The torchbearer
of Tagore

THIRTY-SIX years ago, on the day when Bangladesh won her freedom, a woman in her late thirties broke down – her tears were of pride and inexplicable joy. The end of humiliation, the end of not being able speak up, the end of the seemingly endless struggle to survive the bloody war had come. ‘I had held them back for so long and it was time that I let them out,’ says Sanjida Khatun.
   Samjida has made a long and arduous journey – from being one of the first women to speak in public meetings to being under constant surveillance of the government of the erstwhile East Pakistan and its cohorts; from the formation of Bangladesh Mukti Sangrami Sangstha to the foundation of Chhayanaut.
   Widely known as prominent Tagore exponent and researcher, Sanjida has always been at the forefront of the struggle to revive the Bengali culture and tradition. ‘I was oppressed, forced to leave places where I had wanted to make a difference and frequently criticised,’ she says.
   Yet, at 74, Sanjida stands tall as she always has, and exudes confidence and a strong personality. Her eyes speak of the vast experience gleaned over the decades in pursuit of what she believes in.
   Having spent years shying away from the media and maintaining silence over the many resentments that she has had, she spoke to New Age recently. At her cosy apartment, on that chilly evening, she spoke of the memories that had shaped her into what she was – uncompromising and a woman in her own right.
   Born in 1933, to a family that had-deep rooted traditional values, Sanjida was inspired by her father, the late Kazi Motahar Hossain, a famous poet of the time and a dear friend of Kazi Nazrul Islam. ‘There were these distinct values that were instilled within in my early childhood – honesty, patriotism, self-belief and each one of these have paved my life.’
   Since childhood, Sanjida had faced acute financial problems. ‘It was difficult for my father to bring up eleven children with the limited income. Yet, my childhood was spent dancing, singing and being involved in various kinds of cultural activities.’
   By the time Sanjida was five, the harmonium was her best friend. ‘We could not afford to keep a music teacher and my only way of learning was through the radio. When I was ten, my father arranged for a student to teach me in exchange for ten taka.’
   Later, Sanjida was trained under Ustad Md. Hussain, a thumri singer of that time.
   While completing her honours in Bangla, Sanjida continued singing. Although renowned for her extraordinary rendition Tagore songs, her first performance began with Nazrul Sangeet. ‘I sang Nazrul Sangeet for three years and later moved on to Tagore songs and did extensive research on them.’
   By 1952 Sanjida had become a visible part of the cultural movement. ‘In fact, that was the year when I spoke before a women’s group at a meeting near Kamrun Nessa School. I was not prepared nor was I even sure what to say; however, I knew I wanted to speak about the 21st that had given me this language.’
   Sanjida says she is very sensitive about the language and that is perhaps the reason why she researched on Bangla Language extensively. ‘I love the sound of each word and that is why I continue to teach.’
   After completing her masters in Bangla Literature at Shanti Niketan, Sanjida got married. ‘During this time, around 1955, I noticed ignorance and fear to sing Rabindra Sangeet. It was as though it was absolutely prohibited – it was then that I moved on to singing Rabindra Sangeet. Yet even much of what would be telecast would be edited due to so-called religious and fundamental reasons.’
   Even though Sanjida was involved in acting, she moved away from it, as the scripts began to change. Later, she moved on to become the president of the students’ union, girl’s branch at the university. ‘I was one of the first to begin with campaigns and that year also saw women arranging public meetings.’
   While spending years often fighting for Rabindra Sangeet programmes to be held or cultural movements, Sanjida continued to face acute financial problems. ‘I taught at a government college and it was so difficult to keep up with it. At various times, there would be reports sent against my work. Soon, with the order of the chief secretary, I was forced to move to Rangpur.’
   ‘It was during that time, in 1961, that Chhayanaut was formed. So, I had to come all the way from Rangpur and arrange the programmes. There had been so many obstacles to forming Chhayanaut but we did not give up.’
   Courtesy of the untiring work of Wahedul Huq and her, Chhayanaut became the umbrella organisation for dancers, singers and musicians and achieved a symbolic status.
   ‘And then came 1971. The war has left lasting memories in my mind. I do not know how I managed with three children and escaped. Even after that, there were constant financial problems. It made me so humiliated when I had to ask for favours from people.
   ‘That was also the time when I along with Mahmudur Rahman Benu formed Bangladesh Mukti Sangrami Sangstha.’ While the group went across the borders to sing songs and keep up the spirits of the people and those in the battlefield, Sanjida continued her research fellowship at Shanti Niketan.
   ‘When independence was announced I could not believe it. I had given up the day I had escaped, taking my children in my lap and traveling by boats and on the dirty floors of the train and hearing the ruthless killings by the Pakistani army.’
   After coming back, Sanjida continued singing until the time she felt Rabindra Sangeet was not being given the respect it deserved on television. ‘I walked out of the set – on television they would get the worst producers and amateur sound system officials and it made me feel so bad. I guess I went through so much because of this uncompromising nature of mine.
   ‘I moved away from radio and television because the commercial aspect of it was something that I could not put up with.’
   After more than five decades of singing, Sanjida suffered from chronic Lauintis and retired. But that did not stop her from building a platform for young artistes. ‘Despite the various allegations against me, I continued my fight for restoring our culture. At Chhayanaut, we continue to add more and more ways of providing cultural education to children who can pass it on and keep the beauty of it alive.’
   Having won countless recognition and worked extensively on Bangla language, poetry and Tagore, Sanjida regrets having not done more. ‘I regret the fact that, in my fight for so many issues, I could not work on the language as much as I would have liked to.’
   Tahmina Shafique