After completing his MA he briefly worked at the All India Radio station at Guwahati before embarking for his doctoral studies at Columbia University. His thesis "DEMYSTIFYING DR. BHUPEN HAZARIKA: envisioning education for India", edited by Tej Hazarika and published by Cool Grove Press will be available in the US in days. Soon after completing his education, he became a teacher at the Guwahati University. But after a few years, he left the job and went to Kolkata where he established himself as a successful music director and singer. During that period, Hazarika made several award-winning Assamese films such as Shakuntala, Pratidhwani, etc. and composed evergreen music for many Assamese films. He was also considered as a new trend setter in Bengali music. The famous musical genre of West Bengal, the Jivanmukhi geet started by Kabir Suman in 1990's is thought to be influenced by Hazarika. Bhupen Hazarika composed music for films from Bangladesh too which got international acclaim.