Diwali is the great spending season for North India and the corresponding season in the East has always been Durga Puja. And singers, musicians would always come out with their release of the year during this period. It is a practice that has transgressed into the concert-season for talent. And before incorporating songs in Hindi films, composers from the East like Salil Choudhury, the Burman father and son, Hemanta Mukherjee, Kishore Kumar et al would release their ‘Pujor Gaan’ LPs which would be testing waters for what was to come in the months ahead for the national audience. Not just Bengali stars, the Mangeshkar sisters too would consistently team up with composers, as would Mohd Rafi, and sing in Bengali. A trend that continues with the current crop of singers like Shaan, Kumar Sanu, Sonu Nigam, Babul etc. However the Pujor Gaan compositions post Kishore Kumar, haven’t transcended the language barrier and become national chartbusters. That is a fact we live with.