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 home ministry team visited Dhubri to take stock of the prevailing law and order scene in the district in the wake of the spreading ethnic clash. Led by home ministry’s joint secretary attached to the north eastern region, Sambhu Singh the team left for Dhubri at 12-30 in the afternoon from Guwahati with a group of high level officials of para military forces. The team reviewed the situation with senior civil and police officials during the day long visit.
Three persons died and several others have been injured at an incident of landslide on the National Highway leading to Shillong on Thursday. The incident took place in Byrnihat at around 5 in the morning when two trucks and a hut were covered with mud on the roadside. Meghalaya policemen rushed to the spot and rescued some of people.
The injured people have been sent to the hospital. The entire portion has been undergoing expansion work. Meanwhile, the landslide has resulted in a huge traffic snarl to and from Guwahati.
A magistrate was seriously injured on his stock taking visit to Kokrajhar on Thursday. The incident took place in the morning when circle officer Bipul Saikia was on the way to inspect the refugee camp in Kokrajhar. All of a sudden, unidentified miscreants started pelting stones at his vehicles leaving him seriously injured. His vehicle was also damaged in the incident.
Assam governor Janaki Ballav Patnaik has appealed to the trouble mongers to abandon the path of violence in any form and work for the promotion of peace, amity; communal harmony. Patnaik, who is currently in Delhi has expressed his deep shock at the on going strings of disturbances in Kokrajhar and Chirang where 41 people lost their lives.
In a statement, he stated that the growth, progress and prosperity of the people are totally dependant on the maintenance of peace, amity and good neighborliness’ among all communities.
Assam Chief Minister Tarun Gogoi is on a stock taking visit to Kokrajhar on Thursday five days after the ethnic clash claimed 42 people in BTAD areas. Gogoi, who flew on helicopter from Guwahati reached the trouble torn Kokrajhar at 11 in the morning and met senior civil, police and para military officials.
He further visited a few refugee camps to oversee the relief measures in the district. Significantly, he skipped his proposed visit to Gossaigaon during his day long visit to BTAD areas. Over two lakh people from 400 villages are living in some 120 relief camps after moving out of the violence hit areas.
Fresh orgy of clashes reported in Bagsa where three people have been on Thursday. The incident took place in Bennabari area under Musolpur police station where three persons have been shot at in the wee hours. They have been rushed to the hospital.
Meanwhile, 13 columns of the Army have been deployed in Kokrajhar, Chirang, Dhubri and Bongaigaon. Idefinite curfew and shoot-at-sight orders are also in place in these four districts that are most affected by the violence.
Assam chief Minister Tarun Gogoi is visiting the Kokrajhar, the worst-hit in the ethnic clash where over 25 people were killed during the last five days. Gogoi is leaving for Kokrajhar in the morning where he is scheduled to hold a high level meeting of army, police and civil heavyweights. Apart from this, Gogoi is scheduled to visit a few refugee camps in the district where displaced people are pouring in. Meanwhile, five cabinet ministers are camping in the trouble torn areas to monitor the situation.
Army on Thursday claimed to have partially brought the situation under control in Kokrajhar and Chirang districts. There is no report of any fresh orgy of clash during the last 12 hours. Meanwhile, passenger and goods trains services had partially resumed on Wednesday evening and the delayed trains were expected to resume their journey with the ‘improvement’ in the situation.
Earlier a total of 30 passenger trains and 20 goods trains carrying grains and medicines were stranded along a thin passage that connects Assam from rest of India.
The ethnic flare up forces thousands of people in Kokrajhar, Chirang and Dhubri to flee to north Bengal. These people, mostly, taking shelter in Alipurduar. But road transport in the West Bengal border district was severally hit near Kumargram area in Jalpaiguri district after borders areas were sealed.
A 12-year-old girl was admitted to the Alipurduar Hospital after being shot at by the miscreants on Wednesday.
Amarjyoti Kalita was brought back to Guwahati a day after Assam police got five days transit remand of the main accused in the GS Road case. A three member team led by senior police officer Ranjan Bhuyan, landed at the Lokpriya Gopinath Bordoloi International Airport in the evening. He was straightly rushed to the Panbazar police station where the special investigation team set up to probe the case start interrogating him in this connection. He was handed over to Assam police in Varansi on Tuesday when he was produced before a local court.
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