Classical music maestro Amaresh Roy Chowdhury passed away on Tuesday morning, August 12, at his residence in Rajshahi.
Amaresh, 96, suffered from meningitis.
He is survived by his sons, Abhijeet and Amit, daughter-in-laws, Sharmila and Kakoli, and grandchildren, Atanu, Auntora and Aditi.
His wife, Sonali, passed away in 2022.
Amaresh was born on September 18, 1928 in Faridpur.
During his lifetime, he received numerous accolades, including Ekushe Padak in 2016, Shilpakala Padak in 2014 and 'Pandit' title in 2000 given by Noborupi, Dinajpur.
Amaresh started learning classical music when he was in Class V. He started to receive training from Pandit Sudhir Lal Chakrabarty, a prominent music composer from the subcontinent.
After his sudden death, he went to Harihar Shukla, another famous musician from Sirajganj, father of Indian singer Haimanti Sukla, for vocal training. Afterward, he received training in Dhrupada, Khayal and Thumri from Sangeetacharya Tarapada Chakraborty. He also learned modern songs and raagas from composer Nikhil Chandra Sen and received vocal training from Manas Chakroborty.
After passing his matriculation in 1945, he continued learning and practicing classical music.
He taught Indian classical music at his school called Shangitasram. However, the school was closed in 2020, when his health started deteriorating.
He was a regular artist on Bangladesh Betar.