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Banyan Roots

Banyan Roots

De : Lucia Thomas
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Banyan Roots is a podcast series in which songs and discussions from the Baul and Fakir, musical mystics of West Bengal, India and Bangladesh, guide conversations on history, ethnomusicology, and spirituality. Come curious listeners—musicians, scholars, spiritual seekers, and anyone drawn to traditional music and living devotional practices.

Featuring original field recordings of spontaneous jams and interviews with Baul musicians and teachers, each episode explores different themes of Baul philosophy - from awareness of the body and the breath, to the tangled roots of Bengal’s devotional traditions: Vaishnava Kirtan, Sufi Qawwali, and even traces of Vajrayana Buddhism. Listeners will be taken on an immersive journey through the remote villages of Bengal, experiencing aurally the chaotic streets, the heated debates, and the intoxicated mad music.

Banyan Roots is produced by Gene Nemirovsky and distributed by Amplisounds Radio.

Copyright 2026 All rights reserved.
Musique
Épisodes
  • Songs of the Unknown Bird
    Jan 17 2026

    This first episode explores Deho Twatto “theory of the body” in the Baul context, where the body itself is the starting point for spiritual understanding.

    Songs:

    Baul Howa Sohoj Kotha Noy Composer: Kangal Horinath Singer: Babu Fakir

    Khachar Bhitor Ochin Pakhi Composer: Lalon Fakir Singer: Selina Fakirini

    Chirodin Pushilam Ek Ochin Pakhi Composer: Lalon Fakir Singer: Nurbaba

    Phaki Deowa Pakhi Re Tor Composer: Ammulyo Sarkar Singer: Uttora Baidya

    Instrumentals:

    Jekhane Shai’r Baramkhana

    Composer: Lalon Fakir

    Dotara Player: Amirul Fakir

    Gram Chhara

    Composer: Rabindranath Tagore Dotara Player: Amirul Fakir

    Khachar Bhitor Ochin Pakhi

    Composer: Lalon Fakir

    Violinist: Lucia Thomas

    Painting credit: Dipshikha Debnath

    For photos and more info please visit Amplisoundsradio

    Many thanks to Biplab Ghosh, Arnab Sengupta, Rina and Manosij Goswami for help in the field, to Gene Nemirovsky for audio engineering, to the Fulbright-Nehru program and to all the musicians and teachers who recorded for this show.

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    45 min
  • Searching for the Man of the Heart
    Feb 27 2026

    Searching for the Man of the Heart explores how Baul songs use the metaphor of the house to describe the human body, which, for the Baul, is the starting place for realization. In this episode, listeners hear lyrics with cryptic images that point toward what the Baul call the praner manus “the man of the heart”–a personification of one’s inner truth.

    Songs:

    Dhonno Dhonno - Lalon Fakir (composer)*, Supriya Poddar (singer) *

    Charyapada (First Song) - Lui Pad (composer), Srijoni Sadhika (singer)

    Ghor Niye Koto Jontrona - Anath Bondhu Ghosh (composer and singer)

    Amar Bhanga Ghore - Kingsuk Goshai (composer), Rabi Das Baul (singer)

    Barir Kachhe Aarshinagar - Lalon Fakir (composer), Ochin Pakhi (performer)

    *students of Babu Fakir

    Instrumentals:

    Jekhane Shai’r Baramkhana - Lalon Fakir (composer), Amirul Fakir (Dotara player)

    Dhonno Dhonno - Lalon Fakir (composer), Amirul Fakir (Dotara player)

    Ghor Niye Koto Jontrona - Anath Bondhu Ghosh (composer), Lucia Thomas (violinist)

    Youtube Links:

    Babu Fakir and his students: https://youtube.com/@babufakirofficial5603?si=6T-tG1r71DHXDaPa

    Sadhika Srijoni and Simon Zakaria: https://youtube.com/@charyapada7209?si=Pe31qLE6i3F31hZL

    Anath Bondhu Ghosh: https://youtu.be/ojMfb-PyWJg?si=Lxpr4vrYsGK-FpPJ

    Robi Das Baul: https://youtu.be/jjkfOVVMzi0?si=NyhSB6W6AK6XDIcE

    Ochin Pakhi: https://youtube.com/@ochinpakhichicago?si=tuCdiH_6U8UPeMmM

    Many thanks to Biplab Ghosh, Arnab Sengupta, Rina and Manosij Goswami for help in the field, to Gene Nemirovsky for audio engineering, to the Fulbright-Nehru program and to all the musicians and teachers who recorded for this show.

    Photo: "Bengal Patachitra" via Wikimedia Commons

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    40 min
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