Siliguri pronunciation (Bengali: শিলিগুড়ি) is a Metropolitan city in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is located in the Siliguri Corridor or Chicken's Neck — a very narrow strip of land linking mainland India to its north eastern states. It is also the transit point for air, road and rail traffic to the neighboring countries of Nepal, Bhutan and Bangladesh. The town hosts over 500,000 domestic and 15,000 foreign visitors annually. It is the commercial nerve center of North Bengal.
Siliguri is situated in Darjeeling district, and though it is the district's largest city, the district headquarters is located at Darjeeling. Siliguri is a unique city as 15 out of 47 wards of Siliguri Municipal Corporation falls in neighbouring Jalpaiguri district. The Indian army, Border Security Force (BSF), Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF), Shashatra Seema Bal (SSB) and the Assam Rifles have bases around the city. The Bagdogra Airport is located within the Indian Air Force (IAF) cantonment area. Siliguri has an Indian Oil Corporation Ltd. (IOC) oil depot near the southern edge of the town. Siliguri is the second largest city of West Bengal after Kolkata and second largest urban agglomeration after Kolkata.
Geography
Siliguri is situated at the base of the Himalaya mountains in the plains. It is the largest city in the area (North Bengal) and second largest city in West Bengal and connects the hill station towns of Gangtok, Rangpo, Kalimpong, Kurseong, Mirik and Darjeeling with the rest of India. The Mahananda River flows past Siliguri. Siliguri has three main seasons summer, winter and monsoon. Dense fog,a characteristic of Siliguri till a decade ago,is a rare occurrence nowadays. During the monsoons between June and September, the town is lashed by moderate to heavy rains often cutting access to the hill stations and Sikkim. The climate is suitable for growing tea and the surrounding region has many tea gardens. The ancient Baikunthapur Forest is nearby. The region is also a huge producer of Tea. Siliguri is one of the fastest growing cities of India.
Economy
Flyover
Siliguri is described as the gateway to the North East of India. The strategic location of the city makes it a base for essential supplies to the region. Siliguri has gradually developed as a profitable centre for a variety of businesses. As a central hub, many national companies and organizations have set up their offices here. The Hong Kong market near Khudirampally is a chief hub for buying low cost Chinese goods and imported goods, nearby Seth Srilal Market, Sevoke Road and Hill Cart Road is a prominent place to buy daily use goods, and is very popular among people from nearby areas. 4 "T" s - Tea, Timber, Tourism and Transport are the main businesses of Siliguri. Recently many hotels had mushroomed up & a very good increment had been seen in this sector at past. Siliguri is the headquarters of FOCIN (Federation of Chamber of Commerce and Industry of North Bengal). The latest development is the development of malls like COSMOS and ORBIT. The city recently also witnessed the arrival of its first set of multiplexes,CINEMAX in early Dec'09 and INOX at ORBIT on Christmas of 2009.
The rapidly growing city also has showrooms of numerous automobile companies such as Maruti Suzuki, Honda Siel, Toyota Kirloskar, Ford, Tata, JCB, Mahindra & Mahindra, Hyundai,Skoda, General Motors. There are numerous two wheeler showrooms also of companies : Hero Honda, Kinetic, Honda scooters, Yamaha, Tvs, Suzuki, Bajaj, LML.
With the growing economic transactions there has opened up some major banks in the city namely Standard Chartered, HDFC, ICICI, Allahabad, State Bank of India, Axis Bank, UCO, Vijaya, IDBI and UBKG bank. There are also some other banks such as Bank of Maharastra, Bank of Baroda, Canara Bank, Andhra Bank, Sonali Bank.
In a recent gesture of international co-operation and friendliness the road network of Siliguri is being used by the government of Nepal and Bangladesh so as to facilitate easy transportation of essential and urgent commodities (like rice etc.). The Silk Route of India i.e trade route between India and China is accessible only after crossing Siliguri (Nathula and Jelepla). Thus making it important for international trade between India and other countries and also among other countries.There also are business routes to Bhutan and security manned border with Bangladesh.
Demographics
A house in Siliguri
Siliguri is experiencing a rapid expansion of its population. In a 2001 India census,[1] the number of residents was 1,220,275. According to estimates for 2008, 1,559,275 people live in the city.[2]. Males constitute 53% of the population and females 47%. Siliguri has an average literacy rate of 70%, higher than the national average of 66.0%; male literacy is 75%, and female literacy is 65%. In Siliguri, 12% of the population is under six years of age.
