West Bengal singer Rupankar Bagchi and Bangladeshi artiste Joy Shahriar have released a new joint album, ‘Gaaner Pothe Dekha’, bringing together eight songs from a musical association that has spanned nearly a decade.
Released under the banner of Aajob Records, the album features an equal contribution from its two principal vocalists. Rupankar has performed four of the tracks, while Joy Shahriar has lent his voice to the remaining four. Joy has composed all eight songs featured on the collection.
The album brings together songs written by several Bangladeshi lyricists, including Kabir Bakul, Someshwar Oli, Mahmud Manjur, Ishtiaq Ahmed, Maruf Hasan and Joy Shahriar. Their contributions give the collection a range of lyrical voices while maintaining Joy’s compositions as its musical foundation.
The eight tracks are ‘Nei Je Proyojon’, ‘Kemon Kore’, ‘Aay Phirey’, ‘Sholo Anai Michhe’, ‘Kemon Achho Tumi’, ‘Tumi’, ‘Oshukh’ and ‘Bhalo Achhi’. The songs were created at different times during the two artistes’ professional association and have now been brought together as a single album.
For Rupankar, the release marks the culmination of years of creative work with Joy Shahriar. Reflecting on their association, he said they had been working together for nearly a decade and described Joy as one of his favourite lyricists and composers in Bangladesh.
Rupankar said he was pleased that songs developed at different points in their collaboration could finally be released together as an album. He also expressed hope that listeners would connect with and enjoy the collection.
Joy Shahriar, meanwhile, spoke of his admiration for Rupankar both as a musician and as a person. He described the West Bengal singer as someone very close to him and said that working with him had consistently been a joyful and enriching experience.
Praising Rupankar’s contribution to Bangla music, Joy said the singer’s talent sets him apart among Bangla-language artistes. He also described the album as one of the most cherished achievements of his musical journey.
The project brings together artistes from Bangladesh and West Bengal through a shared language and musical tradition. Their collaboration has developed over several years rather than being limited to the production of this particular release, with the new album serving as a collection of work accumulated during that period.
With four songs performed by each singer and all eight compositions by Joy Shahriar, ‘Gaaner Pothe Dekha’ presents the two artistes in complementary roles. It also gives listeners a chance to hear songs that reflect a longstanding creative partnership between musicians working on opposite sides of the Bengal region.
For both singers, the album carries a personal significance beyond its eight-track format. It gathers earlier collaborations into one release while marking another stage in a musical relationship that has continued for almost a decade.
