A legend lives on - Uttam Kumar

This is a tribute to my screen hero, the ever green Uttam Kumar - the first and only true Superstar that Bengal cinema has ever seen. He had expired on 24th of July' 1980. I share with you some of the very best on-screen melodies that this screen god had featured in. Transcending boundaries of culture, language, region and religion, these songs are said to touch the hearts of millions. Let me know if they touched a soft corner of your heart as well.

1.
Song: Ei poth jodi na sesh hoy
Movie: Saptapadi
Singers: Hemanta Mukherjee, Sandhya Mukherjee


2.
Song: Ami je jolshaghore
Movie: Antony Firingi
Singer: Manna Dey


3.
Song: Saono raate jodi
Movie: Devdaas
Singer: Manna Dey


4.
Song: Boro eka laagey
Movie: Chowringhee
Singer: Manna De


5.
Song: Surer akashe
Movie: Saap mochon
Singer: Hemanta Mukherjee


6.
Song: Gaane bhubon bhoriye debe
Movie: Deya neya
Singer: Shyamal Mitra


7.

Song: Jhor uthechhe baaul batas
Movie: Saap mochon
Singer: Hemanta Mukherjee


8.

Song: Dole dodul dole jhulona
Movie: Deya neya
Singer: Shyamal Mitra, Manabendra Mukhopadhyay


9.

Song: Jibon khatar proti patai
Movie: Deya neya
Singer: Shyamal Mitra


10.

Song: Amar sopne dekha rajkonya thaake
Movie: Sagarika
Singer: Shyamal Mitra


11.

Song: Nir chhoto khoti nei
Movie: Indrani
Singer: Hemanta Mukherjee, Sandhya Mukherjee



12.

Song: E ki holo keno holo
Movie: Rajkumari
Singer: Kishore Kumar



13.

Song: Champa chameli golaper i baage
Movie: Antony firingi
Singer: Manna Dey, Sandhya Mukherjee


14.

Song: Surjo dobaar pala
Movie: Indrani
Singer: Hemanta Mukheree



15.

Song: Jai chole jaai (Adieu!)
Movie: Kal tumi aaleya
Singer: Hemanta Mukheree
Music: Uttam Kumar



Friends, there are hundreds of other tracks featuring him, but these are the selected best based on popularity as well as availability. Enjoy the tracks! Never mind if you do not happen to know bengali. I hope the tunes will catch your fancy.

Image source: http://nphoto-media-1.cdn.mobshare.in

A tribute to my teachers - Part 1

Last night as I strolled back to my home from office after another of those tiring days, suddenly black and white thoughts flashed through my mind, my yesteryear, my school days and once again I was engulfed by nostalgia. I remembered my school, my good old friends and yes, my teachers. Then and there I decided that, although I do not have touch with any of them, I would show my gratitude, my respect towards them through the only medium I love so much, my blog.

Mr Manas Ghosh:
My school mates would recall, he was our history teacher - a man known for his simplicity and cool attitude. And he had profound knowledge in the subject he taught. One incident which I would like to recall here. It was class 8 and I had bought a new Hindi grammar book and taken it to school the first day. Those days, the book was not available everywhere and so, there was a crises. And as it occurred, we had one of those 'Games periods' when we all went out to chill ourselves out and when we returned, everything was there as before, only my book was missing. After so many years, I would not go into who did it or why, but as a fact, I never got my book back. I remember this gentleman, Mr Ghosh was our class teacher then and when I told him that "My dad would be very angry and would not buy me another copy", he looked at me for few seconds, but did not say anything. The next day, he called me up and handed me a photocopy of the book and said, "Study well." It dawned on me that he had taken the pain to get the whole book photocopied on his own and he did think of me and what trouble I would have to go through.
Hat's off to him! Today, I know, he is no longer associated with our school. In fact, I may not have the opportunity to meet him again in person, but I shall remember the incident forever. Thank you, sir. Thank you so much!

