Dhananjay Bhattacharya
Encyclopedia
Dhananjay Bhattacharya,son of Surendranath Bhattacharya was one of the finest Bengal singers. He was a great versatile Shyama Sangeet
singer. He was eight years elder than his younger brother Pannalal
. He studied in Rivers Thompson School, Bally, Howrah.
.
Out of the total 24 songs in the movie Sadhak Ramprasad(1956), Dhananjay sang 23 songs.He had the rarest of rare quality of singing any type or form of songs including Modern Bengali, Hindustani Classical Music
, Rabindra Sangeet
, Kirtan
, Bhajan
, Baul
, Ramprasadi(of Ramprasad Sen
), Nazrul Geeti, Shyama Sangeet
etc. . He had a unique voice quality that is unparallel with a range incomparable with any vocalist till today. May be for this reason nobody dares to sing his songs which are not only unique but also very difficult to render yet they are catchy and soothing and seem to be very simple when we hear him. His singing career lasted more than fifty years.
No. of records of his songs is 500. He was also a lyricist and wrote near about 400 songs in the name of "Shri Partha" and "Shri Ananda". He acted in a few films like "Nababidhan", "Pasher Bari", etc.
Some people say that he and Pannalal both wanted to please Kali by offering her their songs. According to them Dhananjay received the grace of the divine mother, but Pannalal didn't, and so he committed suicide, and after his death, Dhananjay bore the responsibility of Pannalal's family, along with his own.
In his last days, Dhananjay stayed in a mess away from his house due to some unknown reasons.
He had three sons and out of them only Dipankar has taken the onus upon him to carry the legacy of his father.
As Playback Singer
Ardhangini (1955
Chalachal
Bardidi
Mejdidi
Babla
Kalo Bou
Dhooli (i954)
Behula Lakshindar
Badsha
Sati Kankabati
Sahar Theheke Durye
Aleya
Jai Ma Tara (1978)
Rupasi (1980)
Sadhak Banakhyapa
Chandranath
Debtirtha Kalighat
Tamasha
Asampta
Maharaj Krisnachandra
Bireswar Vivekanada
Kamalakanta
Yata Mat tata Mat etc.
Shyama Sangeet
Shyama Sangeet is a genre of Bengali devotional songs dedicated to the Hindu goddess Shyama or Kali. It is also known as Shaktagiti.Shyama Sangeet appeals to the common man because it is a musical representation of the relationship of eternal and sublime love and care between the mother and her child...
singer. He was eight years elder than his younger brother Pannalal
Pannalal Bhattacharya
Pannalal Bhattacharya was one of the finest Bengal singers. Most of the songs he sang were written by Ramprasad Sen and Sadhak Kamalakanta, both of whom were Shakta poets of Bengal. He was eight years younger than his elder brother Dhananjay Bhattacharya...
. He studied in Rivers Thompson School, Bally, Howrah.
Singing career
He started his career by singing modern Bengali as well as Hindi songs. His first song was "Jodi bhule jao more/janabo na abhiman..." in the year 1940, recorded from Pioneer Company. His first playback however was in the year 1943. He was best known for singing Shyama SangeetShyama Sangeet
Shyama Sangeet is a genre of Bengali devotional songs dedicated to the Hindu goddess Shyama or Kali. It is also known as Shaktagiti.Shyama Sangeet appeals to the common man because it is a musical representation of the relationship of eternal and sublime love and care between the mother and her child...
.
Out of the total 24 songs in the movie Sadhak Ramprasad(1956), Dhananjay sang 23 songs.He had the rarest of rare quality of singing any type or form of songs including Modern Bengali, Hindustani Classical Music
Hindustani classical music
Hindustani classical music is the Hindustani or North Indian style of Indian classical music found throughout the northern Indian subcontinent. The style is sometimes called North Indian Classical Music or Shāstriya Sangeet...
, Rabindra Sangeet
Rabindra Sangeet
Rabindra Sangeet , also known as Tagore Songs in English, is a form of music composed by Rabindranath Tagore who added a new dimension to the musical concept of India in general and Bengal in specific....
