On 15 February 2019, Rupankar Bagchi, an accomplished and renowned singer from Bengal, India will present a concert with his team of musicians at the American International School, in Maidan Hawally. Presented by Al Mulla Exchange, , one of the fastest growing exchange companies in Kuwait that has evolved a dynamic way of acknowledging the support of their clients and patrons by hosting complimentary concerts, plays and lectures and Bengali Cultural Society, the show promises an evening of quality music by a singer whose live concerts in India and elsewhere in the world has been received with both popular and critical acclaim. Blessed with a natural stage presence, Rupankar keeps the crowd entertained with his music which is extensive in its scope. Rupankar’s strength lies in his strong rendition and his refusal to be typecast into a particular genre. His versatility has brought him many recognitions including the coveted National Award.

What makes Rupankar, as he is popularly known, special is his exceptional voice, and his skilful rendition of songs both traditional and popular. Apart from having several very popular albums of basic songs to his credit, Rupankar is also a renowned playback singer in the Bengali language. Over the years, the singer has continually reinvented himself, singing different types of songs from different genres. “I like different genres of music, and I know I can do different types of music,” says the versatile artist. “ I have always preferred improvising as an artist.”

Rupankar’s introduction to music took place at a young age. Born into a musically inclined family in Calcutta, the young singer found it easy to slip into a role that was almost destined for him. Brought up in a musical environment, he was inspired to take up music as a career early in his life. “ I was drawn to music at a very young age,” Rupankar recalls. “Both my parents were musicians, and I grew up listening to classical music and Rabindra Sangeet. Knowing both forms of music was important in my family. In fact, when we met at social gatherings, my family discussed art, music and literature. Later on, I went on to train in music.” Rupankar received his initial training in music from his parents, both professional singers, and later went on to hone his art under some of the best musical gurus of those times.

Apart from early training, he also gave his first stage performance at a very young age. “ I gave my first performance at the age of 11. My mother ran a musical institution, and I sang two Rabindra Sangeets for their first annual programme.” Years later, after he matured into an extremely technically sound and gifted singer, he made his first demo cassette as a second-year college student. The nineties was the time when music in Bengal was dominated by singers like Nachiketa, Kabir Suman, along with many popular bands, and despite stiff competition, Rupankar had a stellar debut with the album ‘Tumi Shunbe Ki’.

After a few years of releasing several successful basic and traditional albums, Rupankar ventured into films. Today, he is a prolific playback singer who has sung several very popular songs in recent Bengali films like ‘Chalo Let’s Go (2008), Aparajita Tumi (2012), Dutta Vs Dutta (2012), Jaatishwar (2014), Chotushkone (2014), Aparijita Tumi (2012), Hemlock Society (2012. Many of Rupankar’s playback songs such as ‘Gobhire Jao’ from ‘Baishe Srabon’ have topped not only charts but also earned critical acclaim. When asked how he looks back at his journey as a playback singer, he says, “ I am very happy with my film songs. The first film for which I did playback was ‘Chalo Lets Go’. Neel Dutta composed the song, and Anjan Dutta wrote it. Later, I went on to sing in many films. It has been a long and healthy journey.’

Apart from music, Rupankar has also tried his hand at acting, and been quite successful in his attempts. He has acted in feature films, theatre and also in short films for television. When asked about his passion for theatre, he points out, “My first love is music. I joined the theatre as a musician. There was a production house in need of someone who could both play the harmonium and sing a few lines on the stage at the same time. I started my career as a musician, and after that, I got involved very closely with theatre production, and I started acting.”

Apart from singing, he has also proved his genius in composing music for other artists. He was awarded the coveted National Award For Best Male Playback singer for the song ‘ E Tumi KemonTumi ‘ from Jaatishwar in 2014. “The National Award is a highlight in my life. It means so much to me and to receive the award from President Pranab Mukherjee was even more special. I enjoyed every moment of the ceremony and what followed afterwards. Apart from being a great achievement, the award also added a lot of responsibility to my work.”

In the present world of liberalization and competition, there is a fierce battle going on in every field, so it is with entertainment in India. Over the years, music in Bengal as in the rest of India has gone through different phases of development. Technological advancements have changed the way music is performed and heard. When questioned about changes that the world of music has undergone, Rupankar is pragmatic in his response, “There have been changes. Change is inevitable. When I started my career as a singer, we released our songs in the form of cassettes. Later, cassettes gave way to CDs, and now things have changed even further with the digitization of music. Physical formats of music have been wiped out. But this had to happen, and it did. There is nothing that can be done. However, there have been some positive outcomes. The positives are more, and on the negative side, one can say that with so many alternatives available to them in terms of entertainment, people have become restless. They do not want to spend time or effort to listen to music.” Al Mulla Exchange and Bengali Cultural Society will present Rupankar in Concert on Feb 15 at the American International School, Maidan Hawally.