Chirkutt's Vocalist SUMI Shares Her Childhood Journey in Music

Подробнее о видео

Full Video:

Sharmin Sultana Sumi, the vocalist of popular fusion band Chirkutt of Bangladesh, has said that cultural activities are regarded as optional pursuits in the country, for which the state and its policymakers need to understand the importance of culture.
‘Cultural activities polish both children and a nation while cultural exchanges between countries strengthen the ties between them,’ Sumi told New Age on April 13.
Besides, if a band renders a hit track and if it becomes popular in other countries, then the band finds it easier to survive with the royalty that comes the way, Sumi also said.
‘But in our country, people use local bands’ hit numbers without facing any copyright issue and the artistes do not receive anything as a result,’ she resented.
Cultural activists, she went on to say, have played an important role during all crises in Bangladesh, including the 1971 War of Independence and the anti-autocratic movement in the 1990s.
‘I attended the Womex 21 event in Portugal where the music expo’s chair said in his inaugural speech that Covid-19 had proved the importance of culture in people’s life,’ she related.
Sumi regretted that the budgetary allocations for promoting culture in Bangladesh were not adequate.
Chirkutt has released three albums so far — Chirkuttnama in 2010, Jadur Shohor in 2013 and Udhao in 2017.
The band’s next project titled ‘Matigeeti’, a digital album, will feature five folk songs. The band will release the songs in phases and the first song is scheduled to come out on April 25.
‘Though we are inspired by our old folk songs that highlight our rural people’s emotions and wisdom, we are also working on ‘urban folk songs’ to capture the contemporary situation,’ she said.
‘I have penned all the songs for the album Matigeeti. I hope that music lovers will enjoy the songs. The songs carry folk flavour in either lyrics or music,’ she added.
Born on September 16, 1979 in the southern district of Khulna, Sumi had the good fortune of having a music-loving family.
Sumi’s father, late Mokbul Hossain, was an employee in state-owned Daulatpur Jute Mills at Khalishpur, Khulna, and her mother was a housewife.
‘I had a unique atmosphere of practising music in our house since the very childhood. Even we did the chatting in our family most of the time by way of songs. My father used to ask me to sing songs even just days before my exams,’ Sumi recollected.
‘I did not have a formal opportunity to learn any form of music. There was a music teacher named Harun-or-Rashid whom I consider my mentor. When we were living at Khalishpur, our family friend Tutul Bhai introduced me to him,’ she added.
Sumi has learnt three or four ragas from his teacher Harun.
‘I learned two songs from my teacher and he sent me to perform in the Notun Kuri event and I came to perform in Dhaka after securing the first position in Khulna,’ she added.
‘My father bought me my first harmonium when I was just a fourth grader,’ said Sumi, adding that she grew up listening to songs of Indian and Bangladeshi maestros such as Manna Dey, Sabina Yasmin, Shyamal Mitra, Subir Nandi, Runa Laila and others.
She said that she was greatly inspired by her surroundings, people travelling on foot, human relationships and their multi-dimensional aspects as well as by nature.
And in the course, she eventually chose music as her career.
#Chirkutt #SumiChirkutt #BangladeshiMusic #MusicJourney #InspiringStories #ChirkuttVocalist #WomenInMusic #BangladeshiBands #SumiMusicStory #BangladeshRockBand