Minoti Khaund: The evergreen violinist of 70's musical world of Assam, she is undoubtedly one of the most popular violinist today and can equally be placed among the best. With her disarming smile and charming manner, the bespectacled Minoti Khaund exudes a comfortable air: music, she says takes her closet to divinity and accords her peace and tranquility. It is an invigorating experience which exalts her spirits.
Born in a well to do Phukan paribar of Jorhat. Her father Manik Chandra Phukan and mother Nalini Debi. She was raised in a culturally rich atmosphere. Her maternal grandfather: Bisheswar Sharma, well-known Tea planter and a culturally gharana of Jorhat. Being a connoisseur of the fine arts himself encouraged Minoti and bought her a violin. So, she started to play at a tender age of 10.
Minoti had her early training in violin from Shri Indreswar Sarma of Jorhat, in the music school of late Darpanath Sarma. She performed in several concerts and festivals and the turning point in her life came when she was performing at the All Assam Music Conference in 1972 and violin maestro Pt. V.G.Jog heard her on stage and offered to impart his art to Minoti. Her husband Kabindra Ram Khaund and the daughter in law of Deputy Commissioner Rabindra Ram Khaund a traditional family of Assam supported her and started her apprenticeship under Pt .Jog. Thereafter started the traditional Gururshisya Parampara between Minoti and Padmavibhusahan Pt Jog.
The Rising Talent Conference at Kalamandir Calcutta in 1978 introduced Minoti as a talented artiste. There has been no looking back since then. The Amir Khan Music Conference at Rabindra Sadan Calcutta, Benaras, Burdwan, Cuttack, Bhubaneshwar, Tatanagar, Rabindra Natya Mandir mumbai, India International Center Delhi, Mehta Memorial Hall Allahabad, IIT Festival, Shankardev Kalakshetra Guwahati, National Gallery of Modern Art Mumbai, India Habitat Centre Delhi, Women's International Forum Goa, Madhusudhan Manch Kolkatta etc were the platforms that Minoti performed in and enthralled the audience and press alike. She became the foremost violinist of Assam. She was conferred the title of Sangeet Jyoti.
Minoti started her parallel studies in the field of music and attained Sangeet Nipune from Prayag Sangeet Samitti, Allahabad, in 1986, bagging a gold medal for her Sangeet Visharad. During this period she also got associated with vocalist Pt. A.T, Kanan of the Sangeet Research Academy, Kolkatta and imbibed the "gayaki ang" in her style. She also underwent music studies in the field of raga improvisations and rhythmic patterns of "tala" from sarod maestro and musicologist Pt. Buddhadev Dasgupta.
Sunita Bhuyan is a violinist of the Hindustani style and has carved a niche for herself as an upcoming musician of India. Recepient of the Indira Gandhi Priyadarshini award for Music. She was initiated into musicat a tender age by her mother Minoti Khaund. The mother daughter duo of Minoti and Sunita have performed duets all over the country and abroad, regaling the audience and the press alike with their "jugalbandi". What makes her great is: selection of her tune, her style of presentation and she stried to give a semi-classical touch which has a blend of folk western classical.
Sunita has attained a master's degree in Hindustani Music from Prayag Sangeet Samitte, with a distinction and has also studied advanced music under the apprenticeship of violin maestro Padmabibhushan Late Pt V.G. Jog.
Minoti Khaund, the award winning violin master whose musical career spanning 50 years. She has been awarded the prestigious Silpi Bata this year by Govt. of Assam.
A violin recital by Minoti Khaund and her daughter Sunita Bhuyan are on an exclusive UK tour at the prestigious Nehru Centre (the Cultural wing of Indian High Commission) on 26th June and other British cities: Manchester: Kalapremi mandal, Birmingham and Nottingham organized by Rini Kakati, NRI Co-ordinator for UK.
Also the Glasgow concert is organized by Mrs. Anima Sharma, an active member of Lancashire Hindu Association.
A senior official of a Chennai-based firm has been missing since Sunday from near Kaziranga National Park.
According to police, Ganapat Kumar, a project engineer of Afcon Infrastructure, went missing while he was on his way back to his official residence in the city. His wife had lodged an FIR at Jorhat sadar police station on Monday. Afcon Infrastructure has been operating at various places in Assam including in Cachar, Jorhat, Golaghat and Sivasagar districts in the past couple of years.
Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi on Tuesday claimed to have improved the state’s law and order front. Replying to the motion of thanks on the floor of the Assam assembly he said the negotiation process with militant groups should go on.
He said that his government can’t wait so much for the presence of ULFA C-in-C Paresh Barua and that the talks should be carried forward. He said,”talks have been started with both the groups of NDFB and other smaller ultra groups and we are keen that the anti-talk faction of the ULFA should also join the process.
In a major sigh of relief, suspected KPLT militants have freed Chief Conservator of Forest Abhijit Rabha and Range Officer Ranjan Barua in Karbi Anglong district on Tuesday.
The duo were freed near a highway at Bokolia in the hills district on Monday midnight. Police rescued them in the wee hours before being taken to a hospital in Diphu for treatment. The abductors had reportedly demanded a ransom of one crore rupee as ransom. The duo were kidnapped on Sunday when they were returning from Sighasan Hills where they had gone with a 60-member delegation, including some Japanese botanists to conduct a forest department survey.
An Aligarh Muslim University-like varsity is likely to be set up in Assam. But the Centre must approve the proposal Dispur sent to Delhi recently.
Disclosing this on the floor of the Assam Assembly on Tuesday, education minister Dr Himanta Biswa Sarma said that the proposal was made to Union Human Resource Development Minister Kapil Sibal recently during his visit to Delhi. If the proposal is given the go-ahead, Assam would have a university on the lines of Aligarh Muslim University and Jamia Millia, which have been granted the status of minority university.
The Manab Adhikar Sangram Samiti on Tuesday urged the Assam government to emulate the chief ministers of West Bengal, Odisha, Bihar and Tamil Nadu and oppose the National Counter Terrorism Centre (NCTC).
MASS general secretary Dilip Patgiri told said that the proposed NCTC is against the federal structure of the Indian constitution and there is no need for creation of such a body.
He said that Assam did not require any draconian law as most of the militant and separatist groups have come ahead for negotiations with the government.
Chief Conservator of Forests Abhjit Rabha and Ranger Ranjan Baruah were released unharmed at about 1030 hrs IST near Bokoliaghat Forest Range Office last night. What first appeared to be a rumour was confirmed by Bakoliaghat Police. The duo were found approaching Bakoliaghat by forest patrolmen in the morning and brought to the Bakoliaghat Range Office. Superintendent of Police B.B Chetry rushed to Bakoliaghat and escorted them back to Diphu Civil Hospital. Even though declared to be otherwise fit they are yet under physical checkup and are being administered upon.Family members of both the officers are in Diphu with them. Rabha and Baruah accidently fell into the hands of insurgents on...
Leopards are still unleashing terror in among the residents of Guwahati. Local residents in Maligaon area rescued full grown leopard on Sunday.
The full grown leopard was spotted at a deep gorge in Gotanagar in the morning and rescue it. Later, it was handed over to the forest officials.
Normal functionings at the Lepetkota gas cracker project have come to a grinding halt following the workers protest over the CISF firing where one worker died and three others injured. A high level meeting of the Gas cracker officials, district administration failed to break the logjam. On the other hand, Dibrugarh district ATTSA has called for 12 hour district bandh on Monday in protest against the incident.
A NEEPCO owned power transmission tower damaged in Sivasagar district on Sunday when ULFA’S Paresh Baruah faction exploded a powerful bomb.
Three IEDs, weighing nearly a kg, were planted on the power transmission tower and one of them exploded in the morning. The other two IEDs were later defused by the army bomb squad. The tower transmits electricity from Assam Power Generation Corporation Limited's Lakwa Thermal Power Station at nearby Maibella.
Dispur is waiting for Centre’s clearance to carry out joint operations with Arunachal Pradesh against Maoists.
Director General of Police Jayanta Narayan Choudhury said in Jorhat that they had sent reports to the Union Home Ministry and were waiting for its nod to flush out Maoists along with Arunachal Pradesh government from the area.
He said the Maoists were also working with some over ground organisations for fresh recruitment and extortion drive in certain areas of upper Assam.
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