Saifullah Zaman or State of Bengal – Associated with Underground subgenre of music in the 1990s

His real name is Saifullah Zaman, and he is also known as Sam Zaman. He was of Bangladeshi origin, born in Karachi, and best known for his association with two London-based Indian artists, Talvin Singh and Sweety Kapoor who conceptualized Asian Underground subgenre of music in the 1990s, which revolutionized Indian pop music and Bollywood music later. Talvin Singh initially joined hands with his promoter Sweety Kapoor to start Anokha club night in 1995, and State of Bengal joined them very soon. The trio made some amazing contributions to the field of Asian Underground subgenre of music which takes inspiration from both Indian and western, and gave a unique experience to its listeners.

State of Bengal (1965 – 2015) was born in Karachi, and he lived in Bangladesh before he moved to London at the age of 8, where he got settled and later pursued a career in music. In the mid-1980s he paid a visit to Bangladesh and interacted with traditional folk musicians and dancers. Once he returned back he started a music troupe, State of Bengal group in London in 1987. As a teacher he also worked in youth centres. After joining Anokha club night, he joined worked with Talvin Singh and Sweety Kapoor in Asian Underground music. Bollywood music, Indi pop and Bangra in the 1990s and American hip hop, R&B and urban music in the 2000s were some of the derivatives which got influenced from Asian Underground.

State of Bengal – Some interesting facts

1. His pet name was Arun, which his family members used to call him.

2. His youngest brother Deeder Zaman is a British rapper, and former lead vocalist for British band Asian Dub Foundation.

3. He died at a comparatively young age of 50 in 2015, while he was fully active in music industry.

4. His debut album, Visual Audio was released in 1998, followed by Walking On, Tana Tani and Skip-ji, and he often collaborated with other artists for music albums.  

5. Anokha club night in the second half of 1990s provided free platform to Indie-pop artists who loved to experiment with music, and it was immensely successful.

6. The trio ran Anokha Club Nights during 1996 – 1999 at Blue Note in Hoxton Square, London, and also at Fabric at Clerkenwell during 1999 – 2001.

7. When Sweety and State of Bengal met for the first time in 1996, they got off on the wrong foot and hated one another. But slowly a brother-sister bond developed between the two.