Kabir-Lalon music festival to tour eight divisions

A nationwide festival exploring the philosophy, music and humanist traditions of Kabir and Lalon Shah will be held across all eight divisions of Bangladesh from September 11 to October 30.

Organised by Lalon Bishwasangha with support from the Ministry of Cultural Affairs, the “Kabir-Lalon Bhab Sangeet Utsab” will bring together researchers, academics, spiritual practitioners and musicians from Bangladesh and India for discussions and performances centred on the two influential figures.

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The festival will open at 5:30pm on September 11 on the premises of Bangladesh Shilpakala Academy in Segunbagicha, Dhaka.

State Minister for Cultural Affairs Ali Nawaz Mahmud Khayyam will attend the inaugural programme as chief guest, while freedom fighter and veteran politician Advocate Md Fazlur Rahman, MP, will inaugurate the festival. Indian High Commissioner to Bangladesh Dinesh Trivedi will attend as special guest.

The opening ceremony will be chaired by philosopher Prof Emeritus Dr Ahsanul Hadi, vice-chancellor of Global University of Bangladesh and chairman of Lalon Bishwasangha. The organisation’s chief executive, Abdel Mannan, will deliver the welcome address.

The inaugural session will feature discussions on the philosophies, ideas and music of Kabir and Lalon. Speakers will include Prof Dr Muhammad Asaduzzaman, director of the International Mother Language Institute and professor of linguistics at the University of Dhaka; Dr Priyanka Gope, chairperson of the university’s Department of Music and a classical vocalist; and Dr Ahsanul Hadi, a researcher of Sufi traditions and professor of Persian Language and Literature at the University of Dhaka.

Veteran Lalon practitioner Fakir Abul Hossain Shah, Kabir practitioner Nijhum Painka, Dr MK Ray, representing Gurudwara Nanakshahi, Dhaka, and researcher Syed Faiyaz Hasan Babu will also speak.

Alongside the discussions, musicians from Kabir-, Ravidas- and Nanak-oriented communities will perform devotional songs associated with Kabir and Lalon. Artistes from the University of Dhaka’s Department of Music and the Kabir-Lalon Musical Mission will also take part.

Following the Dhaka inauguration, the festival will travel across the country. Programmes will be held at Barishal District Shilpakala Academy on September 18 and Khulna District Shilpakala Academy on September 19.

The festival will then travel to Sherpur District Shilpakala Academy on September 25, Rajshahi District Shilpakala Academy on October 2 and Rangpur District Shilpakala Academy on October 4.

The Chattogram programme will be held at Chattogram District Shilpakala Academy on October 23, before the festival concludes at the District Council Multipurpose Auditorium in Sreemangal on October 30, representing Sylhet division.

According to the organisers, the festival aims to introduce wider audiences to the humanist, non-sectarian and inclusive philosophies found in the works and spiritual traditions of Kabir and Lalon.

Through discussions and music, the festival will explore their ideas surrounding humanity, communal harmony and self-discovery, while bringing together scholars and practitioners from different traditions.

Kabir, a 15th-century Indian mystic poet, is associated with a spiritual tradition that challenged religious divisions and emphasised a direct search for truth. Lalon Shah, one of Bengal’s most influential mystic philosophers and songwriters, similarly created a body of work centred on humanity, spiritual inquiry and the questioning of social and religious boundaries.

With programmes scheduled across Dhaka, Barishal, Khulna, Mymensingh, Rajshahi, Rangpur, Chattogram and Sylhet divisions, the festival will run for nearly seven weeks before concluding on October 30.