Assam bids adieu to its ‘Nightingale’

Dipali Borthakur, the songbird of Assam who brought many an Assamese heart to an absolute standstill with her trademark voice imbued with the freshness and sweetness of the fertile land of Assam, has been cremated at the Navagraha crematorium in the city today with full state honours.

A procession had earlier carried her body to All India Radio office, Rabindra Bhawan, Asom Sahitya Sabha office and AASU office.The crooner had been suffering from a prolonged illness and breathed her last at Nemcare Hospital on Friday at the age of 77.

The hitmaker with such immortal classics as ‘Sonor Kharu Nalage Muk’, ‘Senai Moi Jau Dei’, ‘Jundhone Junalite’, and ‘Konmana Boroxire Sip’ to her credit had been diagnosed with a rare motor-neuron illness four decades since and her journey of life since then has been characterized by bravery in illness and a smile that she kept on her face till her last years.

It may be mentioned that her husband, Nilpaban Baruah, had an important role to play in her life as he took care of the ailing singer through all her years of sickness. Her voice will continue to live on in the heart of Assam as the voice that truly represented the agrarian sensitivities of Assam.