Dover Lane honours nonagenarian who’s never missed a concert in 74 yrs
Times of India | 29 January 2026
Kolkata: Felicitation of artistes is routine at music conferences but in its 74th year, Dover Lane Music Conference has honoured its most discerning audience member. Putul Chakraborty, a nonagenarian, has never performed there but has attended every concert for the past 74 years, travelling from Shillong. His recognition affirmed the calibre of Kolkata's concert-going public, a sentiment echoed by visiting musicians from Latvia, Spain and Denmark at the Sur Jahan festival held in the city from Jan 23-25.
Dover Lane secretary Monotosh Mukherjee said, "The Dover Lane Music Conference began in 1952. I met Putul da in 1977 and learned he had been attending since even earlier. Honouring him on the final night of the conference, by Pt Nayan Ghosh, was our way of showing respect for Kolkata's discerning listeners."
At 1.40 am on Republic Day, Chakraborty addressed the crowd and said, "I am over 90 and come every year from Shillong to listen to the stalwarts. I play the violin and sitar, and perform on radio and TV. But my main interest lies in listeni-ng to good performances." He sh-ared with TOI memories of listening to performances by Pt Bhimsen Joshi's raag ‘Darbari' and ‘Todi', Vidushi Kishori Amonkar's ‘Malkaunch' and ‘Jay Jayanti'. "I don't crave front seats but like to mingle with the crowd in the background and listen," Chakraborty said.