Mangala Kanti Roy, the 102-year-old Sarinda player from Jalpaiguri district, could not hide his happiness when he came to know about the announcement of his name as one of the recipients of the Padma Shri award.
The centenarian, however, said that despite the recognition, he did not get enough financial security through his art.
“I feel happy to have got this recognition so late in my life. I have been playing Sarinda since I was five. I have travelled across the country with the instrument and performed before the people. The art, however, never gave me financial security and I had to live under challenging economic conditions,” said Roy.
On the eve of the 74th Republic Day, Roy’s name was announced as one of the Padma Shri award winners in the ‘Art (Folk Music)’ category. The Mamata Banerjee government had in 2017 conferred on him the ‘Banga Ratna’ award.
Roy, one of the oldest folk musicians in West Bengal, is famous for producing unique bird calls through Sarinda.
He has been promoting and preserving the Sarinda instrument for eight decades through workshops and performances.
During the Covid-19 pandemic, his financial condition deteriorated further as he could not find shows. The artist has three sons and one daughter but lives alone. “I feel very much alive when I play the instrument. It gives me immense satisfaction. I cannot describe the feeling in words. I feel as if I’m the richest person in the world,” said Roy.