celebrate this Bengali new year, which is a celebration of the spring as well as harvest festival. This is a special day for us and has been so for over 500 years.”

Syed Muazzem Ali, Bangladesh High Commissioner

Tuhfa Zaman Ali, spouse of Bangladesh High Commissioner

Tuhfa Zaman Ali, spouse of Bangladesh High Commissioner
Iconic Bengali songs, including Esho He Baishakh, Dhono Dhanne Pushpe Bhora, Ekla Chalo Re, were sung by well-known Bangladeshi singer, Samina De Urmi. “When I was singing the Bengali songs, I felt a true sense of identity. I felt nostalgic about Bangladesh where people celebrate festivals like Poila Baishakh with their heart and soul. There is no fakeness in the festivities,” said Samina, who now lives in Delhi with her husband, but keeps visiting her motherland.

Samina De Urmi (left) with other singers rendered many iconic Bengali songs

Samina De Urmi (left) with other singers rendered many iconic Bengali songs
The evening also saw a recital of a poem, Amar Porichoi (My Identity) which was penned by notable Bangladeshi poet Syed Shamsul Haque. The event also saw Samina paying tribute to award-winning Bangladeshi singer Shahnaz Rahmatullah, who passed away recently.