Shankor Sawjal

Shankar Shawjal is a noted media personality, photographer and lyricist. Shawjal grew up in Mothbaria, under Pirojpur district. As a child, he was captivated by the bounties of nature in rural Bengal. “Nature is part and parcel of my life. I have always been fascinated by nature and it gives me bliss. I believe that nature in our country has a unique, incomparable beauty. Each season has an individual aura and a spectrum of colors is visible in our natural world. When I want to express myself, I let nature take over my senses. So, nature is the major inspiration for all of my creative works,” said Shawjal.
Shawjal came to Dhaka in 1977. He became involved in varied cultural activities. Theatre, he says, first introduced him to the masses. “I am mainly a man of the theatre. My umbilical cord was keenly connected with the medium. I started my career with street plays. During the Ershad regime, I acted in many streets plays like ‘Maharajar Anuprobesh,’ ‘Kiria Pakhir Samachar,’ ‘Circus’ and ‘Jago Lokkho Noor Hossain’. These plays were written by me and received much acclaim.
“My troupe Karok Natya Sampradaya is very selective and also believes in social commitments. We staged Shakespeare’s ‘The Tempest’ and German dramatist Fringe Benefits’ ‘Man Equal Man’. Our next production ‘Nirbashan Dondo’ will be staged in November. At one point I was also involved with Udichi.” says Shawjal.
Shawjal also attained admiration for his acting in TV plays. “Kusum” was one of the famed TV plays. The story followed an unfortunate father’s desperate attempts to get to know his daughter. The financially strained father gave up his daughter for adoption to a wealthy man. The play was aired in 1991. “I often receive offers to act in TV plays but the scripts don’t excite me. Every play should have a message and some form of social commitment. It is also a mirror on our contemporary society,” said Shawjal.
Shawjal is also a passionate photographer. His photographs are nature-oriented. “When I was in Class VII, I started photography. Photography is my hobby. It’s intimately related to my life. When I am very near to nature, nature invites me to hold her. I get a different sound from nature and its silence provokes me extensively,” states Shawjal.
Shawjal’s lyrics are devoted to spiritualism. His selection of words is commendable. He believes that lyrics should be moving and inspiring. Last year, he received a Citycell-Channel i Music Award for the best lyricist. “Writing songs completely depends on my mood. When my mind is engrossed, nature propels me to write.”