A Woman Dedicated to Music, Verse and Prose

My biggest and most important inspiration has been Mother Nature. I feel an intense bond with her. I feel that she possesses the answers to all of my questions, even the ones that have never been asked. 'Whenever in doubt, turn to Nature' has been my motto since always. Nature humbles me, keeps me rooted and inspires me to create without asking for anything in return- Maitrayee Patar

Maitrayee Patar, a musical artist who is best known for her work in new-age music has become a household name in our state (and even the north eastern region) in recent years. Despite her stellar achievements, she is a grounded woman. In an exclusive interview to Saturday Fare, Maitrayee reveals several interesting facets about her life and shares her life philosophy.

Recounting her journey as a singer, Maitrayee Patar says, "I have always had my heart for music from as far as I can remember. I was introduced to formal training at the age of 5 when I was fortunate to train under the able guidance of my guru Dr. Ranu Baishya, a very well-known and loved vocalist of her times. I received sincere and intense training in Indian classical music for ten years and that has been the foundation of everything I have ever learnt about music so far. However, I have always been a learner. I like to learn. I feel there is a lot to see, learn and reflect upon and I try to do a little bit of each everyday. This habit has enriched me both as a musician and as a writer."

Well the charismatic Maitrayee Patar is also a writer. In her words, "I have been writing poetry for more than a decade now and fortunately have been published in a few really important spaces across the world."

So what have been the significant milestones and challenges of her life? "I think it is a tad too early for any milestone but there definitely have been some very special moments and extraordinary experiences in my journey as a writer and as an artist," she states matter of factly.

Recounting her special moments and treasured and extraordinary experiences, Maitrayee elaborates, "The release of my first book of poetry 'Mor Kolmou Dinor Xonaali Baat' in 2015 was one such moment. It was the formal beginning of my journey as a writer. In 2017, I got an invitation for the first time by Sahitya Akademi as the youngest poet to read in the 'North-eastern and Southern Writers Meet' held at Vijayawada. I remember running to my mother with the letter in my hand. It was an overwhelming moment for me. In 2019, I was invited as a resident poet to the very prestigious Indo-German writers exchange programme 'Poets Translating Poets' hosted by Goethe Institute, Mumbai."

She shares that as a young poet, she cherishes the three days that she spent in the lush greenery of Meghalaya with eminent writers and translators from Germany and India.

"My second anthology 'Dingit Goja Paanit Mongoh' came out in 2021 and was well-received both among serious readers of poetry and fans of music. The book is now out in its second edition. However, my fondest and most recent memory as a writer is of meeting Gulzar Sahab and taking his blessings in Shimla, where we both were present as invitees in the coveted International Literature Festival organised by Sahitya Akademi in June this year," Maitrayee states and goes on to add, " Similarly in terms of music, conceiving my debut music album 'Project Baartalaap' in 2017 with my friend Shankuraj Konwar while we were still students in TISS, Mumbai was a life-changing experience for me. It finally hit me that music is actually going to be my connecting thread with the world, apart from poetry. Before that music used to be something really personal for me. By then I had completed my Masters in Sociology from the prestigious Delhi School of Economics and was pursuing M.Phil in Women's Studies from TISS. With a clear inclination towards academics, I never thought of music as a career option. In 2019, 'Duur Ximonat', a song from the same album made it to the Rolling Stone magazine. This was a defining moment for my career. Then eventually 'Baartalaap', 'Alakananda', 'Moupiya', 'Unnaxi', 'Awjana' happened. We also did a few amazing live concerts in a very short span of time. I still fondly remember the crazy crowd of around 15000 vibing to our music at the last Falcon Festival in the hills of Dima Hasao. We have also performed live a couple of times in New Delhi where I saw how music transcends language. All our songs were in Axomiya, but people vibed to our music nonetheless. The way people have loved my songs, my lyrics is itself a lifetime inspiration and motivation to keep going forward. At the same time it also makes me a lot more responsible towards my craft. I am immensely grateful for the journey."

