A game of football, English lessons under the tree, brush with musical instruments, getting introduced to modern gadgets like drones — for a bunch of 50 smiling children of Sarberia village, a day of shoots with Bangla rock band Goshai Gang meant a whole lot of fun and much more.
Sarberia, a small village on the outskirts of Kolkata in the South 24-Parganas district, has a population of only 3,154 people as per the 2011 Census. Lack of education pushes kids from poor households into crime and corruption in the political hotbed. Recently, Sopan Welfare Foundation, a charity institution, which has been educating children from the area, collaborated with the Bangla rock band for an ‘outdoor class’.
The band shot the music video for the single Sediner Sei Dekha Shopno (The Dreams of Yesterday) with the children from Sopan in their tiny hamlet. Goshai Gang’s rock number about dreams and aspirations planted the idea of a different life in their mind.
Vocalist Saurav Chatterjee, also known as Goshai, composed and co-wrote the song with Amit Chakraborty and Santanu Dutta Gupta for their yesteryear band Rikterscale. It was part of their album Reincarnation in 2005.
Goshai decided to re-arrange and re-record it in the digital age for the young listeners today, who are on the path to chasing their dreams. “It is a light-hearted song with a social message. This song has recall value as it used to play on Sangeet Bangla, the local music television channel. And the old CD is no longer available,” Goshai told My Kolkata.
Idea behind the video
(From left) Arijit Chatterjee, Saurav ‘Goshai’ Chatterjee and Swagato Banerjee in action at a Goshai Gang concert.
Rock music and bands are an enigma to village kids. They had a unique experience of catching the band play live during the shoot. “They even played our instruments,” he added.
Goshai Gang is one of the few Bangla bands releasing songs independently on YouTube for the past eight years, and they wanted a video with a storyline for a change. “We did not want to shoot a playthrough video this time, so we asked Ishanu Chakrabarty to direct the video, who floated the idea to work with Sopan.”
“Sopan works with kids from marginalised sections of the society. Some of them don't have electricity at home, and without education, the kids get into the murky world of gang wars and addictions. Education helps them think differently. The song talks about hope and light,” said Goshai.
The video shoot turned out to be a co-curricular activity for the kids. Sopan, which started operations during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, collaborated with a band for the first time. “Ishanu, who directed the video, has been associated with Sopan since its inception. He suggested the shoot with kids. Our school in Sarberia has 50 kids. And they are needy kids,” said Moumita Chanda Chatterjee, the founder.
The band spent approximately Rs 25,000 to shoot the video, including food and travel expenses. It was a field day for the children who vibed with the music and played football with the musicians and crew. “We wanted to spend a day with them and have fun. It is a mutual learning experience. We gave them a few gifts, and they treated us,” he added.
Co-curricular activity for the kids
The lack of education pushes kids from poor households into crime and corruption. Sopan has been rescuing and educating them for a better life.
All the kids have parents, and some even go to government schools, but they don’t have access to modern education, spoken English, and textbooks. “We have volunteers who contribute, and that’s how we run this school,” she added.
The children were curious to see a drone for the first time. “They need to know there is a world beyond studies. The village kids have not seen music, theatre, or such gadgets. The emotions are raw for them. We want to do more such projects,” said Chatterjee.
Goshai Gang, which completed its 10th single release, will be releasing two more songs this year. “The current music scene is mature, and you need to make good music to stand out,” reasoned Goshai.
The band also features Swagato Banerjee on guitar, Arijit Chatterjee on the bass, and Sandipan Parial on drums. Samrat Mukherjee played keyboards on the song, while the additional programming was done by Sayantan Chatterjee.
The song has portrayed Sarberia, which is two hours from Sandeshkhali, in a different light. It is a world far away from violence and the ration scam.
Young students attend a class at Sopan Welfare Foundation in Sarberia in winter.