Kolkata, May 8: The 151st birth anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore was observed all over West Bengal today with cultural programmes showcasing songs, poems and other forms of Tagore works.
The state government organised a cultural event on Cathedral Road outside Rabindra Sadan where leading singers and elocutionists left the audience spellbound.
Breaking away from the tradition of having the event in the morning, it was decided that to hold it from 2 pm till late evening so that more people could attend, officials said.
Besides recitals by veteran singers, Bengali bands Bhoomi, Dohar and Chandrabindoo also performed there while danseuse Alokananda Roy presented a dance-drama.
At Visva-Bharati University in Santiniketan set up by the bard, the day began early with students singing the ‘Baitalik' (prayer songs).
A special prayer was also held at Udayan, the house where Tagore had celebrated his last birthday in 1941. In the evening, students stage Tagore's dance-drama ‘Chandalika'.
Four books on Tagore was released on the occasion at Santiniketan. One of them is on 150th birth anniversary celebrations by Bangladeshi poet and critic Anisuzzaman.
At Rabindra Bharati University in Kolkata, thespian Rudraprasad Sengupta staged his new play ‘Aamar Priyo Rabindranath' alongwith other cultural programs.
The varsity is also organising the five-day Lokshilpa O Karukriti Mela at Jorasanko Thakurbari, the ancestral home of the Tagore family in north Kolkata.
Celebrated according to the Bengali calendar, Tagore's birthday, known as ‘Pachishe (25th) Baishakh' in Bengali, was declared a public holiday by the state government.
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