Bengal, it is said, has not produced many great khayal singers, but it is generally agreed that Vishmadev Chattopadhyay, whose centenary celebrations started on November 8, was an exception. His voice, which often sounded like a quaint musical instrument, has not lost any of its charm or sweetness.

Vishmadev (in picture ) excelled in Bengali ragpradhan songs, introduced a new type of sargam in khayal and thumri, and was a gifted harmonium player. Four of his songs are in UNESCO’s archives.

Vishmadev was born at Sarai village of Hooghly district and was a child prodigy. He was initially trained by Nagendranath Datta, and later by Badal Khan of Delhi gharana.

Nazrul Islam admired Vishmadev’s singing and persuaded him to join Megaphone Record Company in 1933 as music director-cum-trainer. He joined the Film Corporation as music director in 1937, and composed the score for 12 films.

A deeply religious man, he abandoned his career in music for the seclusion of Pondicherry Ashram. After eight years he returned, only to die within a year in 1977. A man of few words, he loved good food and was addicted to tea, paan and films at Metro cinema.

Vishmadev’s range and repertoire were wide but few of his 78 rpm discs have survived. So Megaphone’s double CD of his khayals, thumris, bhajans and ragpradhan Bengali songs is a treat for music lovers. It has many songs like Piu piu rata, Jaago aalok lagane and Nabaruna rage that were popular in Bengali homes. There could not have been stronger evidence of the superior musical tastes of those times.