Mitrasen Thapa Magar (29 December 1895 – 7 April 1946), popularly known as Master Mitrasen, was a singer and songwriter of

Nepali folk music Music of Nepal refers to the various musical genres played and listened to in Nepal. With more than fifty ethnic groups in Nepal, the country's music is highly diverse. Genres like Tamang Selo, Madheshi Hori, Chaitawar, Chhathiyaar dhun, Chyabr ...

from

Dharamshala Dharamshala (, ; also spelled Dharamsala) is a town in the Indian state of Himachal Pradesh. It serves as the winter capital of the state and the administrative headquarters of the Kangra district since 1855. The town also hosts the Tibeta ...

, India. He was also a dramatist and social worker. Leaving the

Indian Army The Indian Army (IA) (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the Land warfare, land-based branch and largest component of the Indian Armed Forces. The President of India is the Commander-in-Chief, Supreme Commander of the Indian Army, and its professional head ...

in early age for the upliftment of

Nepali music Music of Nepal refers to the various musical genres played and listened to in Nepal. With more than fifty ethnic groups in Nepal, the country's music is highly diverse. Genres like Tamang Selo, Madheshi Hori, Chaitawar, Chhathiyaar dhun, Chy ...

, his contribution to different fields of

Indian Gorkha Indian Gorkhas, also known as Nepali Indians, are an Indian ethno-cultural group who speak Nepali language, Nepali as a common language. They inhabit mainly the states of Sikkim, West Bengal, Northeast India and Uttarakhand, including their di ...

and Nepalese society is remarkable.

Early life

He was born in

Bhagsu Bhagsu/Bhaksu (also known as Bhagsunag or Bhagsunath) is a village near McLeod Ganj in Dharamshala, in the Kangra district of Himachal Pradesh, India. The village is the site of Bhagsunag waterfall and the ancient Bhagsunag Temple. In early 18t ...

Cantonment, India on 29 December 1895 to father Manbirsen Thapa Magar and mother Radha Thapa Magar. His grand father was Surendrasen Thapa. His ancestral home was in Rakhu Pula village in Parbat District of Nepal. He had a son named Digvijay Sen Thapa.

Education

Since there was no school around Bhagsu Cantonment, during his time, he started learning from his father initially. He joined his first grade at his 8 years of age at a primary school five miles away from his residence. He learned the ''

Ramayana The ''Ramayana'' (; ), also known as ''Valmiki Ramayana'', as traditionally attributed to Valmiki, is a smriti text (also described as a Sanskrit literature, Sanskrit Indian epic poetry, epic) from ancient India, one of the two important epics ...

'' translated by Bhanubhakta from his father.

Military service

When he became 16 years old, he joined 1/1 Gorkha Rifles as a recruit. His forefathers had served in same unit before. He took part in

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

with his battalion in

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

in 1914. He left military service in 1920. His interest was to be social worker and devote his rest of life for betterment of Nepalese music and society. Mastermitrasen

Music contributions

He travelled different parts of India as well as

Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

where

Nepalese people Nepali or Nepalese () are the permanent citizens of Nepal under Nepali nationality law. The term ''Nepali'' strictly refers to ''nationality'', meaning people holding citizenship of Nepal. Conversely, people without Nepalese citizenship but wi ...

lived with his harmonium. His folk songs became very popular among

. Some of these popular songs are: ', ', ' etc. He recorded 24 disk record or 97 songs in nepali music. He was not only singer, he equally contributed in the field of drama, story, novel, essay, poems etc. For his great contribution in Nepali society and music, India and Nepal governments have already published mailing tickets with his photographs.''Himal'' Khabarpatrika. Kathmandu, Nepal. 1–16 September 2010. p.62. There is also Mitrasen Academy to promote Nepali music and society to follow and remember his legacy. His contributions made him as a ''Master'' Mitrasen and remained immortal.

References

Cited sources

*Harsha Bahadur Budha Magar (1999) ''Master Mitrasen Thapa Magar''. Kathmandu: Pushpavati Budha Magar

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mitrasen, Master Indian folk singers Indian songwriters 1895 births 1946 deaths 20th-century Indian male singers People from Dharamshala Nepali-language singers from India Indian Gorkhas Indian people of Nepalese descent Indian Army personnel of World War II