Geet Arpanam

GEET ARPANAM is a humble offering of love. For many years I have been attempting to reconcile the general love for singing Indian songs in Trinidad and Tobago against a background of so little understanding of Hindi in the country and, by extension, the meaning of the songs sung or heard. Unfortunately, this ignorance of the Hindi language was not only experienced among many of the young persons, but amongst a large number of older persons also. Yet, they enjoyed the songs! How much more wonderful and enriching it would have been to understand what was sung or heard!

GEET ARPANAM is an attempt to fill the gap, in part. Over the last five years I have been writing bhajans and film songs (which I like) in Devnagri script, forcing myself to move away from English transliteration partially to practice the little Hindi I knew and partially to get a better foothold on the pronounciation of Hindi words.

In this offering, generally, each song is shown in Devnagri script and English transliteration, with English meaning. Generally, the meaning of key words in each song is stated as well, to assist the singer / listener in understanding what he / she sings / hears.

As I enter my 70th year, it is my desire to share 70 songs of my collection with all those who love to sing and / or listen to Indian songs with the hope that they too, would experience the same joy that I have experienced in the process of my research and compilation. I have chosen bhajans of my personal choice that have given and continue to give me so much peace and joy. I have even selected a few popular film songs and casidas, which also have had a similar effect and which gives variety and completeness to my favourite 70.

May Saraswatee Maataa bless us all.

Ramganie Bob Gopee

CHAIRMAN, BOB GOPEE FOUNDATION

HIGH COMMISSION OF INDIA

P.O. BOX 530, PORT-OF-SPAIN

TRINIDAD & TOBAGO, W.I.

HIGH COMMISSIONER

27 February, 2008

MESSAGE

I congratulate Mr. Bob Gopee on his magnificent effort to bring the rendering of Bhajans and other songs in a book form in "Geet Arpanam" to the coffee tables of people of Indian origin in Trinidad and Tobago. The effort is even more remarkable as he has translated the Devnagri Script into English enabling the Indian Community which has lost much of the Hindi language to understand the meaning of the beautiful verses in the bhajans and other songs.

As you may be aware, Bhajans have been a great source of inspiration to one and all since time immemorial and have always been a part and parcel of social fabric in the Hindiu society. It is no surprise that the Indian immigrants who came to this country carried on with this tradition and I am happy to note that this tradition still carries on and has in fact continues to gain much more popularity in Trinidad & Tobago. I am also happy to learn that cutting across their religious belief, people participate in these Bhajan chantings in large numbers. Even though the people somehow lost their Hindi language in their struggle for survival, still the significance of Bhajans remains unaffected.

In this context, the hard work accomplished by Mr. Bob Gopee in painstakingly compiling these songs with their English meanings would have the necessary impact on the population to not only enjoy them but also to know more about the values of Indian Culture.

I am confident that this pioneering work of Mr. Bob Gopee is going to be to the benefit of the people of Trinidad & Tobago and for the community at large throughout the world. I extend my best wishes to the author of the book "Geet Arpanam" and to its readers.

J.S. Sapra

THE RESEARCHER / COMPILER

Ramganie Bob Gopee

B.A. (Econ.), F.C.C.A.,

is a Chartered Certified Accountant.

He is a Director of Hindi Foundation of Trinidad and Tobago and holds the portfolio of Chairman of Academic Affairs.

He has been a school teacher at both the Primary and Secondary level. He has served as Productivity Adviser in Management Development Centre of the Government of Trinidad and Tobago.

Mr. Gopee is Managing Partner of Bob Gopee and Associates, a public accounting firm. He is the chairman of three hotels in Trinidad and Tobago. Par-may-la’s Inn Ltd., Sundeck Suites Limited and Surfside Hotel Ltd and is the President of Bob Gopee Foundation.

Mr. Gopee is an active Rotarian and served Rotary International District 7030 as Assistant Governor, District Secretary and District Treasurer. In this capacity he has interfaced with many members of the Indian diaspora in Martinique, Guadeloupe, Suriname. Guyana and Trinidad and Tobago.