imported>Ira Leviton: Fixed the lede.

2021-05-15T19:07:12Z

Fixed the lede.

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'''Ramnidhi Gupta''' ({{lang-bn|রামনিধি গুপ্ত}}) (1741– 6 April 1839), commonly known as '''Nidhu Babu''', was one of the reformers of [[Bengali people|Bengali]] ''[[tappā]]'' music.

Nidhu Babu was born in Chapta , [[Hooghly District]] at his maternal uncle's house.<ref name=Samsad>Samsad Bangali Charitabhidhan by Anjali Bose, 1960, p. 259</ref> His ancestral house was at [[Kumartuli]] in [[North Kolkata]],<ref name=Samsad>Samsad Bangali Charitabhidhan by Anjali Bose, 1960, p. 259</ref> where he grew up learning [[Persian language|Persian]] and some [[English language|English]]. Little is known about his upbringing, but by 1776 he had become a clerk in the office of the [[Chhapra]] Collectorate.<ref name="ch">Chakrabarty, Ramakanta. ''Nidhu Babu and his Tappā.'' Published in Banerjee, Jayasri (ed.), ''The Music of Bengal''. Baroda: Indian Musicological Society, 1987.</ref>

In Chhapra, Nidhu Babu found a Muslim ''[[ustad]]'' to train him in the techniques of a formal ''[[gharana]]'', or school of musical thought. However, he soon became fed up with his method of teaching, and decided to independently translate Hindi music into [[Bengali language|Bengali]].<ref name="ch"/>

In 1794, Nidhu Babu left his job in Chhapra and returned to Calcutta with a savings of ten thousand rupees.<ref name="ch"/>

In 1805-06, Nidhu Babu organized an ''akhrai'' troupe, an ''[[akhra]]'' being a fraternal society for studying and practicing classical Indian music. It was for his refinement and composition of ''akhrai'' songs that he initially became notable. However, his ''tappā'' were the songs that brought him lasting fame.<ref name="ch"/>

Nidhu Babu's principal work is the ''Gitaratna'', a book of ''tappā'' love songs (with one exception, a ''tappā'' expressing his love for the Bengali language). Most of the songs in the ''Gitaratna'' are chaste and deal with separation or neglect.<ref name="ch"/>

As a ''[[Babu (title)|babu]]'' in early modern Bengali society, Nidhu Babu had few worldly needs; he was never ordered to sing a song. According to his contemporary James Long, he composed his best poems under the influence of wine. However, he was also noted for his fiercely independent personality, his hygiene and his love for food and wine.<ref name="ch"/>

==Further reading==
*[[Ishwar Chandra Gupta|Gupta, Ishwar Chandra]]. ''Kabijivani''.

==References==
{{Reflist|1}}

{{wikisourcelang-inline|bn|লেখক:রামনিধি গুপ্ত|Ramnidhi Gupta}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Babu, Nidhu}}
[[Category:Bengali musicians|Gupta, Ramnidhi]]
[[Category:1741 births]]
[[Category:1839 deaths]]

Nidhu Babu - Revision history

imported>Ira Leviton: Fixed the lede.