Siliguri is a metropolitan city with Marwari, Bengali and Nepali people living peacefully. Marwaris are a majority followed by Bengalis, Nepali speaking communities.
Siliguri has seen waves of massive immigration over the years. Most prominent being the migrants from Bangladesh, Assam, Nepal and Bihar. In addition, people from Jharkhand and other parts of India are also coming to the city in search of livelihood. The influx has led to an abnormally high population growth.[3]
Transport
Hasmi
Local public transport include city buses, cycle rickshaws-often paddled by illegal Bangladesh immigrants and auto rickshaws,buses,and Mahindra/Ape tempos. There is no metered vehicular transport. While 6-seater City Autos ply between two fixed destinations of about 10–15 km away, one can hire petrol-driven auto rickshaws from auto-stands at a rate fixed by the Municipal Authorities.A total of 6000 rickshaws of the Municipal Corporation area and an additional 15000 unlicensed ones ply in the increasingly congested city.
Rail
Railway crossing
Siliguri has three important railway stations:
1. Siliguri Town - This is the oldest station in the area. Opened on 23 Aug, 1880 during the British Raj, this station used to be the terminus for the trains coming from Kolkata, and the starting point for the world-famous Darjeeling Himalayan Railway for journey to Darjeeling. It is this station where such world-renowned personalities as Rabindranath Tagore, Chittaranjan Das and Subhash Chandra Bose set their feet on their way to Darjeeling and other places.
2. Siliguri Junction - This station opened in 1949, and used to be the point of departure of all trains to the north-eastern states, until the broad gauge was extended to Dibrugarh. Siliguri Junction is the only station[4] in India with tracks of all the three gauges used in India.
3. New Jalpaiguri - Opened in 1961 as a totally greenfield project 6 km south of Siliguri. Initially named New Siliguri (but, later renamed New Jalpaiguri as it is located in Jalpaiguri District) this is now the most important station in the region. It is also known as NJP. This station connects Siliguri to every nook and corner of the country by railway. The city has now been expanded and included New Jalpaiguri as one of its ward of Siliguri Municipal Corporation. The Darjeeling Himalayan Toy train is the main attraction of this station.
With the extension of broad-gauge railway track to the Siliguri Junction station, people can now travel directly to the heart of the city without having to alight at New Jalpaiguri. This new broad-gauge track extends to the old Dooars metre-gauge track up to Alipurduar and beyond. Travelling over this railway line is a beautiful experience as it passes through the picturesque tea gardens of the Dooars area in the backdrop of Darjeeling and Bhutan hills.
Air
Bagdogra airport, situated about 15 km away is a International airport in the region. The airport, since falls within Air Force area (having some restrictions over length of runways and time of flight, etc.), is not well connected to most Indian cities. However, daily flights are available for the state capital Kolkata, New Delhi, Guwahati,Mumbai, Chennai, Bangkok and Paro.
Bus
Siliguri
The Tenzing Norgay Central Bus Terminus situated next to the Siliguri Junction Railway Station is a major stop for most private and state-owned buses in the region. The Royal Government of Bhutan also operates buses from Siliguri to its border town Phuentsholing. Jeeps also link Siliguri to neighbouring hill towns like Darjeeling, Gangtok, Kurseong, Kalimpong, Mirik, Jorethang, Namchi.
The Sikkim Government buses run to various destinations of Sikkim from the Sikkim Nationalised Transport (SNT) bus station near the Tenzing Norgay Bus Terminus. There is another Bus Terminus named P C Mittal Bus Stand on Sevoke Road. All Buses heading for the Dooars region via the Sevoke Coronation Bridge originate here.
Road
City Auto
A new four-lane road, named Vivekananda Road, has been rebuilt connecting Burdwan Road to Mahabirsthan bringing much relief to the chaotic section of the city and bifurcation of Nivedita road is also going on.The major roads-Hill Cart Rd,Bidhan Road and Sevoke Rd were historically rail routes of the trains "Toy Trains" that went towards Sevoke/Darjeeling.Street lighting and bifurcation of Hill Cart Road took place only in 1988 during the Nehru Cup football tournament. The Mahabirsthan area recently got a fly-over the first of its kind in the city.
National Highway no. 31 and 31A passes through Siliguri. In a recent national level project of building a golden quadrangle linking the major cities of India the NH 31 has been converted into a four way expressway.
The neighbouring countries like Nepal, Bhutan and border region of Bangladesh are also connected through the road network.
