Dilip Guha ★ New Delhi : In a remarkable celebration of music, culture and national unity, more than 1,100 voices from across India came together on May 10, 2026, in a rare digitally synchronised musical tribute to Rabindranath Tagore. Titled Chironutan – Shawto Kawntthe Sawhosro Kawnttho, the event commemorated the 165th birth anniversary of the Nobel Laureate through the timeless beauty of Rabindra Sangeet.
What made Chironutan especially distinctive was its pan-India format. Choirs from 11 states and Union Territories — including Delhi-NCR, Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, Telangana, West Bengal, Odisha, Jharkhand, Assam, Maharashtra, Chhattisgarh and Madhya Pradesh — performed the same repertoire simultaneously from their respective venues. Connected through a shared musical track and live streaming, the performances created a unified cultural experience that transcended geographical boundaries.
More than a musical concert, Chironutan emerged as a cultural movement inspired by Tagore’s engagement with grand choral traditions. The initiative was conceptualised and led by Arundhati Deb of Sangeet Bharati Muktadhara, a non-profit cultural institution dedicated to the propagation of Rabindra Sangeet. The organisation is particularly known for its large-scale “thousand voices” presentations, a format unique in India.
The journey began in 2007, when the first Hajar Konthe Robindro Shongeet concert was staged at Netaji Indoor Stadium to commemorate 75 years of the first edition of Tagore’s Geetabitan. From 2007 to 2023, the annual musical gathering brought together nearly a thousand singers at a single venue in Kolkata in a monumental celebration of Rabindra Sangeet.
A major transformation took place in May 2024 with the introduction of a new synchronised national format titled Unmesh. In a pioneering experiment, eleven states performed simultaneously from their respective venues using the same musical track and digital connectivity, allowing a thousand voices across India to sing in harmony despite the physical distance.
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Now in its second edition as Chironutan – Shawto Kawntthe Sawhosro Kawnttho, the programme blended tradition with technological innovation created an immersive artistic experience. The instrumental arrangements were composed and directed by Sourav Chakraborty, while the recitation was rendered by Sounak Chakraborty. The introduction was narrated by Sohini Ghosh. Audiences at each venue also witnessed live streaming from all 11 participating states, reinforcing the sense of national artistic unity. The programme opened with the song He Nutan Dekha Dik Aar Bar. a total seventeen iconic Tagore compositions in a moving collective performance were presented.
The Delhi chapter of the programme was held at the Mavlankar Auditorium at the Constitution Club of India, where a choir of 110 singers from seven music groups across Delhi-NCR The Delhi event was organised by Anondodhoni Gurugram Cultural Society, a Gurgaon-based cultural group that has actively promoted Bengal’s musical heritage in the NCR since 2014 through curated performances and artistic collaborations.
The programme was skilfully anchored by Jahanara Ray Chaudhuri, while Nilanjan Bhattacharya served as the Pan-India Convenor and Mahua Ghosh as the Delhi-NCR Convenor.
The Delhi-NCR segment brought together seven cultural groups from across Gurgaon, CR Park, Dilshad Garden, Greater Noida, Noida Extension, Faridabad and Ghaziabad. The participating groups were mentored by Mahua Ghosh, Prativa Das, Santanu Chakravarty, Subhashree Roy, Suparna Ray, Mousumi Mishra and Swarupa Mukherjee, respectively under the guidance of master trainer Niraj Roy.
Their soulful renditions blended classical discipline with emotional depth, offering audiences a repertoire that reflected both the richness of Tagore’s compositions and the performers’ commitment to preserving his musical legacy. Organisers emphasised that such initiatives strengthened cultural bonds across communities and reaffirmed Rabindra Sangeet as a living tradition that continues to inspire future generations.
Reflecting months of preparation by artists, trainers and organisers across the country, Chironutan culminated in a shared moment of artistic expression and collective harmony. Speaking on the occasion, Mahua Ghosh said the festival had become “a powerful spectacle — a nation singing together in celebration not only of Tagore’s enduring legacy, but also of India’s diversity, unity and collective spirit.”
The programme concluded with resounding applause, reaffirming the enduring relevance of Rabindra Sangeet in contemporary cultural life.
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