In the arena of Bangla modern music Syed Abdul Hadi is a name that needs no introduction. The noted singer has been an active figure in the scene since the ‘60s. In a recent interview with Prime News the singer talked about modern Bangla songs - its beginning, its progress and more, as he has witnessed it.

Syed Abdul Hadi can still remember those days of ‘50s. He said, “In the ‘50s it was really difficult for a singer to earn a livelihood through singing alone. In those days, singing was not appreciated in our society. The general view was that singing is a bad career choice and a singer has no future.”

“I was introduced to music in my school days. My father was a music enthusiast; he used to buy gramophone records regularly, which I grew up listening to. For me it was a great opportunity, as back then only a handful had gramophones at home.

“The introduction of gramophones in the ‘30s changed Bengali music completely; it marked the beginning of the modern Bengali song. The era saw the rise of many great Bengali singers, such as SD Barman, KA Mallick, Pankaj Kumar Mallick, K M Sayeli, and others who have pioneered in popularising modern Bengali and Tagore songs,” Hadi said.

“The ‘50s were a golden period for modern songs. Many great singers such as Manna Dey, Hemanta Mukhopadhyay, Shamol Mitra, Manobendra Mukhopadhayay, Shondya Mukhopadhyay, Protima Bandyopadhyay, Gayatri Basu, Abu Bakar Khan, Anwaruddin Khan, Abdul Latif, Sheikh Lutfar Rahman, Abdul Ahad and other big names of modern Bengali music emerged. They popularised the genre, enriching Bengali music with their immense contributions.

“Abdul Jabbar, Mahmudunnabi, Khandakar Faruk Ahmed, Mohammad Ali Siddiqui, M A Hadi, Ferdousi Rahman, Anjuman Ara Begum, Ismat Ara, Farida Yasmin and Fouzia Yasmin are among the pioneers in taking the genre forward in Bangladesh,” said Hadi, speaking of his contemporary artistes.

“Back then, radio was the main source of entertainment; in fact most of us began our careers with the radio. In those days, we had to compete with noted Indian singers like Hemanta Mukhopadhyay, Manna Dey, Shyamol Mitra and others whose songs were regularly broadcast.

“Another crucial factor for the development of modern Bengali songs was the lyrics. We were fortunate to have great poets and song writers like Shamsur Rahman, Sikandar Abu Zafar, Sayeed Siddiqui, Abu Hena Mustafa Kamal, Azizur Rahman, Md Moniruzzaman and others who contributed with their amazing lyrics.

“We were also fortunate to have some of the most talented minds in music. Abdul Ahad contributed immensely with his ever green compositions. Talented composers such as Shomor Das, Robin Ghosh and Mosleh Uddin enriched it further.”

Speaking of the music of the ‘70s, Abdul Hadi said, “Some of the most ever-green songs of modern Bengali music were written, composed and recorded in the ’70s. Also, that decade saw the rise of great artistes like Runa Laila, Sabina Yasmin and Shahnaz Rahmatullah, who were soon followed by singers like Subir Nandi, Rafiqul Alam, Abida Sultana, Sammi Akter.

“The later generations included Andrew Kishore, Tapon Chowdhury, Kumar Biswajit, Shakila Zafar, Samina Chowdhury, Fahmida Nabi, Ayub Bachchu, Baby Naznin and others who remain some of the most popular names today.

“In my opinion the ‘60s and the ‘70s were the golden age of modern Bengali songs, a chapter that marks the development of our own identity,” he concluded.

End/HFA/22/11/12