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Bhatiali is a type of folk music composed and was sung by the boatmen of Bangladesh. The songs are fitting reminders that Bangladesh or Bengal as a whole is the land of rivers. The mighty flow of the Ganges, Padma, Brahmaputra, Kopotaksha, Tista, Meghna, Madhumati and Buriganga not only brought the Bengal delta to life, it also gave its people one of the cheapest forms of transportation. Also, it's not unusual that lots of people live on boats. The beauty and tranquility of passing of villages, flowing murmurs of water, whistling winds on the sail and the rhythms of baitha (oar) can only bring a touch of poetic creativity to lonely hearts - away from home, separated from loved ones. Sadly, it seems as if life passes them by like the ever flowing Padma. These thoughts become words, words become lyrics and rowing rhythms help to add a tune or two. The river banks, the destination, look close yet far - the longing seems forever. Memorable compositions survive generations, new ones replace the old - creative inspirations will never end. Bengal, known as Bôngo (Bengali:বঙà§à¦—), Bangla (বাংলা), Bôngodesh (বঙà§à¦—দেশ), or Bangladesh (বাংলাদেশ) in Bangla (Bengali), is a region in the northeast of South Asia. ...
Early morning on the Ganges The River Ganges (Ganga in Indian languages) (Devanagiri गंगा) is a major river in northern India. ...
The Padma is a major river in Bangladesh. ...
The Brahmaputra is one of the major rivers of Asia. ...
Teesta could mean: Teesta River — a major river in Sikkim, India Teesta Setalvad — a human and social rights worker based in Bombay. ...
Meghna is an important river in South Asia, one of the three rivers responsible for creating the largest delta on earth, most of which is Bangladesh. ...
The Buriganga River (old Ganges)is the main river flowing beside of Dhaka city, capital of Bangladesh. ...
The Padma is a major river in Bangladesh. ...
The other remarkable feature is the individual developments of Bhatiali, a type of folk music free from religious and sectarian bias. This particular type of music influenced the various groups of songs of the eastern and northern sectors of Bengal. The original musical melody of the riverine districts of the then East Bengal was spontaneous and melancholic in nature. Bhatiali slowly captured the hearts of the people and spread all over Bengal and even outside. Besides these, devotional songs of various religious sects, songs of folk parties, work-songs and narratives, ceremonial or seasonal community songs, dance and tribal songs are prevalent.
The musical structure of Bhatiali, Bhaoaia and Baul are classed as the standard music of the popular type. Songs have been collected and popularised, notations made available and tunes have infiltrated in common music, film tunes and lyrical songs of the poet-composers. Bhatiali is a standard folk music of urban type popularised greatly within half a century. Its subject matter with specific themes, based on definite form of tune and mode of performance, is familiar to a section of composers and artistes of the urban areas. Bhatiali literally means a song of the boatman going down the stream. It is a music of the wide field where the singer just sings and where the presence of no listener is presumed. He starts at once with an exclamation of endearing poignancy, addressed to his love at a distance in the high pitch-note and gradually descends over the seven notes until the tune stops at a point. A simple and plain voice with full throated ease can create wonder in this type of song. Bhatiali is generally described as a sad tune. Originally it was not supposed to be accompanied on musical instruments. The use of Dotara, the string instrument now played with strokes or strummings, making for a few combinations of notes for accompaniment to Bhatiali, Bhaoaia and other types of songs, is a stage in the evolution of this music.
One of the most colourful, rhythmic songs of the Bhatiali group is Sari, sung during boat-race in East Bengal. The song is initiated by a leader standing in the midst of a party of boatmen pulling the oar on the water with beats. Series of sounds in water with rhythmic strokes on the flanks of the boat in a quick tempo. They repeat the leader’s loud song in chorus along with beats. Series of sounds in water and on the boat-side get mixed up with occasional yelling. The subject-matter of Sari is a down-to-the earth thing.
As regards the structure of Bhatiali tune, it may be explained in terms of two modes; firstly, it is in Bilawal That. This means the music starts from the note F (m) of the higher octave with address or exclamination and gradually descends to the lower notes in a drawl. Secondly, the tune starts from the top C (Sa) and D (Re) and gradually descends over the notes of the middle octave in a similar manner to the tonic C (Sa) and then it gradually goes down to the lower octave below tonic C and finally, touching B flat (n) the tune would stop at A (Da) of the lower octave. In the latter case the tune belongs to Khamaj That. For use of the notes below C (Sa) and for some other characteristics the tune is considered to be Raga Jhinjhoti familiar in Bengal. Suresh Chandra Chakraborty refers to the latter as raga Kasauli-jhinjhit.
Thus, the tune on the medium and top octaves represent feature of composition of basic notes of Bilwal and appears to be a blending of ragas like Behag-Pahadi-Jhinjhoti etc. On the whole, it does not satisfy the condition of the structure of a raga. Therefore, Bhatiali maintains an individuality of its own in tune pattern. The alankara-s (graces) include a few groups of trembling notes which look like Taans, may be these are in tune conformity with certain Tappa Taans, spontaneously developed. Sources of these are not known. If the old run of the tune and its local peculiarities are examined, then it would be conceded that Bhatiali was not influenced by Tappa or vice versa. A Geetkari, as used in most medieval music, is used in many types of songs as the only decorative element.
Bhatiali has extended its influence on all types of songs of East and North Bengal. Further, its influence on the rhythmic-patterns of various music-types of those regions is manifest. Some rhythmic patterns and stray fragments of tunes are combined to build songs in full. Occasional break in the voice and in syllables of words, pronounced with rhythmic break in tune, make these songs colourful. Bhatiali was brought to the metropolis roughly by 1930s and some songs were composed in the same mould. Later Abbasuddin Ahmed, Sachin Deb Burman, Girin Chakraborty and some other folk singers introduced Bhatiali - Bhaoaia tunes in popular music. After 1947 singers from East Bengal have stationed themselves in Calcutta. All sections of Bhatiali have been widely popularised through commercial records and radio. But personal touch-up on the original tunes by artistes produces distortion in the form. Singers often lack the sense of the need to preserve original of local colour. This is no doubt harmful to the form of music.
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