Education
Siliguri has always been the hub of education in the Terrai as well as the Dooars region. Apart from the residents of the town, students from states like Sikkim, Nagaland and Assam come here to pursue education. The region also sees an influx of students from the neighbouring countries of Bhutan, Nepal and Bangladesh. While previously there had been just a handful of schools, of late there has been a spurt of growth in numbers with most catering to the CISCE,CBSE and West Bengal Secondary and Higher Secondary board(s).
In and around Siliguri, there are a number of colleges, viz., Siliguri College, Siliguri College of Commerce, Siliguri Women’s College, Surya Sen College. All these deliver general degrees as well as specialization (Honours) in the fields available under the University of North Bengal.
The University of North Bengal, located in a serene backdrop of the Terai foothills and tea gardens, was established in 1962, 10 km away from the main Siliguri town, in Raja Rammohan Pur. Approximately 80 colleges are affiliated to the University, with approximately 36,000 and 1,500 students enrolled in graduate and post graduate courses respectively, every year. A sprawling campus, this University boasts having the second largest campus in the country. Huge stretches of green, in the form of quite-dense vegetation, lakes, and seasonal flowers are woven in between the buildings housing the departments.
Siliguri Institute of Technology
The North Bengal Medical College, located in Sushrutnagar is the sole medical college in the region and is connected to the main city through the 3rd Mahananda Bridge. Students from across the state as well from neighboring sates come to study here, after having cleared the West Bengal Joint Entrance Examinations for engineering and medicine. The recently set up Siliguri Institute Of Technology (SIT)[5] located at Sukna, a few kilometers away from the city has fast become one of the major and regular centres for the state’s corporate houses to recruit fresh engineers.
Sports
Table Tennis, cricket, taekwon-Do, chess and football (soccer) are the five most popular sports here. People are football crazy and support the local clubs. The Kanchenjungha Stadium is the city's only outdoor stadium and matches are regularly held here. The Stadium houses the Sports Authority of India (SAI) sports hostel for athletes. There is an indoor stadium at Deshbandhupara in the southern part of the city. This new stadium has facilities for lawn tennis, badminton and table tennis as well as other indoor sports. However, the city is best known for being the training grounds for many Table Tennis players. Siliguri has produced quite a few National Champions like Maantu Ghosh, the Gold Medal winner in the 1996 and 1999 SAF Games, Subhajit Saha (2007), Nandita Saha (Juniors, 2000). In recent years the close proximity of the Teesta river has made Siliguri a destination for the adventure sports (White Water Rafting) enthusiasts. Wriddhiman Saha (cricketer) celebrated his first class debut for Bengal with a century on debut in the Ranji Trophy against Hyderabad. This wicket-keeper from Saktigarh, Siliguri in North Bengal possesses an extremely safe pair of hands and his performances for Bengal have been rewarded with a place in the East Zone teme. He has also been selected for Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League. Bikes / Motorcycles too are a favorite sports of the young generation of Siliguri. To cater the needs, xKmph.com, an Indian Bikers community runs an offline base to bring all the bikers from all over Siliguri and neignbouring cities together and spread the news of biking.
Media
English language newspapers in Siliguri include the Times of India (Kolkata editions), The Economic Times, The Statesman and The Telegraph are widely circulated. Several Hindi, Nepali and Bengali newspapers, including Uttarbanga Sambad, Anandabazar Patrika, Bartaman, Ganashakti, Aajkal, Sunchari Samachar, Nepali daily Purbanchal Bharat Darpan, Dainik Jagran, Ganadabi and Janpath Samachar , Samvad Sanjaal are also available.
In addition to All India Radio, Siliguri has four private FM radio stations: Radio High 92.7FM, Radio Misty 94.3, FM 91.9. and Red FM 93.5.
Siliguri receives almost all the television channels that are received by the rest of the country. Apart from the state-owned terrestrial network Doordarshan, cable television serves most of the homes in the town, while satellite television is common in the outlying areas and in wealthier households. Besides mainstream Indian channels, the town also receives Nepali Television Channels and Bangladesh Television Channels. Local news broadcasts, sporting events, and concerts are broadcast live or delayed via cable to many households. DTH services both by Government and private companies are also available like Tata sky, Dish tv, Digital tv - Airtel, Big tv - Reliance.
Internet cafés are well established in the main market area, served through broadband services provided by BSNL and other private companies like MetroNET[Orange Networks] & Sinet (CCN).
The area is serviced by cell phone companies such as Vodafone, Airtel, Aircel, BSNL, Reliance Communications, Tata Indicom, MTS, Tata Docomo and Virgin Mobile. The major number of subscribers of mobile service are that of BSNL. With the improved service of quality Airtel and Vodafone are also gaining a huge market. The most popular and preferred connection among the Business class is BSNL, Airtel, Vodafone whereas for the Youth is Smart - Reliance GSM Service.
