"Komala wrote a letter to Mandalay" - A Rohingya Cultural Memory Centre Music Video

In this video produced by the Rohingya Cultural Memory Centre, Rohingya folk musician Ustazha Mustafa Kamal sings and performs on harmonium a Rohingya love song titled ‘Komola wrote a letter to Mandalay’. She is accompanied by Shabbir Rahman on the zuri (finger cymbals) and Ahmed Hossain on the dol (drums). The song expresses the pain of a loved one’s (shonai) long absence from home, and a longing for life to return to its familiar ways.
The Rohingya Cultural Memory Centre (RCMC) has identified at least 23 genres of Rohingya folk music, among them several genres of love songs.
Original recordings of Rohingya songs, performed by Rohingya musicians living in camp, can be found on RCMC’s UA-cam channel (www.youtube.co..., performed by Rohingya musicians living in camp.
Music is essential to Rohingya life, and constitutes a major part of Rohingya oral culture. Through their music, the community creates joy, healing, connection and meaning.