“হয়ত এটা বিস্মৃতি অথবা বিস্মৃত হওয়ার ভান কারণ আমরাতো জাতিই ছিলাম কি করে এখন উপজাতি হলাম?”
The above stanza is taken from a poem named “Ekti Bismrito Itihas” written by Surendra Lal Tripura. It alludes “Perhaps it's an oblivion or pretense to be forgotten because we were a nation. How did we become a tribe now?”
More or less we all are familiar with the term “Indigenous”. And we also know that indigenous people have been fighting for their rights since the beginning. Bangladesh’s indigenous communities are no exception.
They have been demanding their rights from whatever locus they can. Surendra Lal Tripura was just such a person who claimed the rights of the indigenous communities through his writings and works. In fact he was that kind of remarkable person whose contribution is unforgettable to the indigenous communities. At least that’s what his works indicate.
Surendra Lal Tripura was an author, indigenous researcher, singer, lyricist and composer. He was born on 1st April, 1938 at Kamakutchora, Dighinala, Khagrachhari. His father’s name was Rajmoni Roaza and mother’s name was Pushpashree Tripura. He belonged to Tripura community, an indigenous group living in the northeast India and Bangladesh.
He started his formal education from M.E. Middle School and passed matriculation from Rangamati Government High School in 1954. Additionally he passed intermediate from Chittagong College in 1957 and graduated from University of Chittagong in 1973.
He started his early career through school teaching. With the exemption of school teaching he started working at Department of Rehabilitation and as an SDPRO at Information Department from 1961 to 1978.
Later in 1978 he joined as an assistant director at Rangamati Cultural Institute. He went to England to take special course on Ethnomusicology and Museum Science from School of Oriental and African Studies, and Leicester University in 1982. Coming back from England he became the director of Rangamati Cultural Institute in 1985.
His work wasn’t one-sided at all. His works were diversified for instance he contributed to literature, research on indigenous issues, culture, music and social work.
First of all we’ll start the discussion with his literary work. As far as his literary work is concerned, he wrote many kinds of books, and essays which were mostly regarding the CHT (Chittagong Hill Tracts) and its culture.
According to Bangla Academy award winner and prominent writer Provangshu Tripra, a total of four books were published by Surendra Lal Tripura. The first book of his was পার্বত্য চট্টগ্রাম পরিচিতি(Introduction to Chittagong Hill Tracts), it was published in 1979.
The rest books of his are namely “ত্রিপুরা পূজা পার্বন(Tripra Worship Festivals), 1990” “ত্রিপুরা বা ককবরকভাষার অভিধান (Dictionary of Tripura Language), 1990” and “পার্বত্য চট্টগ্রামের প্রকৃতি ও সংস্কৃতি (Nature and Culture of Chittagong Hill Tracts), 1994”.
He wrote many essays as well. One of his noteworthy essays is পার্বত্য চট্টগ্রামের উপজাতীয় নৃত্যগীত (Native Musical of CHT) where he translated the 39 verse of a Chakma ballad named “Tanyebir Pala” into Bangla. According to Sugata Chakma, a researcher and former director of Rangamati Cultural Institute, “a book can be published with all the essays that Surendra Lal Tripura has written”. He even wrote a travel story named “থেগাথুমে ২১ দিন (21 Days at Thega) in 1984.
His research is also significant. He used to write research papers on “Upojati Gobeshona Potrika”. The main focus of his research papers was indigenous communities. Two of his referable research papers are “পার্বত্য চট্টগ্রামের ভূমি ও রাজস্বের ইতিহাস (History of land and revenue in the Chittagong Hill Tracts) a 58-page-paper which was the first publication of CHT regarding land and revenue of CHT” and “পার্বত্য চট্টগ্রামের শিক্ষা অগ্রগতির ইতিবৃত্ত (History of education progress in CHT), 1990, a 32-page-paper where he mentioned how many indigenous students of CHT took higher education at that time and made a list of them.
In the list he mentioned all the names of that time’s 46 doctors, 32 agriculturists, 128 engineers and more than five hundred graduates”.
Moreover a great contribution to indigenous research of his is when he was in London collected a lost research paper named “100 Years History” regarding CHT by Nancy C. Burnett. He made a copy of it and brought to Bangladesh.
Apart from literature and research, his most vital work is contributing to the indigenous culture. Because he wasn’t only a good author, he was a great singer, lyricist and composer at the same time. He was trained by singer Priyada Ranjan Dutt and learned classical music by Sachin Devvarma and Niyoto Baran Barua.
Provangshu Tripura says “Surendra Lal Tripura wrote and composed almost 50 songs in his lifetime. He was the first indigenous musician of Bangladesh Betar after the independence of Bangladesh. And 8 of his songs were marketed by ‘Grammo Phone Company’ ”.
Some of his written and composed songs are Oyani Achai Maniho o Bangladesh (Oh my beloved motherland and Bangladesh), Hani Machang Chini Ha (Our Country is Beautiful), Hilye Milebu Jumot Jaide (A hilly Girl Goes to Jum),O Mui Kuchukni Buruima (The Mountain Girl), Dhan Hele Murot Ja Pani Hele Sorat Ja (If you want have rice go to the mountains, if you want to drink water go to a Channel), Karnofuli Dhuli Dhuli Hudu Jebe Hona (where are you located to through Karnafuli?), Murot Hiya Song Jaga (Why there’s a plain land on the mountains?) and many more.
His songs will forever remain a wondrous contribution to the culture of indigenous communities because he was not only limited to Tripura music but also contributed a lot to Chakma and Marma music. In that place his companions refer him as a born artist which he was indeed.
It is also mentionable that he was not a qualified singer only because he could play various instruments which make him a great musician in all forms.
Noteworthy to mention, he was a social worker and a future thinker as well. At a time when higher education for the indigenous was out of reach then he was highly educated in Bengali and English education. So he tried to make as much of an impact as possible for his community from his place.
For instance he was a founder of “Tripura Kolyan Songsod”, raised his voice as an indigenous via his works and songs, wrote many patriotic songs which can inspire the young generation to practice own culture because according to his son Jiban Roaza, Surendra Lal Tripura believed “If we want to gain acquaintance quickly in this world then the only vehicle is ‘Culture’ ”. He even urged to Bangabondhu Sheikh Mujibur Rahman to establish cultural institutes at Khagrachari and Bandarban since there was already a cultural institute in Rangamati, he wondered why it would not be in the other two districts of CHT.
In his 57 year span of life, the effect he left to the indigenous communities is indispensable. He was on that kind of verge when there was a scarce of enough singers. Hence when he was a sub-divisional publicity officer in Ramgarh, he used to go to different areas for office work and sing in both Bangla and Tripura. People used to go cordially to listen to his songs.
Surendra Lal Tripura breathed his last breath on 25thMay, 1996 after one year of his retirement in 1995.
According to Sugata Chakma, “there were many other writings besides his published works which have not been published till date”.Therefore the importance of this type of legends is essential for the indigenous communities. They imaginatively engage the ways to have the sought to nurture the culture of the communities. Their inspirational writings can be used as a powerful tool by Aboriginal people to raise their voices against enormity. That is why it is necessary to preserve the writings and ideology of people like Surendra Lal Tripura.
Written by Saptorshi Dewan
Comments