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Suchitra Sen
Suchitra Sen (born 6 April 1931) [1](Bangla: সুচিত্রা সেন, Hindi: सुचित्रा सेन) or Roma Dasgupta is a Indian actress who appeared in Bengali cinema films. In particular, the movies in which she paired opposite another legend in Bangla films, Uttam Kumar, are all-time classics in Bengali cinema. She now lives a life of a recluse rarely making any public appearances. When she left movies, she was slowly but steadily losing the position of leading lady of Bengali silver screen.
She is the first Indian actress to be awarded in an international film festival (Best Actress award for the movie Saat Paake Bandha in 1963 Moscow film festival). Her films with Uttam Kumar are still shown as re-runs on Bengali TV channels such as ETV Bangla, Aakash Bangla, DD7 Bangla and so forth; many of them are available on video CD. Notably, she allegedly refused the Dadasaheb Phalke Award (the Indian equivalent of a lifetime Oscar) in 2005, preferring to live in seclusion out of the public eye.
Contents [hide]
1 Personal life and education
2 Career
3 Selected Bengali filmography
4 Selected Hindi filmography
5 Biographies
6 References
7 External links
[edit]Personal life and education
Sen was born in Pabna, British India (now Bangladesh). Her father Karunamoy Dasgupta was the head master of the local school and her mother's name was Indira Dasgupta. She was their fifth child and third daughter. She had formal education in Pabna.
She married Dibanath Sen, son of a wealthy Bengali industrialist, Adinath Sen, in 1947 and had one child, Moon Moon Sen, a noted actress.
Sen made a successful entry after marriage into Bengali films circa 1952, and then a less successful transition to the Bollywood film industry. According to some unconfirmed but persistent reports in the Bengali press, her marriage was severely strained by her success in the film industry.
[edit]Career
Sen made her debut in films with Shesh Kothaay in 1952, but the film was never released. The following year saw her act opposite Uttam Kumar in Sharey Chuattor. The film became a box-office hit and it was remembered for launching Uttam-Suchitra as a leading pair. They went on to become the icons for Bengali dramas for more than 20 years, becoming almost a genre to themselves.
She received a Best Actress Award for the film Devdas (1955), which was her first Hindi movie. Her patented Bengali melodramas and romances especially with Uttam Kumar, made her the most famous Bengali actress ever. Her films ran through the 1960s and the 1970s. Her husband died, but she continued to act in films, such as the Hindi hit film Aandhi (1974), where she played a politician. Aandhi was inspired by India's Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. Sen received a Filmfare nomination as Best Actress, while Sanjeev Kumar, who essayed the role of her husband, won the Filmfare as Best Actor.
Her international success came in the year of 1963, when she won the best actress award in Moscow Film Festival for the movie Saat Paake Bandha. In fact, she is the first female to receive an international film award.
She refused Satyajit Ray's offer due to date problem, as a result Ray never made the film Devi Chawdhurani. She also refused Raj Kapoor's offer for a film under RK banner. She retired from the screen in 1978 after a career of over 25 years to a life of quiet seclusion. She has avoided the public gaze after her retirement and has devoted her time to the Ramakrishna Mission.[1] Suchitra Sen was a contender for the Dadasaheb Phalke Award for the year 2005, provided she was ready to accept it in person. Her refusal to go to New Delhi and personally receive the award from the President of India deprived her of that award.
