Map of a Life

Far away from Bengal (where the Bard is “so imbued in the culture that it becomes impossible to be objective about his work”),in the historical city of Rome,Reba Som rediscovered Rabindranath Tagore. “I accompanied my diplomat husband around the world and would perform Tagore songs in cultural functions. I translated the lyrics of the songs I presented,for a better undertstanding of their mood among audiences unfamiliar with Bengali. During one such performance in Rome I found another perspective to savour the sense of the words,reflect on their deep philosophy. They acquired a new meaning,” says Som. The result of this “new perspective” is the book Rabindranath Tagore ; The Singer and His Song,which was launched in Kolkata recently.

The book,claims Som,“maps out chronologically the musical journey of the poet with anecdotes and allusions”. “I felt it’s impossible to write his biography without using his songs as its leitmotif. Strangely enough,most English biographies of Tagore hardly upon his songs Maybe because the writers found the task of translating his songs daunting,” says Som,a renowned historian and cultural director of the Rabindranath Tagore Centre,Kolkata. Translating Tagore songs came naturally to Som. “I have been doing it for so long. Moreover,my attempt was to transcreate. I didn’t want the language to be archaic and alienating,” she says.

The Singer and his Song also attempts to humanise the man. “The deification of Tagore is problematic. It stops us from understanding his work. My book tries to see him as a human being with frailties. Tagore toohas made mistakes in his life and his mistakes and are very important because he expresses them in his songs,” says Som. The book also explores how much of what Tagore experienced in his life is expressed in his songs. “His frustration with the political movement for freedom,his personal grief over the premature deaths of family membe,everything is expressed in his songs. They map his life,” sums up Som.