Birth Centenary of Sudhakontho Dr. Bhupen Hazarika

Sudhakontho Dr. Bhupen Hazarika, also known as the Bard of Assam, was a legendary figure in the field of Assamese music, singing, filmmaking and culture. He was a leading figure in taking forward Assamese music, songs after the iconic duo of Rupkonwar Jyoti Prasad Agarwala, Kolaguru Bishnu Prasad Rabha. Sudhakotho in Assamese means the person with a sweet, melodious voice. Starting as early as ten years old, he sang as well as composed songs in Jyotiprasad Agarwala's films. Later on, he went on not only to sing but also produce, compose music, write as well as act in a large number of Assamese films, Bollywood and regional languages. His composition of Dil Hum Hum Kare in the film Rodali sung by the legend Lata Mangeshkar not only attained national acclaim but also won the National Awards too. Born on the 8th of September, 1926 in Sadiya the northern most part of Assam, he showed his musical talent at a very young stage. His father was Nilkantha Hazarika while his mother Shantipriya Hazarika. He was the eldest of his ten siblings, who were exposed to the world of music through their mother.

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In 1935, his father moved to Tezpur, where he was introduced to Jyoti Prasad Agarwala a doyen in the field of Assamese cinema, culture and art along with Kolaguru Bishnu Prasad Rabha through his Borgeet rendition (songs of Mahapurush Srimanta Sankardev, the great Vaishnava saint of the 16th century). In 1936, he accompanied Rupkonwar Jyoti Prasad Agarwala to record his first song at the Aurora Studio for the Selona Company in Kolkata. Thus started his musical journey. He sang two songs in the Rupkonwar's film, Indramaloti released in 1939. Both of them were milestones in the Assamese music industry.

He studied at Sonaram High School, Guwahati during his early years and matriculated from the Tezpur High School in 1940. In 1942, he completed Intermediate in Arts from the famous Cotton College. He finished BA (1944) and MA (in 1946) in Political Science from

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the prestigious Banares Hindu University. He later went to study PhD at the Columbia University in USA. He joined the Guwahati University as a Teacher upon returning to India. But fate had other things planned for him. Soon he left his job   and went to Kolkata for his musical career. He made films like   Shakuntala - a National Best Feature Film in Assamese Award   winner - in 1961, Pratidhwani etc. His association with the   legendary civil rights activist Paul Robeson inspired him to   compose the famous song Bistirno Parore. His song Manuhe   Manuhor Babe translated in Bengali almost got selected as the national anthem of Bangladesh. In total he had composed music for 31 Assamese, 14 Hindi, 15 Bengali and a few other films in Karbi, Bodo and Mising languages. He had directed seven Assamese, one Bengali and one Hindi film. He also wrote a large number of children's books too.

He had received numerous state as well as national, international awards. He won the Best Music Director award at the National Film Awards in 1975 for Chameli Memsaab, Gold Medal from the State Government of Arunachal Pradesh, Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship, Friends of Liberation War Honour, Bangladesh, Dadasaheb Phalke Award in 1992, the Asom Ratna Award in 2009, the Padma Shri in 1977, the Padma Bhusan in 2001, the Padma Vibhusan in 2012, the Bharat Ratna, the nation's highest civilian award in 2019. He was active politically also. He was a member of the Assam Legislative Assembly from 1967 to 1972 from the Naoboicha constituency. In June 2011, he was hospitalised at the Kokilaben Dhiruben Ambani Hospital, Mumbai where he breathed his last on the 5th of November 2011. In a career spanning decades, his songs, music and films surely have made an indelible mark not only on the Assamese society but also in the national art, culture and music world. He is one of a few geniuses whose voice mesmerised people in every Bihu function of Assam swaying across the vast length and breadth of the state cutting across barriers of language, caste, creed or place.