Saifullah "Sam" Zaman (17 April 1965 – 19 May 2015), known by the stage name State of Bengal, was a British DJ and

music producer A record producer or music producer is a music creating project's overall supervisor whose responsibilities can involve a range of creative and technical leadership roles. Typically the job involves hands-on oversight of recording sessions; ensu ...

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 ...

descent associated with the UK and

Asian Underground Asian underground is a term associated with various British Asian, South Asian Canadian, South Asian American and Dutch South Asian musicians (mostly Indian, Pakistani, Bangladeshi and Sri Lankan) who blend elements of Western underground dance ...

movement.

Early life

Zaman was born on 17 April 1965 in then East Pakistan. He lived in

Ankara Ankara is the capital city of Turkey and List of national capitals by area, the largest capital by area in the world. Located in the Central Anatolia Region, central part of Anatolia, the city has a population of 5,290,822 in its urban center ( ...

Amman Amman ( , ; , ) is the capital and the largest city of Jordan, and the country's economic, political, and cultural center. With a population of four million as of 2021, Amman is Jordan's primate city and is the largest city in the Levant ...

, and

Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; , ), List of renamed places in Bangladesh, formerly known as Dacca, is the capital city, capital and list of cities and towns in Bangladesh, largest city of Bangladesh. It is one of the list of largest cities, largest and list o ...

before moving to London, England at the age of eight. His parents are of Bangladeshi origin, from the district of Noahkhali. His father is a homeopathic doctor.

Career

In 1987, Zaman set up the State of Bengal group in London after a visit to

Noakhali Noakhali District (), historically known as Bhulua (), is a Districts of Bangladesh, district in southeastern Bangladesh, located in Chattogram Division. It was established as a district in 1821, and officially named Noakhali in 1868. The distr ...

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 ...

, where he interacted with traditional folk musicians and dancers. Original members of the group included his youngest brother

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(who later became vocalist of

Asian Dub Foundation Asian Dub Foundation (ADF) is an English electronic music band that combines musical styles including rap rock, dub, dancehall, ragga, ReggaeEDM, and South Asian music. The group also includes traditional rock instruments such as electric bas ...

). Outside of the State of Bengal project, Zaman also worked with

British Asian British Asians (also referred to as Asian Britons) are British people of Asian people, Asian descent. They constitute a significant and growing minority of the people living in the United Kingdom, with a population of 5.76 million people or 8.6 ...

youth groups, setting up music training workshops. After working in a variety of communities from across the country. Sam founded and set up Betelnut Records. Formerly a teacher, Zaman worked at youth centres. State of Bengal was a DJ at the Anokha club in London's East End during the mid-1990s. His tracks "Flight IC408" and "Chittagong Chill" – written and produced with Matt Mars – were featured on '' Anokha – Soundz of the Asian Underground'' compilation, and helped him gain prominence. Singer

Björk Björk Guðmundsdóttir ( , ; born 21 November 1965), known mononymously as Björk, is an Icelandic singer, songwriter, composer, record producer, and actress. Noted for her distinct voice, three-octave vocal range, and eccentric public per ...

discovered his work at Anokha, he opened for her on the Homeogenic world tour, and remixed her track "

Hunter Hunting is the human practice of seeking, pursuing, capturing, and killing wildlife or feral animals. The most common reasons for humans to hunt are to obtain the animal's body for meat and useful animal products ( fur/ hide, bone/tusks, ...

", also signing to the

One Little Indian One Little Independent Records (formerly One Little Indian Records) is an English independent record label. It was set up in 1985 by members of various anarcho-punk bands, and managed by former Flux of Pink Indians bassist Derek Birkett. In t ...

record label. State of Bengal took up residency at the 333, in Hoxton on the Off Centre club nights, he continued with his DJ and did extensive remix work. He produced his debut album, Visual Audio in 1998 which also featured

Suzana Ansar Suzana Ansar (; born 14 February) is an England, English singer, actress and television presenter of British Bangladeshi, Bangladeshi descent. Early life Ansar was born in London, England to Bangladeshi expatriate parents. Her mother, (Jenney) ...

and followed that up with ''Walking On'', a collaboration with Ananda Shankar in 1999. His next album was also a collaboration, ''Tana Tani'' with Paban Das Baul, in 2004 and then in 2007 he released ''Skip-ji'' on his own record label. Alongside his DJ and music work, Zaman continued to teach and deliver music workshops.

Personal life and death

Zaman was the eldest of 5 siblings, with two younger sisters and two brothers. His family called him Arun, which means sun rising. On 19 May 2015 Zaman died in hospital of a suspected heart attack. On 15 June 2017, the British Plaque Trust honoured Zaman by unveiling a Blue Plaque outside his home and studio in East London, where all his albums were created.

Discography

Singles

Albums

Compilations

Remixes and other work

References

External links

* * *
State of Bengal
on BritBangla
Betelnut Records websiteEthnotechno interview with State of BengalState of Bengal and his views
*Iqbal, Jamil
Mr. Sam Zaman
''Swadhinata Trust''. 28 March 2006 {{DEFAULTSORT:State Of Bengal 1965 births 2015 deaths Place of death missing Pakistani emigrants to the United Kingdom Naturalised citizens of the United Kingdom British people of Bangladeshi descent British club DJs British record producers British electronic musicians Asian Underground musicians Musicians from Karachi DJs from London