Acclaimed singer Papia Sarwar dies
Ekushey Padak winning acclaimed Rabindra Sangeet singer Papia Sarwar has passed away while undergoing medical treatment at a private hospital in the city.
She was 72.
She breathed her last at 8:00 am Thursday, Papia Sarwar’s husband Sarwar Alam confirmed this to Prothom Alo.
He further said the body will be kept at the mortuary of BIRDEM General Hospital. She will be buried at Banani graveyard after her namaz-e-janaza after Juma prayers Friday.
Papia had been suffering from cancer for the past few years.
She was undergoing treatment at a hospital in the city’s Bashundhara residential area in November. Later, she was admitted to a private hospital in Tejgaon.
She left behind her husband and two children to mourn her death.
Her elder daughter, Zara Sarwar is an assistant professor of biology at the College of New Jersey, while her younger daughter, Jisha Sarwar is an executive with the ministry of finance in Canada.
Papia Sarwar was born in Barishal on 21 November, 1952. A Rabindranath-enthusiast from childhood, Papia got admitted at Chhayanaut in class-VI.
Later, she enrolled at Bulbul Academy of Fine Arts (BAFA). She had been singing as a listed artiste for radio and television since 1967. She was a student of the zoology department at the University of Dhaka.
In 1973, she went to India with a scholarship from the Indian government to pursue a degree in Rabindra Sangeet at Visva-Bharati University in Santiniketan.
She was the first person to have the opportunity of completing graduation in India with Indian government’s scholarship following the independence of Bangladesh.
Earlier, she had received music lessons from Wahidul Haque, Sanjida Khatun, and Zahedur Rahim at Chhayanaut. Her first audio album was released in 1982. The album was titled ‘Papia Sarwar’ after her own name.
In her extensive musical career, Papia Sarwar earned the love of millions of audience for singing Rabindra Sangeet. Her unique voice and singing style had garnered acclaims in the music industry.
She had been successful in the genre of Adhunik Bangla songs as well. One of her songs, ‘Nai Telephone Nai Re Pion Nai Re Telegram’, brought her immense popularity among the common Bangla music audience.
According to experts with musical knowledge, Papia Sarwar was quite conscious about her selection of modern songs and that’s why she has a fewer number of albums. Her last album, ‘Akashpane Hath Baralam’, was released in 2013.
The same year, Papia Sarwar received the Rabindra Award from the Bangla Academy. Later, she received the Bangla Academy Fellowship in 2015. In 2021, she was recognised with the Ekushey Padak.
At one time, Papia Sarwar served as the general secretary of the National Rabindra Sangeet Sammilan Parishad. Lastly, she was a member of the executive committee of this Parishad. In 1996, this acclaimed artiste had established a musical group named ‘Gitasudha’.