Award-winning musician, producer and television presenter Soumik Datta was described by Vogue as ‘One of the biggest new music talents in Britain’. Virtuoso sarod player Soumik is renowned for his explorations into different genres and styles has already collaborated with the likes of Beyonce, Bill Bailey, Akram Khan and Joss Stone.
Co-founder of awarded winning creative hub Soumik Datta Arts (SDA), Datta works to champion impactful and moving works through cross-disciplinary collaborations with other creatives.
Here's what you need to know about him.
Who?
Soumik Datta
What?
A multi-disciplinary artist and musician and creator of collaborative visual albums.
From where?
The Bengali-born British Indian musician currently resides in London.
What’s the Story?
An ambassador of the Earth Day Network, Soumik Datta often addresses social and environmental issues through his art. He won the Arts Council England Elevate Award and the British Council’s COP26 x Climate Change grant and with that created his latest work Songs of the Earth — an animated musical film.
The original story was written, directed and scored by Datta himself and aims to be a thought-provoking, uncomfortable yet beautiful piece of work. Embracing global stories, diaspora voices and debates around climate change, the film reflects a series of themes including energy efficiency, plastic pollution, air pollution, migration and deforestation. Accompanied by an eight-track soundtrack album, the film follows the character of Asha — a young climate refugee from Bengal — as she searches for her missing father through the flood banks of the Sundarban delta, burning forests and melting ice caps.
Sounds like?
An ornate integration of genres and styles, combining Indian classical melodies with colourful, contemporary sounds.
Predicted to?
Result in even more conversation and, hopefully, action around the industry’s impact on the climate — especially in those regions especially affected by climate change.
Must hear?
Songs of the Earth
