Minar moves forward with music
Very few artistes can say that they started their career at 15 years of age, but that's exactly what Minar Rahman did with his album, "Danpite". Over almost two decades, he has given us hits like "Shada", "Jhoom", "Ahare", "Deyale Deyale", "Karone Okarone", "Keu Kotha Rakheni" and dozens of others.
"I walked into G-Series with a three-quarter pant and a hand-designed demo," said Minar. The interview was taken while we were driving to a fast-food eatery. "Khaled bhai (proprietor of G-series) was impressed by the presentation, and told me to come back the next day after listening to the songs." Little did he know that he had a surprise waiting, in the form of Tahsan. "Khaled bhai had made him listen to 'Shada', and Tahsan bhai told me that he had never heard anything like that before, and he was ready to arrange the music for this album".
Minar is a self-taught musician, who also takes pride in being an artist. "Everything that I know, I have taught myself – be it my music or art." He is the author of "Rudro Ebong Ekti Grand Piano", a comic book named "Gablu", and often implements his art in his music videos, like his latest song, "Tomar Oi Duto Chokh". "I'm actually looking to regularly draw, be it for newspapers or columns, because practice is crucial for any form of art."
What further differentiates the artiste from others is his own YouTube channel, on which the organic reach is outstanding. "Keu Kotha Rakheni" has almost reached the milestone of 70 million views, parallel to "Jhoom", which crossed this milestone. "Although I obviously can't keep all of my songs on my channel because some of them have been uploaded by labels, I pour my heart out to whatever songs that I write – music is my only passion, and I feel like I was put on earth to do this exact thing."
He admits that this long journey has not always been smooth. "Since I entered this industry at such a young age, I've had to learn from my previous naiveness. I've been betrayed monetarily by people I trusted, and was a victim of yellow journalism," said Minar, visibly distraught while bringing up those painful memories.
The singer is ready to take the next step in life now, having achieved the adoration of fans and listeners that most musicians dream of. "At this point in life, I am ready to 'settle down' in the conventional sense if I find the right person," he said, after being repeatedly badgered by my question. "I am a family-oriented person, and at some point, everyone needs a partner to motivate them in life."
So, what is the artiste looking for in a partner? "Well, she has to be a good, honest person, and that's pretty much it." While we are yet to have found the lucky woman with a lifetime of free passes to Minar's concerts, here's to hoping that we can finally write the delightful news about his wedding.