Rupam Islam (born 25 January 1974) is an Indian singer-songwriter, music composer, and

writer A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles, genres and techniques to communicate ideas, to inspire feelings and emotions, or to entertain. Writers may develop different forms of writing such as novels, short sto ...

. He is the lead

vocalist Singing is the art of creating music with the voice. It is the oldest form of musical expression, and the human voice can be considered the first musical instrument. The definition of singing varies across sources. Some sources define singi ...

of the Bengali rock band

Fossils A fossil (from Classical Latin , ) is any preserved remains, impression, or trace of any once-living thing from a past geological age. Examples include bones, shells, exoskeletons, stone imprints of animals or microbes, objects preserved ...

. Outside of his rock music work, Islam has also contributed to several Bengali film productions as a

playback singer A playback singer, as they are usually known in South Asian cinema, or ghost singer in Western cinema, is a singer whose performance is pre-recorded for use in films. Playback singers record songs for soundtracks, and the performers lip-sync the ...

. In 2010, he won the National Film Award for Best Male Playback Singer for his performance in the Bengali film Mahanagar@Kolkata. He is also a member of the Bangla Sangeet Academy, an institution under the

Government of West Bengal The Government of West Bengal, also known as the West Bengal Government, is the Administrative division, principal administrative authority of the States and union territories of India, Indian state of West Bengal, created by the Constitution ...

Early life

Rupam Islam was born into a family in

Kolkata Kolkata, also known as Calcutta ( its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary ...

with a musical background. His parents, Nurul and Chhandita, were both musicians. He began performing music in his youth, appearing in Aakashvani and

Doordarshan Doordarshan (), abbreviated as DD, is India's State-owned enterprise, state-owned public broadcasting, public television broadcaster. Established by the Government of India on 15 September 1959, it is owned by the Ministry of Information and B ...

programs by the age of 9. Islam graduated from Asutosh College, affiliated with the

University of Calcutta The University of Calcutta, informally known as Calcutta University (), is a Public university, public State university (India), state university located in Kolkata, Calcutta (Kolkata), West Bengal, India. It has 151 affiliated undergraduate c ...

, with a degree in

English literature English literature is literature written in the English language from the English-speaking world. The English language has developed over more than 1,400 years. The earliest forms of English, a set of Anglo-Frisian languages, Anglo-Frisian d ...

. He also completed a Bachelor's degree in education and taught English at Taki House in Rajabazar, Kolkata, for several years before focusing on music.

Musical career

Islam started his professional career in 1998 with the formation of the band

. Fossils has released six albums and is active in Bengali rock music. As a solo artist, Islam has released several albums and worked as a playback singer, receiving awards for his work in Bengali films. In 2010, Islam won the National Film Award for Best Male Playback Singer for his performance in '' Mahanagar@Kolkata''. He has also composed jingles for commercials and television shows.

Activism

Islam has voiced concerns about issues related to women's safety in India, particularly in response to the R.G. Kar rape and murder in 2024. He joined other musicians in

West Bengal West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabi ...

to protest issues faced by women in the region. Islam released the song "Khoto" () to comment on societal issues. The song has been described as "a raw reflection of his and the collective pain of society over the crime and the subsequent inaction of the government."

Personal life

Islam married Rupsha Dasgupta in 2007, and they have a son named Rup.

Discography

Solo albums

Singles

Collaborations

Fossils

Writings

Filmography

Web series/Serial

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Islam, Rupam 1974 births Living people Bengali singers Indian male playback singers Asutosh College alumni