Chirkut will perform live on today’s phone-live concert “Close Up Call” at 9:45pm on DeshTV. The band has made quite an impact in the music arena of Bangladesh with rock, alternative rock and soft music.
Chirkut’s fame has transcended the borders of Bangladesh and reached foreign shores. They performed at various reputed international music festivals, such as the India Music Week and the Jaffna Music Festival, Sri Lanka, Norway, Brazil, Palestine, India and Bangladesh, with more than twenty international artists, where they have presented new dimensions of Bangladeshi band music to acclaim.
Recently, Chirkut just came home from a grand tour of Norway with Norwegian rockers Casa Murilo. They performed in six live concerts in different cities, and participated in studio recording sessions in collaboration with Casa Murilo, one of the best bands in Norway.
Recently Dhaka Tribune caught up with the vocalists of the band, Pintu (vocal, violin and flute) and Sharmin Sultana Sumi (vocals, lyrics) to learn about their newfound experience and recent ventures:
How was the experience?
Sumi: It was amazing to say the least. The tour was a mark of respect for us and we are very grateful to our Norwegian and international fans. The organisers excelled and exceeded all our expectations; all the arrangements were professional and top notch. The best part was when we heard our remix of “Kanamachhi” and Casa Murilo’s “Take no more” being played in the Norwegian national radio and they were talking about Bangladesh. We felt like international celebrities.
Pinto: It was excellent. The experience was overwhelming as many Bangladeshis residing in Scandinavian countries came from far and away to enjoy our show. I think, it is by far our best performance platform. It was a very respectable event.
What was the response from foreign music lovers?
Sumi: Music has its own language. They did not understand the meaning of our lyrics as they were from different countries. But, they communicated with us through our music. We have done live shows on Norwegian National Radio and our performance was covered by the newspapers as well. Tickets of our shows were all sold out. We have been offered to perform in other European countries as well.
Pinto: It was great. It was our first tour in Europe. The response was huge. Although the crowd was not Bangla speaking, they sang our songs with us.
How has the trip enriched their music? What do they think about the prospect of folk fusion genre in the international platform?
Sumi: The synchronisation with Casa Murilo was great. They found our music very versatile and unique. The concerts were grand events with best instrument, sound system and equipment. We learned a lot at this tour about the art of performing live and our drummer Pavel Areen, has learnt many things about sound producing through this tour. We are very thankful to our audience, band Casa Murilo and the organisers. The international audiences gave a standing ovation after our performances.
Pinto: They were very interested about our folk fusion genre. They wanted to learn our tones of music and wanted to know the meaning of our lyrics. Their appreciation reached such heights that they learned a Bangla song and performed with us.
How is the response for the new album Jadur Shohor?
Pinto and Sumi: The album was released on August 2 and so far, the response is great.
Tell us about your upcoming projects.
Pinto: We are planning to perform in more international shows in different countries. Also, we are taking some time to work on our music.
Sumi: We will release a documentary on our last three international tours and we have completed shooting of a music video.