Maitrayee confesses that finding a fine balance between music, poetry and academics has been challenging for her as all of these areas required her undivided attention and time. "Being a woman does not make it any easier. However, the immense love and critical appreciation that I have received from known and unknown readers/audience makes me face all the challenges and difficulties associated with it with a smile. I think that in the end, it will all be worth the pain," she reasons.

Maitrayee Patar is known for her stage presence. When Saturday Fare asked her about the nuances of cultivating this vital aspect, she humbly replies, "I would take that as a compliment because as an introverted child, I had always been terrified of the stage. I remember admiring the perfection that my idols brought on to the stage, be it in music or in speech. It took me a while to figure out that presence actually means nothing other than simply being present. Realising that I actually have nothing to lose up there as I know almost nothing and that I am only here to learn and share helped me loosen up. In other words, the fact that I can only be as imperfect as anyone else on the other side makes it easier for me to truly connect with the audience/readers."

Talking about her upcoming ventures and the most significant ventures, she states, "Well I am fortunate enough to be doing what I love. I am pursuing my passion as a profession. One of my most adventurous work was writing the song 'Nilanjana', which was an ambitious art-collaboration between Project Baartalaap and national award winning filmmaker duo Judhajit Bagchi and Ranadeep Bhattacharya, featuring Brazilian and Spanish artiste duo Aagatha Figueroa and Julio Padial. The challenge was to aesthetically express the explicit sensuality rendered in the song. The song did receive interesting critical reviews from listeners, many of whom said that they were reminded of 'Bimurto mur nixaati' by Dr. Bhupen Hazarika, the stalwart of modern Axomiya music."

About upcoming ventures, Maitrayee stated that she cannot reveal much at the moment. "However, I can share that my friend and I have just finished a very interesting piece of music for an internationally acclaimed filmmaker from Assam. It is a privilege to be associated with a project as interesting as this. We are also coming up with a very special musical tribute to the Gnanpith awardee of 2020, eminent poet, our very own Nilamani Phukan on the occasion of his 90th birthday where we have musically interpreted one of his famous poems. I have always seen and understood music and poetry as two sides of the same coin. As Phukan Sir also affirms, a good piece of music hides poetry in it and a good poem inevitably has a kind of music to it. Apart from that, I have a few very interesting collaborations lined up. A passion-collaboration in the Mising language is set to release soon. My debut Hindi EP is also in progress."

Maitrayee states that she is happy seeing the growing love for independent music in Assam. "We have seen some of the best minds in music in recent times and I am happy to be creating with some of them," she shares.

Talking about her family, childhood, mentors and inspirations, she says, "My family has been the foundation to what I am today. My parents were first generation job-holders and also first generation settlers in Guwahati. Our childhood was not that of abundance but it definitely was of fulfillment. Both my parents shared a beautiful, melancholic love for music and literature. They were also the first ones to introduce me to the world of songs and stories and shaped a lot of my sensibilities, towards ourselves and towards the world. For instance I remember Ma often using lines from the songs of the likes of Bhupen Hazarika, Birendranath Dutta, Jayanta Hazarika and Parbeen Sultana to converse with us. It was fun to sometimes discover her singing 'kote kena laagile koboke nuwarilu' from the kitchen when she needed to pacify us. They also always tried to keep me close to nature and urged me to remain human at all times. My parents also taught me to gracefully accept any kind of loss." Maitrayee observes that hence a lot of her songs and poems are dipped in an inherent humaneness, a desire to be close to nature and humans. "Growing up, I have been really fortunate to meet a few personalities who have been my kind inspiration and mentors. However, my biggest and most important inspiration has been Mother Nature. I feel an intense bond with her. I feel that she possesses the answers to all of my questions, even the ones that have never been asked. 'Whenever in doubt, turn to Nature' has been my motto since always. Nature humbles me, keeps me rooted and inspires me to create without asking for anything in return," she concludes philosophically.

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