He was the man who was known as Chand Kobi, a name that was given by none other than Rabindranath Tagore himself. But who was this poet who was loved by even Tagore? He was Nishikanto Roychowdhury. Born in 1909, he lost his mother at
Ever since an announcement made public by the Nobel website (nobelprize.org) brought to the fore that Tarashankar Bandopadhyay, arguably one of the most influential novelists of Bengali literature was nominated for the Nobel Prize in literature in 1971, a pall of gloom has descended on
When a street turns into a nostalgic journey for generations, a street that never sleeps, a street that harbours memories for centuries, then that street turns into the central theme of a book for sure. One such street that has intrinsically imbibed into the ethos
A young writer on the verge of publishing his first novel went to Sunil Gangopadhyay (or Ganguly if you like) with the manuscript, in hopes of constructive feedback. Having leafed through the book, Gangopadhyay reportedly said, “Goodness, what a complicated plot. Why not stick to
For the younger generation of Bengalis, the phrase ‘Baishe Srabon’ would probably mean the 2011 film by Srijit Mukherji. For their slightly older counterparts, it could also mean the 1960 film of the same name by Mrinal Sen. The origin of both titles, of course,
Once Madhusudan Majumdar, a famous publisher of Bengali books, decided to celebrate the birthday of a renowned author ceremoniously. Among the organizers were such stalwarts as Sailajananda Mukhopadhyay and Sajanikanta Das, eminent editor of Shanibarer Chithi. When they met the author to inform him about
Rabindranath Tagore reigned supreme in the sphere of Bengali poetry. But in the 1920s, a group of new poets consciously distanced themselves from the Tagorean brand of mystic spiritualism and idealized romanticism, seeking to find a new poetic language to reflect their existential angst in
Michael Madhusudan Dutt, who died in 1873 on today’s date in Calcutta at the age of 49, spent most of his early life wanting to be an ‘English’ poet, and trying very hard to become one since he was 17. A popular story goes that
I’ve known rivers: Ancient, dusky rivers. My soul has grown deep like the rivers. When American poet-novelist Langston Hughes penned these lines, he was probably unaware that over half-a-century later in India, a profound believer in the mysteries of nature would embark on a soul-searching journey of a
Was Nawab Siraj-ud-Daulah really an arrogant, cruel, spoiled brat who was indulged to excess by his doting grandfather Nawab Alivardi Khan? Was Mir Jafar really a barefaced traitor who offered the immensely rich province of Bengal to the British on a platter? Was Robert Clive