Music teaches people to be human: Pandit Dishari Chakraborty
10 December 2022
Entertainment Report :
Pandit Dishari Chakraborty was the main instructor of the training workshop on classical instrumental music held at Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy from November 25 to December 1. After the week-long workshop, he gave a 3-part orchestra performance with the students on December 2. Director General of Shilpakala Academy Liaquat Ali
Lucky, Director of Music and Dance Department Kazi Aftab Uddin Hablu and Music Director Chandan Dutta were present on the occasion. Audiences were impressed by the performance of the participant students.
When asked about the current situation of classical instrumental music in Bangladesh, Pandit Dishari Chakraborty said, “The climate of Bangladesh is favourable for the creation of music. Here nature itself constantly creates music. I saw great potential in many of my students. All that is needed is proper education and guidance. But one thing I am very sad about is that the instrument that I play, there is no instrument to play this instrument in Bangladesh. It is very distressing to see an instrument disappear from a country. I want someone to come with an interest and
I want to teach him.”
In ancient times, the
disciples used to get education from the home of the Guru. Even in the present modern era, it is rare that education can be achieved by maintaining that trend. Pandit Dishari Chakraborty has done that incredible work. He is a santoor player, music director and trainer. He has been giving training in various instrumental compositions for 28 years. At the same time, he gives training in sound design, music composing in movie, audio recording and also editing. Pandit Dishari is a classical instrumentalist of Maihar Dhrupad genre. Although he was born in Kolkata, his mother’s family was from Cumilla
in then undivided Bangladesh and his father’s family lived in Narayanganj 200 years ago. Based on that, he considers himself as a person of this country. He also said that Bangladesh is the home of classical music. All the famous scholars
of Bengal were born here.
“If Baba Alauddin Khan had not been born in Bangladesh, I would not have become what I am today. As my gurudakshina I want to spread my classical instrument education in Bangladesh. So, the name of Baba Alauddin Khan will never be erased from Bangladesh,” he said. Pandit Dishari believes that music is not just a few Sa-Re-Ga-Ma and raga-ragini. Music is a sense, a consciousness that gives people a ‘sense of aesthetics.’ Besides, music teaches the tolerance of people to people which is very rare in today’s society. In order to practice pure music, the practice of classical music should be increased because classical music is called mother of music.
Pandit Dishari took her first lessons in music from classical musician Vidushi Ananya Chakraborty. Kashmiri Shatantri Veena Santoor chose her favourite musical instrument at the age of four. At the age of only six, the classical training of Maihar Gharana in instrument music started at the house of father Alauddin Khan Sahib and successfully completed the training through 30 consecutive years of rigorous Sadhona (practice) from Gurugriha. He didn’t just stop with the training on Santur. He received training on Santoor, Sarod and Binkari organ under Ustad Ashish Khan. Vidushi Amina Perira studied sitar and raga music with him. Then studied percussion and pakhwaj and raga music under Pandit Shankar Ghosh, Dr E S Pereira studied the use of instruments in the classical music of the subcontinent and his studies on classical music and also learned tabla and lyokari from Guru Sri He received many awards in his career.
