Music maestro Ramkumar dead

“I am deeply grieved by his death. The way he practised and taught music was unparalleled. His death has left a void in our hearts,” said Chief Minister Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee. Chattyopadhyay had mastered “Shyama” sangeet — a genre of Bengali music in which compositions are designed as encomiums to Goddess Kali. He was also unparalleled in his rendition of “Tappa” songs composed by Nidhu Babu. Besides,his skills lay in giving humorous,quirky twists to traditional forms of music,which were appreciated by Bengali music lovers across borders. Several of his compositions were sarcastic evaluations of the “Babu culture” that thrived in Bengal.

He scored music for two Bengali films — Streer Patra (1972) and more recently Parikrama in 1996.

Banasree Sengupta,a tappa singer herself and an ardent fan of Chattopadhyay,said he is almost irreplaceable in the genre of “Tappa”. “He has been suffering over the last few years but still we wouldn’t miss even a television interview of his,” said Sengupta. She,like most artistes,remembers how deftly he guided his tabla player to beats,crucial to the quirky rendition of Baithaki gaan and tappa.

When Tarun Majumder made a film Nidhu Babur Tappa,music director Hemata Mukhopadhyay didn’t think twice before roping in Chatopadhyay for all his compositions,says the singer.

Singer Haimanti Shukla,whose father was Chattopadhyay’s friend and lived in the same Shovabazar locality,said,“He was always very encouraging of my singing. In 1970,when my first record Mahishasurmardini was released,he was the music director. His guidance is invaluable,” says Shukla.

Singer Biman Mukhopadhyay,who worked on several projects with him,remembers him as a “jolly,playful” person.