Cultural Activities in Rajshahi University
-Professor Subrata Majumdar
Rajshahi has a long and glorious tradition in education and culture. About a thousand years ago this region was well known in South East Asia as a center for intellectual and cultural activities. During the first quarter of the last century, the fame of Rajshahi college (with post-graduate teaching facilities) as one of the best institutions of Bengal, the establishment of Varendra Research Museum as a center of research and of Promoda Nath Town Hall as a center of cultural activities played a significant role in cultural development of the town. Quite a number of people with talent and vigorous training in music and drama kept up the reputation of the region. They include Haripada Das, Mozammel Hossain, Abdul Jabbar, Abdul Aziz Bachchu, Amaresh Roy Chowdhury, Manjusree Roy, Rabiul Hossain as classical vocalists, Raghu Nath Das (violin), Shib Nath Das (flute), Lakshmi Kanta Dey (sitar), Sarada Kinkar Majumdar (tabla) and Yasin Ali (tabla) as instrumentalists, Monu Master, Bozlar Rahman Badal and Hasiful Hossain Panna as dance artists, Sharmili Ahmed as an actress, Runa Laila, Andrew Kishore, Rafiqul Alam, Sarwar Jahan and Laisa Ahmed Lisa as singers. They are of course many others.
Established in the early fifties, Rajshahi University had an obligation to keep up the standard of cultural performance. It was difficult at the beginning.There were no residential halls and auditorium. Cultural programs were arranged occasionally. Teachers and students participated. The quality was not bad, but the credit was always individual. Once a play was staged jointly by teachers and students. Cultural competitions and sometimes inter-college competitions were held.
In late sixties, cultural activities were to become part and parcel of the social movement for the enlightenment of the masses regarding the continuity of the age-old tradition of Bengali culture of which Rabindranath Tagore and Kazi Nazrul Islam were very significant milestones in teh last 150 years. Pakistani rulers in their attempt to impose the so-called two-nation theory on the Bengali people endeavored to crush Bengali culture. The language movement leading to consequent martyrdom was the first severe opposition to this heinous plot. This acted as a seed which germinated into a complex of manifold activities highlighting the importance of conserving one's own cultural identity, together with respecting and accepting finer elements from other rich sources. The rulers tried to ban Tagore songs (songs which are superb in quality and eternal in their message) and to tailor Nazrul's broad-minded, liberal and humanist work to suit their communal outlook. But this resulted in drawing people closer to these geniuses. Rajshahi University was no exception.
During the political turmoil under the military regime in 1961, a cultural group of students was formed by teacher of the University Ghulam Murshid, Shishir Kumar Bhattacharjee and the author. It was named 'Sundaram', specialized on Tagore songs and performed in a number of occasions musical programs based on Tagore's seasonal songs. Tagore not only describes Nature, but feels the distinct mood and the spirit of each season and his songs are their embodiment.
Tagore's dance drama 'Shyama' was staged in 1970 and an audio version of the musical drama 'Shaap Mochan' was performed in early 1971 by students of the university under the direction of the present author. The main singers in these programs as well as in the programs by 'Sundaram' were Rafiqul Alam, Nargis Parveen, Deepa Banerjee, Amirul Huda, Tanzima Hoque.
During the liberation war of Bangladesh, there was a complete blackout of cultural activities in the campus. But soon after the victory on December 1971, vigorous activities were resumed. A student Nurul Islam, organized a club called 'Shurjo Shishu' for which he built up a small library and arranged regular musical training for children under Haripada Das and Uma Majumdar. Ghulam Murshid trained a few universities students and a few campus girls for about three years. Among the trainees Laisa Ahmed Lisa and Sultana Shabnam Suman have earned fame. A number of dance dramas and musical dramas of Tagore were staged from the seventies through the nineties. These include 'Mayar Khela' (twice), 'Shyama', 'Tasher Desh' (twice), 'Boshsonto', "Shaap Mochan' (twice), Chondalika, 'Khomite Parilam Na' (a modified version of 'Shyama'). Those who participated in the main musical roles include Swapan Dutta, Sarwar Jahan, Rafiqul Alam, Sufi Asmar Ali, Rashidul Hoque, Krishna Debnath, Nanda Bhattacharjee, Nadira Begum, Kabita Majumdar, Laisa Ahmed Lisa, Imtiaz Ahmed, Sultana Shabnam Suman, Sarwar Murshed, Shaouli Shahid Tumpa, Sharmin Ara Kushum, Anandamayee Majumdar. In these dance dramas, G. A Mannan, Monu Master and Hasiful Hossain Panna performed the choreography. Panna acted in the major male roles in some of these dance dramas. The author directed the musical parts of the above performances. Hasan Azizul Hoque, Shishir Kumar Bhattacharjee, Azam Shantonu, Shantona Bhattacharya, Nazim Mahmud either took part, edited or assisted in these dramas.
