Socio -Cultural Elements in the Songs of Bishnu Prasad Rabha: A Retrospective

Abstract

Bishnu Prasad Rabha has been an accomplished musician, creative writer, acclaimed master of fine arts, social activist and politician. His contribution to Assamese social and cultural life is great. When we talk about modern Assamese music, we need to mention the name of the musician par excellence Bishnu Prasad Rabha. His contribution to modern Assamese lyrical literature is great. Bishnu Prasad Rabha was a profound composer and musician of his times. He has numerous songs to his credit which speak of the aspirations of the Assamese community at large. Whether be it a romantic song or a patriotic song yet unique quality of the composer Bishnu Prasad Rabha was always there. He was born to Sardar Bahadur Gopal Chandra Rabha, an efficient officer under the Governor of Bengal. He was honoured with Order of Merit of the British empire. Bishnu Prasad’s mother was Gethi Rabha. He was born as the eighth child on 31st January, 1909 at Dhaka. Gopal Chandra Rabha was a great lover of music. Music sessions were held at his residence where the little Bishnu Prasad got acquainted with all the stalwarts of music in Bengal. Unfortunately, his father Gopal Chandra met an untimely death and the family fell into adversity. His widow Gethi along with her children took shelter at their own house in Tezpur. Bishnu Prasad resumed his studies in Tezpur He continued with his other co-curricular activities as well. It is no easy task to assess the worth of the multi -talented personality of Bishnu Prasad Rabha. In his lifetime he was a live legend. Music, fine arts, theatre performance, creative writing, politics, creating social awareness- he explored in all these diverse fields and won accolades for his exceptional contribution. His physical contribution towards the greater Assamese society came to a stop on 20th June, 1969 due to throat cancer. But the grand legacy of his craftsmanship lives on. In this Paper an attempt has been made to assess the socio-cultural elements present in his songs.