Suchitra Mitra (19 September 1924 – 3 January 2011) was an Indian singer, composer, artist exponent of

Rabindra Sangeet ''Rabindra Sangeet'' (; ), also known as Tagore Songs, are songs from the Indian subcontinent written and composed by the Bengalis, Bengali polymath Rabindranath Tagore, winner of the 1913 Nobel Prize in Literature, the first Indian and also the ...

or the songs of

Bengal Bengal ( ) is a Historical geography, historical geographical, ethnolinguistic and cultural term referring to a region in the Eastern South Asia, eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. The region of Benga ...

's poet laureate

Rabindranath Tagore Rabindranath Thakur (; anglicised as Rabindranath Tagore ; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengalis, Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer, and painter of the Bengal Renai ...

, professor, and the first woman

Sheriff of Kolkata The Sheriff of Kolkata is an apolitical titular position of authority bestowed for one year on a prominent citizen of Kolkata (Calcutta). The Sheriff has an office and staff in Calcutta High Court but does not have executive powers. Mumbai (Bo ...

. As an academic, she remained a professor and the Head of ''Rabindra Sangeet Department'' at the

Rabindra Bharati University Rabindra Bharati University is a public research university in Kolkata, India. It was founded on 8 May 1962, under the Rabindra Bharati Act of the Government of West Bengal in 1961, to mark the birth centenary of the poet Rabindranath Tagore. I ...

until 1984. Mitra was 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 Bengali films (and acted in some as well) and was associated for many years with the

Indian People's Theatre Association Indian People's Theatre Association (IPTA) is the oldest association of theatre-artists in India. IPTA was formed in 1943 during the British rule in India, and promoted themes related to the Indian freedom struggle. Its goal was to bring cultur ...

. Mitra studied at the

Scottish Church College Scottish Church College is a college affiliated by Calcutta University, India. It offers selective co-educational undergraduate and postgraduate studies and is the oldest continuously running Christian liberal arts and sciences college in Asia. ...

, 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 ...

and at

Visva-Bharati University Visva-Bharati (IAST: ''Viśva-Bhāratī''), () is a public central university and an Institute of National Importance located in Shantiniketan, West Bengal, India. It was founded by Rabindranath Tagore who called it ''Visva-Bharati'', which ...

in West Bengal, India. She was also the

(2001). After prolonged illness Mitra died of a cardiac ailment on 3 January 2011, 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 ...

Early life

Mitra's father, the celebrated littérateur, Saurindra Mohan Mukherjee, was a close associate of the

Tagore family The Tagore family ( ) has been one of the leading families of Kolkata, West Bengal, India, and is regarded as one of the key influencers during the Bengali Renaissance. The family has produced several people who have contributed substantially ...

Jorasanko Jorasanko is a neighbourhood of North Kolkata, in Kolkata district, West Bengal, India. It is so called because of the two (''jora'') wooden or bamboo bridges (''sanko'') that spanned a small stream at this point. History Apart from the distin ...

. Suchitra Mitra's natural aptitude in music was recognised by Pankaj Mullick, who gave her a first lesson in Rabindra Sangeet. From her childhood, as the youngest member of her family, Suchitra cultivated her love for the songs and poetry of

Tagore Rabindranath Thakur (; anglicised as Rabindranath Tagore ; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengalis, Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer, and painter of the Bengal Renai ...

. She had an unerring ear for music and a natural gift of voice and expression. She was born in a running train near station Gujhandi, so her nickname was Goju.

Musical career

In 1941, Suchitra Mitra received a scholarship to

Sangit Bhavana Sangit Bhavana (Institute of Dance, Drama and Music), of Visva-Bharati University, Santiniketan, started functioning as a part of Kala Bhavana in 1919 and as a separate institution in 1933. It was established by the Nobel laureate Rabindranath ...

Santiniketan Shantiniketan (IPA: Help:IPA/Bengali, �antiniketɔn is a neighbourhood of Bolpur town in the Bolpur subdivision of Birbhum district in West Bengal, India, approximately 152 km north of Kolkata. It was established by Maharshi Devendra ...

, where she learnt

from some of the greatest teachers –

Indira Devi Chaudhurani Indira Devi Chaudhurani (29 December 1873 – 12 August 1960) was an Indian literary figure, author and musician. Born to the Tagore family, Indira was the younger child of Satyendranath Tagore and Jnanadanandini Devi and younger sister of Sur ...

, Santidev Ghosh, and Sailajaranjan Majumdar. Having obtained her diploma from Santiniketan, Suchitra Mitra returned to Calcutta in 1945. In 1946, she earned her degree from

of the

. In the same year, she co-founded ''Rabitirtha'' along with Dwijen Chowdhury (the name Rabitirtha was coined by renowned historian and Tagore scholar Professor Kalidas Nag). Under Suchitra's leadership, Rabitirtha emerged as one of the leading schools of Rabindra Sangeet (in Kolkata). Founder and Principal, Suchitra Mitra was an active figure and inspiration behind this establishment. Her dedication, sincerity and comprehension of the subtle nuances underlying Tagore's songs is indeed praiseworthy. Suchitra was an exponent and an interpreter of Tagore's musical compositions. Her other interests included

performing arts The performing arts are arts such as music, dance, and drama which are performed for an audience. They are different from the visual arts, which involve the use of paint, canvas or various materials to create physical or static art objects. P ...

