Ekushey Padak-winning folk singer Shushma Das passes away

Ekushey Padak-winning folk singer Shushma Das has passed away. She was 95.

She breathed her last at her residence in Howlader Para of Sylhet on Wednesday (March 26) afternoon.

This talented singer had been suffering from various complications related to old age for several days.

Shushma Das suddenly fell seriously ill on March 13. She had sung with renowned veteran artists of Bangladesh including Baul Emperor Shah Abdul Karim, Baul Durbin Shah, Baul Ali Hossain Sarkar, Baul Kamal Pasha, and others in her career.

She received the Ekushey Padak in 2017 in recognition of her work. This folk singer was also honored with numerous awards. Her sudden death has cast a shadow of grief over the cultural arena.

Shushma Das was born in 1929 in Putka village of Shalla thana under Dirai upazila of Sunamganj district, Sylhet division. Her father was the renowned folk poet Rashiklal Das and her mother was the folk poet Divyamayi Das.

Shushma was the eldest of six siblings. Everyone in the family was associated with music. Her younger brother was the Ekushey Padak-winning scholar Ramkanai Das, a great man of classical music in the subcontinent.