T M Ahmed Kaysher

Reading poetry at Leeds Central Library

T M Ahmed Kaysher is a poet, fiction-writer, film and literature critic as well as the director of Saudha, Society of Poetry and Indian Music (www.saudha.org), one of the leading Indian classical as well as global music promoters in UK. He is the curator of many critically acclaimed festivals that have been running all across the UK and beyond for last 13 years e.g. RadhaRaman Folk Festival, Ghazal Thumri and Kheyal Festival, Saudha Bangla Music Festival, RadhaRaman International Dance Festival, Baul and Viashnav Music Festival, The Gronthee Poetry Festival, World Poetry and Indian Classical Music Festival, Saudha Sarawati Puja – the festival of Joy and happiness. The major contribution of Kaysher is the profound fusion of many different global art forms, (e.g. Western classical with Indian classical music, Javanese Gamelan with Indian classical, Poetry with visual interpretation through many form of dances, Irish dance with Bengali folk Dhamail dance, Interpretation of Frida Kahlo’s painting with Indian classical music, T S Eliot with Kazi Nazrul Islam through theatrical productions, Western ballads with Bengali Pala Gaan, Indian mythology with Greek and other global myths) bridging of different cultural traditions with classical Indian arts and positioning those works on the world stage bringing a fresh flow of global audiences.

He has been conferred “Shera Bengali” (The finest Bengali) award at UK Bengali Convention (UKBC) by a British-Indian led organisation UKBC in the Stoller Hall, Manchester recently (28 August 2022) and the Pride of Bengal Award at the Churchill Hall of the House of Commons of British Parliament for his service in arts and culture by Advatech Foundation (20 July 2022 – https://www.asian-voice.com/Culture/Art/Reinterpretation-of-Frida-through-Indian-classical-music?fbclid=IwAR0C4qBIRsMZ1ILs-C-2Lbjp72BYAFxkQ8Gi1ODGZjXaoAKn5f691Hk77NU). This award also has been conferred to Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen, cricketer Sourav Ganguly and many other distinguished Bengalis both from Bangladeshi and Indian origin who are contributing in arts, business, health, media in global platform. Kaysher also has been conferred Leeds Civic Award by the Lord Mayor of Leeds City Council recently (7 May 2022) for his significant contribution in the promotion of arts literature and music nationwide and all across the world.

He directed many critically acclaimed Bengali opera, interpretative music presentations with other art forms and poetry-theatre in many prestigious venues that include SouthBank Centre, the House of Commons and many other prestigious venues all around the country. The recent one is in Royal Albert Hall, a world-class concert on Re-interpretation of Frida Kahlo through Indian classical music by the best of the globe. (https://www.royalalberthall.com/tickets/events/2022/saudha-frida-kahlo/).

Anchoring Lyrics of Solitude at the SouthBank Centre, London

Both his poetry and prose are critically acclaimed for his new approach of weaving and new style of narrative. Apart from writing and promoting Indian classical music in the West, Kaysher’s contribution to the world music, in addition to the introduction of South Asian Arts to global, predominately western audiences, engaging successfully through world-class presentations and making bridge between different classical arts of the globe, – is visibly significant, for his pioneering role of introducing Bengali Folk Music in the world-stage through hosting world-class events and festivals in major mainstream venues as well as adapting, directing, performing and promoting Bengali opera for global audiences. He is now entirely devoted in adaptation, direction, re-construction of myths, ritual, fables through new production of Bengali rural theatre (Opera/ Ballad) for global audience along with his ongoing film-writing and directing projects. With few other film enthusiasts, he led a film movement at Shahjalal University and founded an organisation called Chokh Film Society in mid ’90s. Kaysher co-edited an experimental literary publication called Paradigm in early ’90s, too.

Curating Saudha Ghazal Thumri and Kheyal Festival at Rich Mix London

Kaysher has been curating many major festivals all around the UK e.g. Baul and Vaishnav Music Festival, Ghazal Thumri and Kheyal Festival, Bangla Music Festival, RadhaRaman Folk Festival, Jibanananda Festival, International Dance Festival, The Gronthee International Poetry Festival etc.

A theatrical production directed by him called The Rebel and The Waste Land has been staged in many prestigious venues around UK and Bangladesh (Shahjalal University, National dance and music hall of Shilpakala Academy, Barishal University and many) and having its world tour (India, Germany and other European countries), hugely acclaimed by scholars, academics and art connoisseurs.

Curating Saudha Classical Music Festival at Seven Arts Theatre in Leeds

He is the key organiser of RadhaRaman Festival, (www.radharamanleeds.wordpress.com), the largest Bengali cultural event in the North, which has been running since 2009 in partnership with Leeds City Council. He co-founded Saudha Society of Poetry and Indian music (www.saudha.org) with an acclaimed Indian classical singer Chandra Chakraborty in 2010 and led many historic classical music, literature projects all around the UK.

Graduated in Chemical Engineering at Shah Jalal University of Science and Technology in Bangladesh and post-graduated in management at University of Bedfordshire in UK, Kaysher now works for local government in library and information services.

He performs his own poetry both Bengali and English in major literature and poetry events around UK.

Cross-section of the audience at Queen Mary University, London

Reading my poems at the Queen Mary University, London.

During Covid and Lockdown, Kaysher curated a series of 201+ virtual events in three threads.

First – as part of Saudha’s music series that featured both performances and one-to-one talk/interview with world-leading musicians/ performing artists e.g. Ghazal king Ghulam Ali, Anup Jhalota, Pt Kumar Bose, Pt Tanmoy Bose, Vidushi Kala Ramnath,Ustad, Ustad Raza Ali Khan, Pt Shubhankar Banerjee, Jayoti Chakraborty, Parvathy Das Baul and many exciting world-music from different parts of the globe e.g. France, Latin America, Indonesia, Italy, Greece and more importantly Bengali folk music from different roots of Bangladesh and West Bengal.

Second – as part of the Gronthee’s literature, film and philosophy series, he curated more than 100 virtual events connecting major filmmakers, philosophers, academics, poets and writers of the world – this include Shyam Benegal, Adoor Gopalkrishan, Buddhadeb Dasgupta, Gautam Ghose, leading poets from Mexico, Argentina, Uruguay, Europe, USA, Canada , China, specially from two parts of Bengal and these were enormously acclaimed globally by both art-connoisseurs, art practitioners and art-loving audiences.

Third – he also curated a number of online sessions to build up awareness on Covid through one-to-one talks with Covid specialists, microbiologists both from Europe, India and Bangladesh.