Under the rebel poet's shadow

A lone banyan tree spreads its branches wide, offering shade to those who need shelter from the sun. Located on the campus of Jatiya Kabi Kazi Nazrul Islam University (JKKNIU) in Trishal of Mymensingh, the unassuming tree is actually very famous owing to the spot it is located in. It is said to have grown in the exact spot of another tree under which Kazi Nazrul Islam sat and played his flute, the melody wafting from his instrument mesmerising passersby while offering a first glimpse of the legend in the making.

Currently, the tree has become a place where the university students and teachers gather for different purposes. It is a spot mainly for cultural activities and also serves as an open gallery for fine arts students, said Nagarbashi Barman, head of the Department of Fine Arts. “We feel inspired when we use the shade of the banyan tree as a gallery.” The spot is currently being highlighted as students and teachers of the university celebrate three days of festivities to mark the 118th birth anniversary of the national poet. 

Mamunul Islam, who completed his master's from the university's music department, said the impression of the banyan tree would be ever memorable for the students. “When we used to perform under its shade, the feelings evoked were always boundless', he added.

Photo: Collected

The tree is a living memory of Nazrul, said Urmila Bhowmick, an honours final year student of the music department. Echoing similar feelings, Syed Mamun Reza, an assistant professor of theatre and performance studies suggested that the surrounding area of the banyan tree should be decorated well to make the spot more attractive and become the perfect gathering place for poets, writers and artistes.

From “Nazrul Jiboner Trishal Oddhya”, a book written by Rashedul Anam, it is learnt that Nazrul, born in 1899, stayed at Kazir Shimla and Darirampur in Trishal for a year in his boyhood years and studied at Darirampur High School, now known as Nazrul Academy. People of this area thus share a special bond with the rebel poet.

Interestingly, it was Kazi Rafizullah, a police sub-inspector then working at Bardwan in West Bengal, who took Nazrul to his Kazir Shimla village in 1913 and admitted him in class VI at the school, said Anam.

Nazrul later shifted his lodging to Bechutia Bepari's house of Trihsal Namapara to ease his troublesome six-mile journey from Kazir Shimla.

Reports abound that Nazrul passed his free time in his formative years at Namapara, playing a flute under the banyan tree on the way to his school. 

Nazrul left Trishal for West Bengal in the same year. Initiated by PA Nazir, the then deputy commissioner of Mymensingh who also hailed from Bardwan in West Bengal, celebrations for Nazrul in Trishal began with much fanfare in 1965, Anam added.

Earlier, locals also used to organise Nazrul celebrations on their own, he said. To preserve the bard's legacy, JKKNIU, was established at Trishal Namapara in 2005.

The university current has 5000 students in its 19 departments under four faculties consisting of arts, business administration, science and engineering and social science. In 2015, the university introduced four scholarships to honour four members of Nazrul's family-Promila Devi, Kazi Aniruddha, Kazi Sabbyasachi and Bulbul.

Two open stages --“Gahi Sammoyer Gaan” and “Churulia” and two spots--“Chhabishala Bottala” and “Charuswip”, have further added a shine to the university.