Suchitra Mitra was the exceptional singer of Rabindra Sangeet she remained a Professor and the Head of `Rabindra Sangeet Department` at the Rabindra Bharati University for many years. She was a play back singer of Bengali movies and she acted as well. Suchitra Mitra has been regarded as one of the advocator of Rabindra Sangeet. She studied at the Scottish Church College, the University of Calcutta and at Visva-Bharati University in West Bengal.
Early Life of Suchitra Mitra
Suchitra Mitra was born to the celebrated litterateur, Saurindra Mohan Mukherjee, who was a close companion of the Tagore family of Jorasanko. It was Pankaj Mullick, `father of Rabindra Sangeet`, recognized the talent of Suchitra Mitra. With his initiation she was inducted to the nuances of Rabindra Sangeet.
Her love for the songs and poetry of Tagore got its proper shape in the year 1941, when Suchitra Mitra fetched a scholarship to Sangeet Bhavan in Santiniketan. With this scholarship she however managed to receive training from the greatest exponents of Rabindra Sangeet like Indiradevi Chaudhurani,
Shantidev Ghosh and Shailajaranjan Mazumdar. By the year 1945, Suchitra Mitra returned to Kolkata after obtaining her Diploma from Santiniketan. Later on Suchitra Mitra obtained her Master`s degree in Bengali from the University of Calcutta.
Her compassionate love for Rabindra Sangeet led her to establish the Rabitirtha. This school of music today stands out in a significant manner as one of the leading schools of Rabindra Sangeet in Kolkata.
Recognitions of Suchitra Mitra
* Tagore Hymn Prize in 1945 from London Tagore Hymn Society.
* Padma Shri in 1973 from the Government of India
* Sangeet Natak Academy Award in 1986 from the Government of India
* HMV Golden Disc Award,
* Shiromoni Puraskar from Asian Paints,
* Desikottama from Visva-Bharati,
* Allauddin Puraskar from the Government of West Bengal, among numerous others.
She was awarded with D.Litt.degrees by the Rabindra Bharati University, the University of Burdwan and Jadavpur University. Mitra was also the recipient of the Desikottama (or honorary D.Litt) of the Visva-Bharati University.
This immensely talented singer died of a cardiac attack on 3 January 2011, in Kolkata.