Singing Free - songs from Swadhin Bangla Betar Kendra in 1971
Singing free by Faizul Khan Tanim Mora ekti phul ke bachabo boley judhdho kori mora ekti mukh er hashir jonno ostro dhori Words such as these go beyond the tales of Mukti Bahini in 1971 and whip nationalistic feeling. Where words fall short of doing justice to those who gave up their lives for an independent Bangladesh, there are powerful songs of independence that pulsate within hearts of millions and bring memories to life. Irish activist James Connolly once said in 1907 that ‘No revolutionary movement is complete without its poetical expression. If such a movement has caught hold of the imagination of the masses, they will seek a vent in song for the aspirations, the fears and hopes, the loves and hatreds engendered by the struggle. Until the movement is marked by the joyous, defiant, singing of revolutionary songs, it lacks one of the most distinct marks of a popular revolutionary movement; it is a dogma of a few, and not the faith of the multitude’. During the liberation war, pat...