Aunla, a Cox’s Bazar-based music band, organised an evening of songs rooted in the traditional melodies and cultural heritage of Chattogram, seeking to reconnect younger generations with music that is gradually disappearing from everyday life.
The event, titled “H’odin N’dehir Tare, Aain Mon Dilam Jare”, was the first edition of Aunla’s Hoichali song series. It was held at Shaheed Subhash Hall of Cox’s Bazar Public Library on Saturday evening.
The programme began at around 6:30pm on September 19 and continued for nearly two hours.
According to the organisers, around 250–300 people attended the ticketed event, which they described as the first such ticketed programme centred on the traditional songs of the Chattogram region.
The Hoichali Season 1 programme explored emotions and stories familiar to people of the region, including love, affection, longing, sorrow, relationships and family bonds.
Songs about the relationship between mothers and children, romantic feelings and historically rooted folk music were included in the programme.
Aunla also performed its own signature compositions, adding another dimension to the evening.
Veteran journalist Mohsin-ul-Hakim, who attended the programme throughout, said he usually watches folk music programmes featuring traditions such as Bhawaiya and Lalon songs with keen interest.
“Aunla’s presentation of songs from the Chattogram region also kept me seated until the end. It was an event worth watching,” he said.
Gazi Shariful Hasan, a camp-in-charge official of the Refugee Relief and Repatriation Commissioner’s Office, said he was impressed by the programme.
“I have worked in Cox’s Bazar for a long time, but this was the first time I saw an event of this kind. Aunla can play an important role in building a cultural bridge with the Rohingya community through the heritage and language of Chattogram,” he said.
Another camp-in-charge official, Mohammad Arafatul Alam, said he was proud of Aunla’s work as someone from Chattogram.
“I hope the organisation will spread its work beyond Bangladesh and reach audiences around the world,” he said.
Cox’s Bazar sports personality Jamal Uddin praised the programme and said he enjoyed it with his family.
Journalist Sourav Deb said the event gave audiences an opportunity to reconnect with a bygone time and cultural heritage.
“Aunla’s programme seemed to take the audience back to those golden days. It created an opportunity to rediscover a lost time and culture,” he said.
Aunla media manager Abdu Rashid Manik said the word Hoichhali carries several meanings in the Chattogram region and is generally associated with a feeling of restlessness or emotional unease.
“It can describe the restlessness people feel before or after falling in love, or even the pain and unease that come with separation,” he said.
Manik said the first edition of the Hoichhali series received an enthusiastic response from the audience, with all tickets sold out well before the programme began.
“We are grateful to everyone for their love and support,” he said.
The organisers said Aunla would continue organising such programmes on a larger scale to introduce Chattogram’s regional songs, language and cultural heritage to younger generations.
Cox’s Bazar Life Report
Photo: Hussain Shetu