Mr Debabrata Chowdhury:
I have never seen a more popular teacher than him. He taught us art and craft. And being a graduate from the esteemed Government Art College, Kolkata he was and is a master at it. Whatever little I learned regarding painting was from him ( and from another person about whom I shall write later). I remember an incident (again from class 8). There was an all India Arts competition being held in Delhi and I was one of the lucky 6 selected to represent our school. But there was a huge discomfort at home, primarily because I had never travelled out before and that too without my parents, with only one teacher to accompany and 5 other young chaps. And yes, I was the youngest of the lot. As I told him about it, he asked me my address and wrote it down. The next day, he gave a surprise visit to my home and conveyed to my parents his wish. Ultimately mom and dad were convinced and let me go. The trip was a really enjoyable, although we failed to make a mark at the competition. After that, there have been numerous occasions when he guided me and helped me crack various competitions with ease. My only regret is, probably he had wished me to go to the Arts college, but as destiny would have it, I opted 'Engineering'! But, sir, I shall remember you.

Mrs Soma Majumdar:
She was our English teacher and I knew her right from class 1, till 12. And forever, she would scold us in the same way, "Shame on you!" A motherly figure for me. I remember having been a victim of partiality in school on numerous occasions. This was in class 2. Once during a history test, I had forgotten to take my "Class test" copy. Instead I wrote the test on a loose sheet provided by one of my friends. I wrote the test very well, only to find out that although I had actually secured a 23.5 out of 25, it had got reduced to 13.5 only because I had not taken the copy. These days, I laugh about it. But, then, in class 2, I had cried my hearts out. Soma ma'am was my class teacher then and when she got to know the reason, she promised me,"Don't cry. I would talk to her." Eventually the marks had to be increased, although I was not exactly the blue-eyed boy of the 'concerned' teacher. As you would understand, poking nose in others' affairs is not taken very kindly anywhere. But she did it for me. And ma'am, I am still grateful for that. And I am also grateful for another of those famous names that you gifted me later, when I was in class 12, "The Volcano".

A tribute to the immortal

One of the few people whom I blindly admire! He is Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose! Today is his birthday. A true son of Mother India, Netaji was one of the few souls who were responsible for India's freedom. Today, when people fight in the name of caste, creed, religion and blah blah blah... we truly miss a leader of his stature and dynamics! He did not live long to see India flourish, but he is someone to whom we would be eternally grateful. There is still a mist surrounding his mysterious disappearance. People are divided on opinion as to whether he really died in the fated air-crash. There are doubts in people's mind about his way of taking on the tyrants or even his political ideology. But there is no doubt about one thing. He is an immorta! He is the only man who could say, "Give me blood. I will give you freedom!"

Netaji amar rahe! Jai Hind!

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Image source: http://banglapedia.search.com.bd

Mir, you rock!

Mir Asraf Ali, or, more popularly called as MIR. Yes, I am speaking of the same Mir of Radio Mirchi fame, the same wacky Mir of Dance Bangla Dance, the absolute comedian of Mirakkel and many more popular shows in the entertainment industry. This is the first time I am writing about a personality and the mere fact that I am writing about Mir implies that he has something in him that inspires a hundred people, if not more.

For people who do not know him well enough, let me tell you he is an RJ, an actor, an anchor, a comedian and well, there may be few more hats waiting for him! But what differentiates him from the rest is his way of reaching the top. From a simple village boy of a humble background, when all of his neighbours dropped out of school to earn a living, this guy stood his ground. He continued to toil hard amidst all hardships. He did not forget his father's saying, "You are my only investment." There is something in his life that is strikingly similar to mine, which I choose not to discuss here.

Today, Mir is THE RJ of Kolkata - a top notch entertainer... and I forgot to mention that he can mimic people with awesome ease. Even if he meets you and stays with you for an hour, he would be able to pick all your mannerisms. It is hardly surprising that people like Rituparno Ghosh are disgusted at his way of imitating and has tried to malign him by taking his comedy to the cleaners.

But, at the end of all these, the one thing that matters is: Are we being entertained by you, Mir??? The answer is: YES

Carry on the good stuff, Mir! You rock!!!

Links referred to:

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1081207/jsp/7days/story_10216903.jsp

http://www.telegraphindia.com/1070314/asp/telekids/story_7510937.asp