45 year old Kirin Byath hails from a family of traditional musicians - indeed from a community of instrumentalists.

Having lost his father at a very young age, he learnt the art of dhak playing from his elder brother when he was in his early teens and trained for a couple of years under him. Unable to continue his schooling beyond class IX, he has been playing the dhak ever since. Along the way, he also taught himself other instruments like the dhol, duggi, flute and shahnai. 

He is grateful that his prowess is appreciated by his rural brethren and that he is invited to perform at various pujas,  rituals and Bhawaiya concerts around Cooch Behar. He has also performed in Meghalaya and Assam. A seasonal cultivator with a tiny parcel of land, he mainly depends on the dhak as his primary source of income. His monthly earnings vary and could be as little as Rs 2000 sometimes. It is for this very reason that his three sons have stayed clear of the dhak and have expressed no desire to learn the art whatsoever. 

Read more about the Dhak here.

Kirin looks forward to being contacted at his village in Borodanga, P.O: Petla; P.S: Dinhata, district Cooch Behar