Creator of timeless music: Ricky Kej, Usha Uthup, Anjan Dutt & more remember Harry Belafonte

When it comes to calypso music with striking African beats, Harry Belafonte is the name that comes to mind. The 96-year-old passed away yesterday due to congestive heart failure in Manhattan. Belafonte's impact in the Civil Rights Movement and folk music is unparalleled. While he might have been geographically far removed, his music reached and influenced the music scene in India for generations.
Belafonte's songs are almost written into human DNA: Ehsaan Noorani
Ehsaan Noorani, guitarist and songwriter, shared the song Banana Boat (Day-O) on Instagram stories, with the caption “Thank you for the joy.”
“Harry Belafonte introduced the world to calypso music for the first time and exposed people to the musical culture of Jamaica, that in turn led to the island almost becoming like a global music and cultural presence.Reggae, Ska, Dubstep and more found their roots in the music first introduced by him,” said Ehsaan.

He added, “I haven’t found a single person of any age who doesn’t smile while listening to Belafonte's songs — they’re timeless and are almost written into human DNA. And, to know that the person who created that wonderful sunny music was also an intellectual backing many human and civil rights causes at tremendous cost! He is a person that generations should get influenced by.”
On Belafonte’s influence on his own style of music Noorani said, “His music style was simple and catchy, so definitely in terms of songwriting — there’s something to learn there!”
I owe my USP to Belafonte: Usha Uthup
Usha Uthup’s style of music has quite the flavour of folk calypso music. “I’ve been in the business for 54 years now. I started off as a nightclub singer and in those days there was no electronic media, I never saw how he performed. On my first night in Trincas in Calcutta, my husband asked me to sing Matilda — so obviously he had also heard Harry Belafonte. I had heard this album called Live at Carnegie Hall and I was really, really thrilled at the way he got the people to interact with him. The first time I was hearing it, it was on the record and I just thought this is what I was really meant for, not singing. I don’t say he is a great singer, neither am I, but definitely, it was the performance and interaction he had with the audience that really really got me. As I’ve always said, he is singularly my inspiration, just one person, there is nobody else who inspired me more than Harry Belafonte,” said Usha Uthup.

She added, “Whether it was Matilda, Jamaica Farewell, Come Back Liza, Danny Boy, Darlin’ Cora — many many years I used to end my show with this song called Hava Nageela, and that was all because of Harry Belafonte. He was the best performer and entertainer, and communication with the audience was the best, and that’s where I got, what everyone calls, my USP is all because of him! He was the greatest ever, for me.”
As an artiste, he was absolutely electric : Ricky Kej
Calling Harry Belafonte a pioneer and a trailblazer, three-time Grammy award winner and UN climate advocate and ambassador Ricky Kej said, “He is the perfect example of how one can use their celebrity status to empower communities and inspire social change. As an artiste, he was absolutely electric and as a social activist, his actions changed the world. Harry’s music will live on forever and the way he lived his life will serve as an inspiration to me and to so many others.”

Belafonte's voice was a part of most Bengali homes: Anjan Dutt
Actor, director and songwriter Anjan Dutt also reminisced about Belafonte's impact on him. "Harry Belafonte was an icon. I remember during my boarding school days at St Paul’s when we weren’t encouraged to listen to this genre of rock, somehow nobody had issues with Belafonte. Calypso was part of our listening. Island in the Sun is one of my biggest favourites. My grandfather and my father used to listen to Belafonte as well. I feel most urban Bengali households grew up with his voice, besides Julie Andrews and Frank Sinatra. He was a giant and no one can deny his influence. "
Belafonte's music went beyond entertainment: Ranjan Prasad, composer, musician and lyricist
Ranjan Prasad who translated Belafonte's songs into Bengali shared, "I was just a boy of 20 when I first discovered how Harry Belafonte’s music went beyond entertainment and talked about things like humanity and human emotions. The music that was popularly consumed here, on the other hand, was majorly reminiscent of the babu culture. I realised soon that the happiness, sorrows and struggles of people across the world are not much different, it’s just the language that separates them. I realised if I cannot splinter the wall between languages, I will not be able to reach my own crowd."

He added, "My first translated piece of Belafonte was his famed Jamaica Farewell, which I translated to Ghorey Pherar Suur. It was difficult to bridge the gap between languages while keeping the theme and metre intact. I went on to transcreate many more of his songs such as Island in the Sun, Come Back Liza and Banana Boat (Day-O). I also think the latter’s rhythm and feel overlap a lot with the folk songs of Bengal’s boatmen."
His voice smiled through his music: Vineet Singh Hukmani
To Vineet Singh Hukmani, global chart-topping singer-songwriter, Harry Belafonte 'epitomised the fun energy of Calypso'. “His voice always smiled through the music, and that's how I will remember him, and how I, as a musician, will remind myself to keep positive energy flowing through my music. His songs like Matilda, Turn the World Around and Banana Boat are still my all-time favourites,” Vineet said.
- By Raima Ganguly (with inputs by by Ruman Ganguly, Suruchi Kapur-Gomes, Raima Ganguly and Aatreyee Mohanta)