A Survey on the Reflection of Public Life in the Traditional folk song Dhamail of Unakoti District, Tripura/ ত্রিপুরা রাজ্যের ঊনকোটি জেলায় প্রচলিত ধামাইল গানে প্রতিফলিত জনজীবন : একটি সমীক্ষা

Abstract

Folk music is the most popular and widely circulated branch of Bengali folklore. It is difficult to determine the exact number of years since the creation of folk music. Since the dawn of civilization, music has been intricately connected with human life. Music serves as the only refuge for joy, sorrow, and anguish. Like classical music, melody is the main attraction and source of pleasure in folk music. "Folk music" primarily originates from rural life. It carries the essence, fragrance, and true nature of the common people. This music is deeply infused with the traditions, beliefs, and religious practices of rural life, reflecting various colors and aromas of folk culture. Most importantly, the language of folk music is highly regional.

           During the Partition of India and the Liberation War, countless people were forced to leave their ancestral homes and move to West Bengal, Tripura, and Assam. These displaced individuals could bring nothing with them except their culture. Literature serves as a mirror of society, and accordingly, the impact of Partition has been meticulously reflected in Bengali literature. Due to this displacement, the refugees who migrated to these regions gradually blended their culture with that of the native population through long-term coexistence. The songs, rhymes, stories, rituals, dramas, proverbs, and sayings brought by the people from East Bengal merged seamlessly with the cultural fabric of both Bengals.

            Folk music is dominated by the melody of Bhatiyali. Just as different regions develop their unique characteristics based on natural surroundings, folk music in this country has also evolved by embracing nature. The landscape of Bangladesh is not uniform everywhere—some areas are barren and rocky, some have undulating terrain, some face drought, while others suffer from river erosion. Due to these regional differences, folk music has not attained a universal form but has instead developed distinctive regional variations. For instance, Bhawaiya in the northern part of the country, Bhatiyali in the eastern region, and Baul songs in the southwestern part are prominent examples.

            Additionally, the rivers in different regions of Bangladesh have distinct characteristics. For example, the nature of the Padma, Meghna, Surma, and Dhaleshwari rivers is different from that of the Madhumati, Ichamati, and Bhairab rivers. Consequently, the bond between people and rivers varies across regions. As a result, the creation and evolution of folk music in different regions take on unique dimensions, distinct from one another.