Pluralist Identity in Dr. Bhupen Hazarika’s Lyrics

Pluralist Identity in Dr. Bhupen Hazarika’s Lyrics

Pranjal Dutta

(The writer is Assistant Professor & Head, Department of English, Sarupathar College. He can be reached at pranjalduttaspr@gmail.com)

The lyrics of Dr. Bhupen Hazarika, the musical maestro from Assam, bear testimony to the contemporary crisis of signification and power relation and try to assert the marginalized subjectivity. They draw attention to the question of identity of different ethnic groups in relation to the mainstream. They articulate the voice of those whose identity remains unacknowledged under the hegemonic and authoritative voice of the mainstream.

The lyrical persona of Dr. Bhupen Hazarika’s lyrics is founded on such an identity which pluralistically subsumes several identities. It is an identity which encompasses an individual consciousness of being an Indian simultaneously being aware to the heterogeneity and plurality of his identity. This pan-Indian identity is based on a tension between a fragmentary, sub-national, regional language and culture based identity and a generalized Indian identity. His lyrics showcase the existence of a repressed double in his consciousness which however makes it presence palpable by subjecting him to an agonizing experience of alienation from his innermost self. He weaves the reified existence of this repressed pluralism into the very texture of the lyrics.

Despite being a man of extraordinary qualities, Dr. Hazarika could perceive the longings and aspirations of the various ethnic groups and sought to bridge the gulf between them. Dr. Hazarika, the cultural icon of Assam, spent his life writing lyrics and advocating racial harmony, tolerance, equality and universal love. Mahabahu Brahmaputra Mahamilonor Tirtho, Rodpuwabor Kaarone Maatibaanu Kaak, Ganga Mor Maa, Paahaar Bhoiyamor sangom tholite and Padmaar dhumuhau uruwai nisile are concrete instances of it. Indeed, he tried to weed out race and caste-related differences between man and man.

As a lyricist Dr. Bhupen Hazarika was committed to the social cause. He had never been tired of bewailing, reacting against, or denouncing the suffering inflicted on men by men. During his stay in different parts of the world he was exposed to the discrimination and segregation meted out to the subaltern classes: Moi dekhisu onek gogonchumbi otwalikaar saari/ Taar saatei dekhisu kotona grihohin nora nari…/ Bohu deshe deshe grihodas dekhi sintito hou bor (I have seen rows of towering skyscrapers/ And in their shadow the homeless multitude…/ It pains me no end to find/ Men hurt their kin/ And become aliens in their own lands).

The lyrics of Dr. Bhupen Hazarika celebrating communal amity, universal justice and amity used to inspire people to transcend political and cultural boundaries. His lyrics have become popular in West Bengal and Bangladesh apart from Assam and the Northeast. Hazarika’s Manush Manusher Jonno is the second most popular song in Bangladesh after Amar Sonar Bangla, the national anthem of the country. The lyric Joy Joy Nabajato Bangladesh (Hail to the newborn Bangladesh) stirred the freedom fighters to greater heights of patriotism. The lyric Ganga Aamar Maa, known for its message of commonality, tells how the people of both nations are intertwined by commonality of minds.

The rhythms of waves in Dr. Hazarika’s lyrics tell the tales of common people’s joy, folly and sorrow on both sides of the border, to eventually return to a fluvial calm in search of synthesis. It is very significant to observe Dr. Hazarika’s repeated stress on the metaphors of the river and the sea as symbols of assimilation and synthesis. In fact, Dr. Hazarika spent his lifetime advocating the significance of synthesis of the river Brahmaputra with Ganga and Padda (Bangladesh) in contributing to a shared cultural history over centuries in the region.

In the lyric Mahabahu Brahmaputra Mohamilonar Tirtho, Dr. Hazarika has described the long history of migration and assimilation of diverse castes and communities that led to a composite culture – a pluralist identity. The lyric tells how hundreds of cyclone-victims from Bangladesh came to the Brahmaputra valley which embraced all with gusto and enthusiasm. It also stresses the need for understanding among people of different castes and communities: Podda nodir dhumuhat pori/ koto xoto jon ahile/ luitor duyu pare/ kotona atithi aadorile/ kisu lobo laage, kisu dibo laage/ jin jaabole hole/ milibo laage, milibo laage/ Rabindranatheo kole.

Dr. Hazarika had a soft corner in his heart for thousands of landless people from Bangladesh who, under the threats of tornado, cyclones and floods in several parts of Bangladesh and riverbank erosion caused by the Padma, the Jamuna and the Meghna and having limited opportunity to cultivate their tiny land, were compelled to be displaced from their place of origin to North-eastern parts of India: Poddar dhumuhai uruwai nisile/ He aamar xunor ghore bari/ Ujoni paanite xaaturi paaluhi/ Bor luitor chapori (The storm of the Padma has blown away our dwelling houses and we having swum upstream arrived at the bank of the Brahmaputra). Dr. Hazarika states that people seek the company of man despite linguistic barriers as the language of love has no alphabet: Bhaxa nubujilu juge juge aahe/ Manuhe manuhor pine/ Moromor bhaxare aakhor naikia/ Bujibo khujilei sine. In the lyric Hazarika uses the water of the rivers and the sea as the symbols of assimilation: Ganga Padma Krishnaa Godavari/ Brahmaputra Kaveri/ Xobe mili Bharat mohasaagorole jai/ Rongote baagori baagori (The rivers Ganga, Padma, Krishna, Godavari, Brahmapura and Kaveri flow together cheerfully so as to mingle in the Indian ocean.)

The song Aami Axomiya Nohou Dukhia hammers home the issues of racial interaction and Assamese identity and tries to establish that the various ethnic communities constitute a part of Assam. The lyricist implies that the destinies of the Assamese people are tied up with the destinies of other racial groups living in Assam. Here he advocates racial understanding and harmony and desires harmonious blending of different cultures: Nana jaati upojaati/ Rohoniya Kristi/ Aankuwali loi hoisil sristi/ Aei mor Axom desh/ Bibhed porihori/ Nij haate srom kori/ Deshok nogorhile/ Aei desh hobo nishesh/ Aaru monburu bhaagi sigi jaabo… (An abode of varied races and ethnic groups/ My state of Axom entails/ Cultures of many different hues/ Unless we build our nation/ With our own labour/ Putting aside all splits/ This state will be exterminated/ And there will be chaos in our minds).

Dr Bhupen Hazarika is an assimilationist-cum-cultural nationalist. Though an assimilationist, he advocates spiritual, cultural and national identity of the Assamese and stresses the collective spirit of the folk. The lyric Aami Axomiya Nohou Dukhia synthesizes Dr Hazarika’s assimilationist stance and his sentiments as a cultural nationalist. The lyric proclaims the uniqueness of Assamese culture and reveals Dr. Hazarika’s advocacy of equality of the different ethnic groups living in Assam and the idea of assimilation through assertion. He wants to transform the jangling discords of the various ethnic groups into a beautiful symphony of brotherhood. What he suggests in this lyric is the assimilation through assertion. In other words, Hazarika advocates assimilation without sacrificing completely the cultural and spiritual distinctiveness of the Assamese. The lyric reflects Dr. Hazarika’s deep-rooted commitment to his Assamese roots, its people, land, language and culture: Aanore logote Axomiya Axomote/ Jodihe nebaase baaru kotnu baasibo/ Mur aaik bhaal pao bulile/ Aanor aaik jaanu ghin koratu bujabo?/ (Where will the Assamese survive/ If not here in Assam, along with others?/ Does one’s love for mother denote / Contempt for those of others?)

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