The Chandelier: Sujoy Prasad Chatterjee Celebrates Women Who Dared To Sing Beyond Stigma - EXCLUSIVE

The history of music in Bengal, from the late colonial era to the postcolonial present, bears the indelible mark of courageous women who used their voices - both literal and metaphorical - to shape cultural identity and spark social change. At a time when women’s participation in the public sphere was curtailed by patriarchy, nationalist politics, and colonial modernity, these female musicians carved out spaces of expression, defiance, and agency. These women were often sexualised, dismissed, and trapped within the patriarchal male gaze - and yet, through their talent and tenacity, they transformed cultural narratives.SPCkraft, an interdisciplinary spoken word collective helmed by Sujoy Prasad Chatterjee, seeks to honour these women in its annual

presentation titled The Chandelier. In association with Sanskriti Sagar, the first half of the production will pay tribute to iconic performers such as Malkajan, Begum Akhtar, Indubala, and Kishori Amonkar, among others.

Speaking about the initiative, in an exclusive interaction with Zoom, Sujoy said, “The Chandelier pays homage to women who redefined music and performance in Bengal’s cultural history. The show combines readings, music, and dramatized performances — a truly interdisciplinary approach.”He further added, “Many of the women featured - like Malkajan and Begum Akhtar - navigated stigma and admiration simultaneously. According to Chatterjee, the Tawaifs have a history of 2000 years in this country. “These were women who called the shots, lived their life on their own terms and created music that was universal. Some of them really transcended borders and barriers to become globally acclaimed.”Chatterjee went on to recount how both Malkajan and Begum Akhtar both had to face stigma and admiration. “The Woman's place were essentially in the homes, but these women knocked the parda off and went to create a space for themselves.”“The negotiation and the tension was the spaces that they had to traverse,” he signed off.The annual SPCkraft showcase opens on October 11 in Kolkata. Anchors Sharmishtha Goswami Chatterjee and Shubhayan Sengupta will open the evening, followed by a soulful performance by Koyel Basu. The first act, presented in association with Sanskriti Sagar, will celebrate the legacy of these pioneering women through directed readings led by Suparna Datta, complemented by Rajoshi Bhattacharya on vocals, Kamlesh Mishra on sarangi, and Timir Baran Chakraborty on tabla. The second half of the programme, presented in association with Ensemble, will feature Sohag Sen, Sohini Sengupta, and Sujoy Prasad Chatterjee in dramatised readings from Sunday, Arunava Sinha’s translation of Rabindranath Tagore’s original short story. The performances will be beautifully interspersed with a violin recital by Sandipan Ganguly.