Hundreds of people on Wednesday paid their last respects to Nazrul Sangeet legend Firoza Begum who died here on Tuesday at the age of 84.
The body of the eminent singer, who had mesmerised Bengalis with her voice for seven decades, was brought to the Central Shaheed Minar in the capital where people from all walks of life paid homage. The singer had been ailing for a long time.
After funeral prayers she will be laid to rest at the Banani graveyard in Dhaka, said her son Hamin Ahmed, himself a singer.
Born in 1930, Firoza Begum was educated in Calcutta in undivided India and was closely linked with rebel poet Kazi Nazrul Islam, who is now Bangladesh’s national poet.
Firoza Begum started singing at a time when it was almost unthinkable for a Bengali- Muslim girl to be allowed to train in music. Poet Nazrul Islam, who was then the chief trainer of HMV, was impressed by her vocal talent and taught her. Even as student of class VI, she won the hearts of Bengalis by singing Nazrul songs on All India Radio. Her first record was released in 1942 by HMV when she was 12.
In the illustrious career that followed, Firoza sang “Rabindra Sangeet,” “Adhunik Bangla” songs, ghazal, qawwali and bhajan for her audience. She performed around 300 solo concerts.
In 1949, Firoza and ghazal exponent Talat Mahmud were the voices that inaugurated the Dhaka Radio.
Firoza has been the winner of the Independence Day Award, among numerous other honours.
India’s condolencesOffering condolences, Indian High Commissioner Pankaj Saran said in a statement that the cultural world of the sub-continent had lost “one of its greatest icons.” “She will always be remembered for her pioneering and legendary contribution to the field of music and the arts,” Mr. Saran said.