In 1977, Ali Anwar organized a drama workshop for the students. Nazim Mahmud, Ghulam Murshid, Golam Mostafa and others assisted him. A number of plays were staged in the early eighties and the late nineties by the teacher-officer club under the direction of Ali Anwar, Nazim Mahmud, Hasan Azizul Hoque and Malay Bhowmik. The teachers, officers and their relatives who participated in these plays include Shishir Kumar Bhattacharjee, Zillur Rahim, Basu Deb Das, Dilip Kumar Nath, Nurul Islam Chowdhury, Mukhlesur Rahman, Poly Islam, Runu Razzak and the above directors. Sanath Kumar Saha often assisted the actors and directors.
The ladies club of the university organized on Tagore and Nazrul every year.
Students Cultural Groups
The administration in the university and the country as a whole was not in favour of liberal cultural activities during 1975 through 1995. This acted as an impetus for the students to cultural groups to fight social and political injustice and focus the inconsistencies of the fundamentalist and conservative forces with cultural programs for ting from universal progress. Starting from 1979 quite a number of groups emerged. Of these, Onusheelon, Shomokaal, Rajshahi University Drama Association (RUDA), Teerthok, University Theatre of Rajshahi are groups fully devoted to drama. Each of these have 15-40 productions to their credit. Some of the plays are performed on stage, while some are open-air performances. Onusheelon is the oldest and has earned wide national reputation. Udichi Shilpi Goshthee Rajshahi University Council, and Oikotan are groups with multidimensional activities. Gonoshilpi shongstha, Oroni, Onirban, Nandon (now non-existent), Sheelon (now non-existent), Bongobondhu Shangshkritik Jot specialize in music and musical drama. Adibashi Students Association of Rajshahi University lays emphasis on adibashee culture.
Shwanon is a unique group specializing on poetry. Udichi has three clear branches specializing in music, drama and poetry. It performed considerable social work during the 1998 flood in Rajshahi. Teachers associated with the above groups include Moloy Bhowmik, S. M. Abu Bakar, Mizanuddin, Arefin Matin, Shafiqun-nabi Samadi, Shafiqul Islam, Masud Chowdhury. Rajshahi University Debating Society, Naree Progotee, Rajshahi University Shongbadpotro Pathok Forum, Muktijuddho Shangshkritik Forum are a few other groups. Muktijuddho Chorcha Kendro has the central objective of devoting itself to cultural activities enshrining the glorious spirit of the liberation war and leading the younger generation towards the fulfillment of the dreams of the freedom fighters. Jatiyotabadee Shamajik Shangshkritik Shongstha strives to preach 'Bangladeshi nationalism' contrary to the age-old Bengali tradition cherished and cultivated by the common people. Bikolpo is a fundamentalist group opposed to the very sentiments leading to the independence of Bangladesh. Rangon trains students in handicrafts and is commercially oriented.
TSCC
After a long struggle of the cultural groups in the 80's for a center which would coordinate the cultural activities and provide proper facilities to the groups for their perfection, arrange national and international seminars and which has use of modern technical gadget, provision of an auditorium with perfect light and sound systems, creation of a Teachers Student Cultural Center was approved by the University authority. A director was appointed with skeleton staff to start activities. At the moment there are three instructors to help the director in training students and organizing competition and cultural programs on important occasions. Nazim Mahmud, Omar Faruq, Nazrul Islam and Sarwar Jahan were the previous directors. Of them, Nazim Mahmud and Sarwar Jahan were exceptionally gifted in several cultural aspects.
Trophies and Prizes won
We are very happy that for the last two years our students have displayed high standards in cultural competitions at both national and international levels. The team sent to participate in SARC countries competition held in India in 1998 won two first prizes and one second prize. Every year the ministry of education organizes a national competition in education and culture on the occasion of National Education Week. Recently, the universities have been included in this program. At the national level, our students won four gold, two silver, two bronze medals in 2000, and four gold, two silver and four bronze medals in 2001. The total number of items were 14. The first Bangladesh inter-university cultural competition was held in July 2000 at the Rajshahi University campus. We came out as a champion with 8 first, 3 second and 2 third prizes in 15 items.
We hope the standards of performance will not only be kept up but further improved through individual efforts and through TSCC assistance.
Although there is a plan to set up a TSCC complex with and auditorium and otere facilities for the proper noursihment of cultural talents, only a small part of the building has been completed. The size of the office-staff too is not big enough for arranging varied programs that are expected of this center. But we are optimistic that the day is not too far when the center will function to the satisfaction of all to whom cultural excellence is dear.
-Published in The Guardian while the author was Director to the Teachers Students Cultural Center of Rajshahi University (2001)