, Kirtan
Kirtan
Kirtan or Kirtana is call-and-response chanting or "responsory" performed in India's devotional traditions. A person performing kirtan is known as a kirtankar. Kirtan practice involves chanting hymns or mantras to the accompaniment of instruments such as the harmonium, tablas, the two-headed...
, Bhajan
Bhajan
A Bhajan is any type of Indian devotional song. It has no fixed form: it may be as simple as a mantra or kirtan or as sophisticated as the dhrupad or kriti with music based on classical ragas and talas. It is normally lyrical, expressing love for the Divine...
, Baul
Baul
Baul .Though Bauls comprise only a small fraction of the Bengali population, their influence on the culture of Bengal is considerable. In 2005, the Baul tradition was included in the list of "Masterpieces of the Oral and Intangible Heritage of Humanity" by UNESCO.-Etymology:The origin of the word...
, Ramprasadi(of Ramprasad Sen
Ramprasad Sen
' was a Shakta poet of eighteenth century Bengal. His bhakti poems, known as Ramprasadi, are still popular in Bengal—they are usually addressed to the Hindu goddess Kali and written in Bengali...
), Nazrul Geeti, Shyama Sangeet
Shyama Sangeet
Shyama Sangeet is a genre of Bengali devotional songs dedicated to the Hindu goddess Shyama or Kali. It is also known as Shaktagiti.Shyama Sangeet appeals to the common man because it is a musical representation of the relationship of eternal and sublime love and care between the mother and her child...
etc. . He had a unique voice quality that is unparallel with a range incomparable with any vocalist till today. May be for this reason nobody dares to sing his songs which are not only unique but also very difficult to render yet they are catchy and soothing and seem to be very simple when we hear him. His singing career lasted more than fifty years.
No. of records of his songs is 500. He was also a lyricist and wrote near about 400 songs in the name of "Shri Partha" and "Shri Ananda". He acted in a few films like "Nababidhan", "Pasher Bari", etc.
Personal life
Dhananjay was married.Some people say that he and Pannalal both wanted to please Kali by offering her their songs. According to them Dhananjay received the grace of the divine mother, but Pannalal didn't, and so he committed suicide, and after his death, Dhananjay bore the responsibility of Pannalal's family, along with his own.
In his last days, Dhananjay stayed in a mess away from his house due to some unknown reasons.
He had three sons and out of them only Dipankar has taken the onus upon him to carry the legacy of his father.
As Playback singer
- Mahaprasthaner Pathey(1952)
- YatrikYatrikYatrik, an Indian film directed by Kartick Chatterjee, depicts a group of pilgrims on an arduous trek in the high Himalayas. It is the Hindi-language version of the Bengali film Mahaprasthaner Pathey, the film made from the book of the same name, written by Probodh Kumar Sanyal...
(1952) - Swamiji
- Sharey ChuattorSharey ChuattorSharey Chuattor was the 1953 comedy film, directed by Nirmal Dey, story by Bijon Bhattacharya, starring Tulsi Chakrabarti and Molina Devi, and co-starring Suchitra Sen and Uttam Kumar. Contemporary playback singers like Dhananjay, Dwijen Mukherjee, Shamol Mitra and Manabendra Mukherjee acted in...
(1953) - Naba Bidhan(1954)
- Rani Rashmoni(1955)
- Shreebatsa Chinta(1955)
- Godhuli(1955)
- Sadhak Ramprasad(1956)
- Tansen(1958)
- Bandhan(1962)
- Debitirtha-Kamrup(1967)
As Playback Singer
Ardhangini (1955
Chalachal
Bardidi
Mejdidi
Babla
Kalo Bou
Dhooli (i954)
Behula Lakshindar
Badsha
Sati Kankabati
Sahar Theheke Durye
Aleya
Jai Ma Tara (1978)
Rupasi (1980)
Sadhak Banakhyapa
Chandranath
Debtirtha Kalighat
Tamasha
Asampta
Maharaj Krisnachandra
Bireswar Vivekanada
Kamalakanta
Yata Mat tata Mat etc.
External links
- http://shibpurinternational.com/sublink/Personalities/html/Dhananjay%20Bhattacharya.html
- http://www.hummaa.com/music/artist/Dhananjay+Bhattacharya/732
- http://www.raaga.com/channels/bengali/singers/Dhananjay_Bhattacharya.html