, including theatrical performances, film-acting, painting, etc. Mitra produced Rabindra Nritya Natyas (or Tagore's dance dramas); she had acted and danced in many of them. She also acted in stage-plays/dance-drama like ''Valmiki Pratibha'' and in films like ''Dahan'' directed by Rituparno Ghosh. Her other intellectual pursuits included: reciting poetry, writing short stories, poems and children's rhymes, publishing essays and books on more thought-provoking subjects, such as the grammar and techniques involved in rendering Rabindra Sangeet or on the aesthetics of the music of Tagore. Her greatest achievements may have been her ability to immortalise Tagore's songs both at home and abroad to people of all ages. Invited to the

USSR The Union of Soviet Socialist Republics. (USSR), commonly known as the Soviet Union, was a List of former transcontinental countries#Since 1700, transcontinental country that spanned much of Eurasia from 1922 until Dissolution of the Soviet ...

and

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

, Mitra spread the message of Tagore to the western audience. With the ''Rabitirtha'' troupe, she performed Tagore's dance dramas in the US and Canada. She was the author of many books in Bengali on Rabindra Sangeet, and had recently directed her efforts towards compiling an encyclopaedia of Tagore's songs for students and researchers. Suchitra Mitra's repertoire and expertise, coupled with her ability to inculcate in others the love of Rabindra Sangeet, establishes her as one of the notable names in the world of performing arts in India. Ustad Amjad Ali Khan recognises her as his guide into the world of Rabindrasangeet. Suchitra was considered to be one of the most versatile exponents of Rabindra Sangeet, and in recognition thereof she was awarded the

Padma Shri The Padma Shri (IAST: ''padma śrī'', lit. 'Lotus Honour'), also spelled Padma Shree, is the fourth-highest Indian honours system, civilian award of the Republic of India, after the Bharat Ratna, the Padma Vibhushan and the Padma Bhushan. In ...

by the

Government of India The Government of India (ISO 15919, ISO: Bhārata Sarakāra, legally the Union Government or Union of India or the Central Government) is the national authority of the Republic of India, located in South Asia, consisting of States and union t ...

in 1974. Together with Kanika Bandopadhyay, Debabrata Biswas and Hemanta Mukhopadhyay, she formed the Golden Quartet of Rabindrasangeet who popularised the compositions of Rabindranath Tagore and left an indelible impression in the fields of arts and culture.

Recognition

Her reputation as a successful artiste resulted in her appointment as lecturer in

, where she held the prestigious office of Head of the Department of Music. She also succeeded Pankaj Mullick in Sangeet Sikshar Asar – a very popular programme of Akashvani – a tutorial on Rabindrasangeet that was broadcast live. In recognition of her creative talents, Suchitra Mitra received numerous accolades. Some of Mitra's notable awards included. *Tagore Hymn Prize in 1945 from London Tagore Hymn Society. *

in 1974 from the

* Sangeet Natak Academy Award in 1986 from the Government of India *

His Master's Voice His Master's Voice is an entertainment trademark featuring a dog named Nipper, curiously peering into the horn of a wind-up gramophone. Painted by Francis Barraud in 1898, the image has since become a global symbol used across consumer elect ...

Golden Disc Award, *Shiromoni Puraskar from

Asian Paints Asian Paints Ltd is an Indian multinational paint company, headquartered in Mumbai. The company is engaged in the business of manufacturing, selling and distribution of paints, coatings, products related to home décor, bath fittings and provi ...

, *Desikottama from

Visva-Bharati Visva-Bharati (IAST: ''Viśva-Bhāratī''), () is a public central university and an Institute of National Importance located in Shantiniketan, West Bengal, India. It was founded by Rabindranath Tagore who called it ''Visva-Bharati'', which ...

, *Allauddin Puraskar from 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 ...

, among numerous others. She was conferred 3 honorary D.Litt. degrees by the

, the University of Burdwan and

Jadavpur University Jadavpur University ( abbr. JU) is a public state funded research university with its main campus located at Jadavpur, Kolkata, West Bengal, India. It was established on 25 July in 1906 as ''Bengal Technical Institute'' and was converted into ...

. As aforementioned, Mitra was also the recipient of the Desikottama (or honorary D.Litt) of the

, which is regarded as the pinnacle of recognition in the genre of Rabindra Sangeet. She retired in 1984 from Rabindra Bharati University as a professor and the Head of Rabindra Sangeet Department. Her presence has been an inspiration to younger generations of artists who wish to master the art of Tagore.

In popular culture

She has been the subject of multiple biographic documentary films. One of them, titled ''Suchitra Mitra'' (1993) by

Raja Sen Raja Sen (born 10 November 1955) is an Indian film and television director and the winner of three National Film Awards from Kolkata, West Bengal, India. He is the father of Subhasree Sen and Sreyoshi Sen. Career Raja Sen first received reco ...

, went on to win the

National Film Award The National Film Awards are awards for artistic and technical merit given for "Excellence within the Cinema of India, Indian film industry". Established in 1954, it has been administered, along with the International Film Festival of India ...

for Best Cultural Film.Raja Sen biography
In 1989 Subroto Ghosh made a documentary on her entitled ''Suchitra Mitra....the Other Documentary'' which was a non-biographical work and which tried to bring out the artiste in her that had blossomed imbibing Tagore's philosophy. This film was shown in the Bombay International Film Festival for Short Films & Documentaries. She was awarded Rabindra-Tattwacharya by Tagore Research Institute, Kolkata. She became the first female Sheriff of Kolkata in 2001.

Bibliography

*''Kheyal Khushi'' (Collection of children's rhymes & a playlet; illustrated by the author). 1978. Prangon, Kolkata. *''Tagore songs'' (encyclopedia). 1984. *''Gurer Putul''. Ananda Publishers. 2000. . *''Ratanpurer Rahasya''. Ananda Publishers. .

References

External links

at "Rabitirtha" website

at

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

Suchitra Mitra biography
at