Coke Studio Bangla: Season 1 culminates with Salil Chowdhury's Hei Samalho

After running a successful season 1, Shayan Chowdhury Arnob and his friends chose Salil Chowdhury’s iconic protest number Hei Samalho to culminate the show. Along with this song, Abdul Latif’s Ora Amar Mukher Kotha is blended well to bid adieu to the acclaimed musical journey. Arnob, the curator and producer of season 1, has already started working on the second season. As per sources, Ustad Rashid Khan will feature in the next season. 

Meanwhile, Hei Samalho is presented by a bunch of musicians, including Bappa Mazumder, Samina Chowdhury, Shayan Chowdhury Arnob, Sunidhi Nayak, Rituraj Baidya, Warda Ashraf, Armeen Musa, Sanzida Mahmood Nandita, Masha Islam, Dilshad Nahar Kona, Rubayat Rehman, Jannatul Firdous Akbar, Sinha Hasan, Boga Taleb and Animes Roy. A group of musicians from the Mro community of the Bandarban area begins the song with their indigenous flute. The presentation also delves into the legacy of protest movements in India and Bangladesh. While Salil Chowdhury’s song is inspired by the 1946-1948 Tebhaga Movement, Abdul Latif’s number speaks of the language movement of 1952. 

Within a day of its release, the song has garnered love from critics and netizens alike. Arnob’s curation of the season and presentation of the song have been lauded by music enthusiasts from Bangladesh and India. 

Earlier, in an interview with us, Arnob said, “From the beginning, we aimed to bring in all kinds of musicians. In the first season, we have a blend of folk, rap, Indian classical, jazz and everything possible. I want to bring all the sounds together, and give the musicians the freedom to make music. And that’s how we choose the songs.” As he started preparing for the second season, Arnob said that he was looking forward to working with Ustad Rashid Khan. “It will allow me to learn,” he said.