Gaganchandra Dam ( bn, গগনচন্দ্র দাম; 1845–1910), mostly known as Gagan Harkara ( bn, গগন হরকরা), was a

Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...

Baul The Baul ( bn, বাউল) are a group of mystic minstrels of mixed elements of Sufism, Vaishnavism and Tantra from Bangladesh and the neighboring Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura and Assam's Barak Valley and Meghalaya. Bauls constitut ...

poet after the tune of whose famous song "

Ami Kothay Pabo Tare ''Ami Kothay Pabo Tare'' ( bn, আমি কোথায় পাবো তারে, "Where shall I meet him") is a Bengali song whose lyrics and tune were written by Baul singer Gagan Harkara The melody of the hymn ''Amar Sonar Bangla'', nationa ...

" (কোথায় পাবো তারে)

Rabindranath Tagore Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...

composed " Amar Shonar Bangla", the national anthem of

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

. In 1975 Bangladeshi pundit Ashraf Al Minar claimed that

copied Gagan Harkara's works.

Early life and background

He resided at Kasba village in

Kumarkhali Kumarkhali (spelt Commercolly in old British Indian documents) is a town in Kushtia District in the Khulna Division of southwestern Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. ...

Upazila in

Kushtia Kushtia ( bn, কুষ্টিয়া) is a city in the Khulna Division of southwestern Bangladesh. Kushtia is the second largest municipality in Bangladesh and the eleventh largest city in the country. The second largest city in Khulna div ...

in present-day Bangladesh. As he was a postman at

Shelaidaha Shilaidaha Kuthibari ( bn, শিলাইদহ) is a place in Kumarkhali Upazila of Kushtia District in Bangladesh. The place is famous for Kuthi Bari; a country house made by Dwarkanath Tagore. Rabindranath Tagore lived a part of life here an ...

Post Office in Kumarkhali, people used to address him as "Harkara"; in

, "Harkara" stands for "postman". He was used to delivering and collecting letters from Rabindranath Tagore during his (Tagore's) days in Shelaidaha. Tagore wrote over him many times in his letters, accumulated in ''Chinnapatra'' to Indira Devi. It was Tagore who first published Harkara's song in his ''Prabashi Patra'' (a magazine) in 1322 BS. Tagore's niece

Sarala Devi Chaudhurani Sarala Devi Chaudhurani (born Sarala Ghosal; 9 September 1872 – 18 August 1945) was an Indian educationist and political activist, who founded Bharat Stree Mahamandal in Allahabad in 1910. This was the first national-level women's organizat ...

published also an essay entitled "

Lalon Fakir Lalon ( bn, লালন; 14 October 1772 – 17 October 1890), also known as Lalon Shah, Lalon Fakir, Shahji and titled Fakir, Shah, was a prominent Bengali spiritual leader, philosopher, mystic poet and social reformer. Regarded as an icon of ...

and Gagan" in Bharati, a mouthpiece of the Tagore family. This essay included two songs of Gagan – "Ami Kothai Pabo Tare" and "(O Mon) Asar Mayai Vule Robe". Rabindranath Tagore collected the songs of Gagan in 1889.

Legacy

Rabindranath Tagore referred to Gagan and his songs in his article: ''An Indian Folk Religion'', songs and speeches.Choudury, A. A. 1992. ''Lalon Shah'' Bangla Academy, Dhaka. Rabindranath Tagore wrote a short story too (''The Postmaster'') partly after his life. Based upon the story,

Satyajit Ray Satyajit Ray (; 2 May 1921 – 23 April 1992) was an Indian director, screenwriter, documentary filmmaker, author, essayist, lyricist, magazine editor, illustrator, calligrapher, and music composer. One of the greatest auteurs of fil ...

made his film: '' The Postmaster.'' Tagore mentioned the following about Gagan:

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Harkara, Gagan Bengali musicians Bengali male poets Performers of Hindu music Year of birth uncertain National anthem writers 1845 births 1910 deaths