Deebo Bhattacharya (1 August 1930 – 1994), also known as Debu Bhattacherjee, was a

Pakistani Pakistanis (, ) are the citizens and nationals of the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. Pakistan is the fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the second-largest Muslim population as of 2023. As much as ...

Bangladeshi Bangladeshis ( ) are the citizens and nationals of Bangladesh, a South Asian country centred on the transnational historical region of Bengal along the Bay of Bengal, eponymous bay. Bangladeshi nationality law, Bangladeshi citizenship was fo ...

musician, painter and singer who worked in

Lollywood Lollywood is Pakistan's film industry, which has served as the base for both Urdu- and Punjabi-language film production. Lahore has been the center of Pakistani cinema since independence in 1947. However, with the Urdu film hub largel ...

movies during the era of 1960s and 1970s. He was one of the well known composers in Bangladesh as well. He is known for composing the classic song, "''Bare bemurawat hein ye husn walay kahein dil laganay ki koshish na karna''" for the film

Badnaam ''Badnaam'' is a Pakistani film in Urdu language, released on 2 September 1966, adapted from Saadat Hasan Manto's short story ''Jhumkay'' ("Ear-rings") by screenwriter Riaz Shahid, and was the second film adaptation of the Manto's story after ...

(1966). After 1971, he became a citizen of

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

. He was awarded

Ekushey Padak Ekushey Padak () is the second highest civilian award in Bangladesh, introduced in memory of martyrs of the Bengali language movement of 1952. The award is given to recognize contributions in a number of fields, including culture, education, and e ...

in 1976 by the Government of Bangladesh. He earned the first ever

Bangladesh National Film Award for Best Music Director Bangladesh National Film Award for Best Music Direction () is the highest award for music direction in Bangladeshi film. History Ferdausi Rahman became the only female musician to claim a National Award for best music direction. Alauddin Ali t ...

for

Choritrohin ''Choritrohin'' () is a 1917 novel by Bengali novelist Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay. It tells a story of Sabitri, a beautiful (subjective) woman and widow, who has been thrown out from her husband's home by her in-laws driven to work as a maidserv ...

(1975) jointly with Lokman Hossain Fakir. He was conferred

posthumus in 1997 for his lifetime contribution to Bengali music.

Early life and career

Deebo was born into a

Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...

family. He arrived in

Pakistan Pakistan, officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, fifth-most populous country, with a population of over 241.5 million, having the Islam by country# ...

from

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

in 1956 to work as an assistant to

Indian Indian or Indians may refer to: Associated with India * of or related to India ** Indian people ** Indian diaspora ** Languages of India ** Indian English, a dialect of the English language ** Indian cuisine Associated with indigenous peoples o ...

music director A music director, musical director or director of music is a person responsible for the musical aspects of a performance, production, or organization. This would include the artistic director and usually chief conductor of an orchestra or concert ...

''Timir Baran'' who was going to compose music for the film ''Anokhi''. While ''Timir Baran'' moved back to India after composing for a few Pakistani films, Deebo remained in Pakistan and resided in

Karachi Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...

. In 1957, his first film as a solo music director, ''Maska Polish'', was released. The movie was a box office disappointment but the songs in

Ahmed Rushdi Ahmed Rushdi (; 24 April 1934 – 11 April 1983) was a versatile Pakistani playback singer and was "an important contributor to the Cinema of Pakistan#The Golden Era (1959–1977), golden age of Pakistani film music". Regarded as one of the gr ...

's voice gained recognition for Deebo. The same fate befell his next two movies, ''Yeh Duniya'' (1960) and ''Lakhoun Fasane'' (1961). With the release of ''Banjaran'' (1962), he rose to notoriety, and the song "Na jane kaisa safar hai mera", sung by

Noor Jehan Noor Jehan (21 September 192623 December 2000) was a Pakistani playback singer and actress who worked in both British India and later in Pakistan's cinema of Pakistan, cinema. Her career lasted over six decades, during which she recorded 10,00 ...

, became a hit. The other milestone of Deebo's career was the film ''

'' (1966). One of its songs, "''Bare Bemurawat Hain Yei Husn Waale, Kahin Dil Lagane Ko Koshish Na Karna''", vocalized by

Suraiya Multanikar Suraiya Multanikar (born 1940) is a Pakistani singer mostly known for her folk songs especially kafis. Her repertoire includes classical, semi-classical, ghazal, folk songs, kafis and film songs. Early life and family Multanikar was born i ...

, is considered one of his most timeless tunes. In 1968, he composed songs for producer

Waheed Murad Waheed Murad (; 2 October 1938 – 23 November 1983), also known as Chocolate Hero, was a Pakistani film actor, producer and script writer. Famous for his charming expressions, attractive personality, tender voice and unusual talent for acting, ...

's film ''Sumandar'' including the theme song, "''Tera Mera Sathi Hai Lehrata Sumandar''" (singer-

). In the 1960s and 1970s, he composed music for several other films, including; ''Shararat'' (1963), '' Beti'' (1964), ''Taqdeer'' (1966), ''Meray Bachay Meri Ankhen'' (1967), ''Bahadur'' (1967), ''Jhuk Gaya Aasman'' (1970) and '' Tiger Gang'' (1974).

Popular compositions

Discography

Later life and death

Deebo moved to

after the separation of

East Pakistan East Pakistan was the eastern province of Pakistan between 1955 and 1971, restructured and renamed from the province of East Bengal and covering the territory of the modern country of Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India and Burma, wit ...

in 1971. He died in 1994, after living for nearly two decades there.

Awards

(1997) * National Film Award (1976)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bhattacharya, Deebo 1994 deaths Pakistani composers Pakistani film score composers Bangladeshi composers Bangladeshi film score composers Pakistani people of Bengali descent 1930 births Muhajir people Bangladeshi painters Recipients of the Ekushey Padak Best Music Director National Film Award (Bangladesh) winners