Kolkata
For the first time, a State Song reverberated across West Bengal on January 2 as it saw the inauguration of Students’ Week in all its educational institutions, perhaps the first official event to be held ever since the order was issued last weekend making its singing compulsory.
It was on December 30 that the State government declared a State Day and State Song, saying the need for them was “felt for a long time” in West Bengal, “taking into consideration its rich glory, culture and heritage”. It announced Poila Boisakh (first day of the Bengali month of Baisakh) as State Day (or Bangla Divas), and Banglar Mati Banglar Jal, composed by Rabindranath Tagore, as the State Song.
Last month, the song was sung during the inauguration of the Kolkata International Film Festival and there, it is said, the word ‘Bangali’ (Bengali) was replaced with ‘Bangla’, in what appeared to be a move to not alienate the non-Bengali living in the State. This alteration of Tagore’s lyrics was met with protests, which led to the retention of the original song.
This being Bengal, where opinions are strong, the Trinamool Congress government’s decision to have a State Song brought out a mixed reaction, particularly among teachers who witnessed its official singing for the first time on Tuesday.
“I first came across the concept of a State anthem about a decade back at Berhampur University in Odisha. I had gone there for an international conference and the conference proceedings began with the State Song. The dignitaries on the dais as well as participants in the hall stood up as a gesture of respect. Though I could not follow the meaning of the lines, I was much impressed by the idea. Now that West Bengal has a state anthem, I feel proud and happy,” a professor of history, who did not want to be named, said.
West Bengal joins about a dozen other States who have their own songs. The playing time of Banglar Mati Banglar Jal (Bengal’s soil, Bengal’s water) is 1 minute 59 seconds and every State Government event must begin with it and conclude with the National Anthem. Participants are required to stand in attention when both are played.
“I like it that students and others will now have to learn an extra, beautiful song, and I do not necessarily object to the idea of a State Song — but why make standing up compulsory? Is this going to go the National Anthem way and used to foster hyper-nationalism on a small scale?” asked another teacher, who teaches English at a reputed university and who too did not want to be identified.
Krishnakoli Ray, the headmistress of a government school in south Kolkata, is not impressed with the idea. “I think this was absolutely unnecessary,” Ms. Ray said. “India is not just a federation of States like the USA, but one nation whose abiding ethos has been ‘unity in diversity’. A State song is, in my opinion, unwarranted and divisive. And I have nothing to say really on the attempt to change Tagore’s words. I am thankful that the State still has some sensible people who stood up against the change. It is sad that in schools which deal with impressionable minds, there is a subtle effort to inculcate a culture which is politically motivated.”
