There is More Support for Solo Artistes in Bangladesh: Sahana Bajpaie
She straddles three cities across two continents. Shuttling between London, Kolkata, and Dhaka, Sahana Bajpaie squeezes out time from her busy schedule to speak to RBN. Excerpts.
What is keeping you busy these days?
Music. What else? The thing that I love doing the most (laughs).
You recently released a single on an on-demand digital entertainment platform. Will this be the trend for solo artistes in the days ahead?
Yes, of course. People don’t buy albums these days. This is the way ahead and we have to embrace it. Even if an artiste gets no sponsors, he/she can release it on the internet. You don’t have to depend on the whims and fancy of a music company. The entire thing is in your hands, whether you want to release a full album, or just a couple of songs. In fact, I think more artistes should actually follow this trend.
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In India, solo artistes and basic songs are hugely overshadowed by film music. How is the situation in Bangladesh?
Well, it’s a lot different in Bangladesh. Solo artistes and bands get lots of sponsors there. Basic songs are hugely popular in Bangladesh and they also get proper exposure.
Is the language a major issue here?
Sure. The entire Bangladesh speaks one uniform language. India, on the other hand, is a multicultural entity with each region having its own language. So the popularity of a regional song will be limited to a particular area. But the bottom line is that more sponsors and patrons should come out to support Bengali music. If the revenues don’t come in, people won’t take to music as a career option. Not everybody can get into film music.
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And your future projects?
I am planning to release a few more singles. That aside, I am doing playback for a number of films, both in India and Bangladesh.
Pic: Manik Mondal