[edit]Selected Bengali filmography
Year Movie Director Co-stars
1953 Saat Number Kayedi Sukumar Dasgupta Samar Roy
1953 Bhagaban Srikrishna Chaitanya Debaki Bose Basanta Choudhuri
1953 Saare Chuattor Nirmal Dey Uttam Kumar
1953 Kajori Niren Lahiri
1954 Sadanander Mela Sukumar Dasgupta Uttam Kumar
1954 Agnipariksha Agradoot Uttam Kumar
1954 Ora Thaake Odhare Sukumar Dasgupta Uttam Kumar
1954 Grihaprabesh Ajay Kar Uttam Kumar
1954 Atom Bomb Taru Mukherjee Robin Majumdar
1954 Dhuli Pinaki Mukherjee Prasanta Kumar
1954 Maraner Parey Satish Dasgupta Uttam Kumar
1954 Balaygraas Pinaki Mukherjee Uttam Kumar
1954 Annapurnar Mandir Naresh Mitra Uttam Kumar
1955 Shapmochan Sudhir Mukherjee Uttam Kumar
1955 Sabar Uparey Agradoot Uttam Kumar
1955 Snaajhghar Ajay Kar Bikash Roy
1955 Devdas (Hindi) Bimal Roy Dilip Kumar
1955 Snaajher Pradeep Sudhangshu Mukherjee Uttam Kumar
1955 Mejo Bou Debnarayan Gupta Bikash Roy
1955 Bhalabaasa Debaki Bose Bikash Roy
1956 Sagarika Agragami Uttam Kumar
1956 Trijama Agradoot Uttam Kumar
1956 Amar Bou Khagen Roy Bikash Roy
1956 Shilpi Agragami Uttam Kumar
1956 Ekti Raat Chitto Bose Uttam Kumar
1956 Subharaatri Sushil Majumdar Basanta Choudhury
1957 Harano Sur Ajay Kar Uttam Kumar
1957 Pathe Holo Deri Agradoot Uttam Kumar
1957 Jeeban Trishna Asit Sen Uttam Kumar
1957 Chandranath Kartick Chatterjee Uttam Kumar
1957 Musafir (Hindi) Hrishikesh Mukherjee Dilip Kumar
1957 Champakali (Hindi) Nandlal Jaswantlal Bharat Bhushan
1958 Rajlakshmi O Srikanta Haridas Bhattacharya Uttam Kumar
1958 SuryaToran Agradoot Uttam Kumar
1958 Indrani Niren Lahiri Uttam Kumar
1959 Deep Jwele Jaai Asit Sen Basanta Choudhury
1959 Chaaowa Pawoa Jatrik Uttam Kumar
1960 Hospital Sushil Majumdar Ashok Kumar
1960 Smriti Tuku Thaak Jatrik Asitbaran
1960 Bombai Kaa Babu (Hindi) Raj Khosla Dev Anand
1960 Sarhad (Hindi) Shankar Mukherjee Dev Anand
1961 Saptapadi Ajay Kar Uttam Kumar
1961 Saathihara Sukumar Dasgupta Uttam Kumar
1962 Bipasha Agradoot Uttam Kumar
1963 Saat Paake Badha Ajay Kar Soumitra Chatterjee
1963 Uttar Phalguni Asit Sen Bikash Roy, Dilip Mukherjee
1964 Sandhya Deeper Sikha Haridas Bhattacharya Bikash Roy
1966 Mamta (Hindi) Asit Sen Ashok Kumar, Dharmendra
1967 Grihadaha Subodh Mitra Uttam Kumar
1969 Kamallata Harisadhan Dasgupta
1970 Megh Kalo Sushil Mukherjee Basanta Choudhury
1971 Fariyaad Bijoy Bose Utpal Dutta
1971 Nabaraag Bijoy Bose Uttam Kumar
1972 Alo Amaar Alo Pinaki Mukherjee Uttam Kumar
1972 Haar Maana Haar Salil Sen Uttam Kumar
1974 Devi Chaudhurani Dinen Gupta Ranjit Mallick
1974 Srabana Sandhya Chitra Sarathi Samar Roy
1975 Priyo Bandhabi Hiren Nag Uttam Kumar
1975 Aandhi (Hindi) Gulzar Sanjeev Kumar
1976 Datta Ajay Kar Soumitra Chatterjee
1978 Pranoy Pasha Mangal Chakrabarty Soutmitra Chatterjee
[edit]Selected Hindi filmography
Devdas (1955), co-starring Dilip Kumar;
Musafir (1957), co-starring Dev Anand;
Champakali (1957)
Bombay ka Babu (1960),co-starring Dev Anand;
Mamta (1966) (a remake of her Bengali film Uttor Falguni) co-starring Dharmendra and Ashok Kumar
Aandhi (1975), co-starring Sanjeev Kumar; this film was banned for a while, because it was felt to portray Indira Gandhi[1]
[edit]Biographies
1. Suchitra Sen : A Legend in Her Lifetime by Shoma A. Chatterji. New Delhi, Rupa & Co., 2002, 80 p., photographs, ISBN 81-7167998-6.[2] 2. Suchitra Sen autobiography
[edit]References
^ a b Deb, Alok Kumar. "APRIL BORN a few PERSONALITIES". www.tripurainfo.com. Retrieved 2008-10-23.
^ Books on Cinema: Bollywood, Indian Cinema
She is the first Indian actress to be awarded in an international film festival (Best Actress award for the movie Saat Paake Bandha in 1963 Moscow film festival). Her films with Uttam Kumar are still shown as re-runs on Bengali TV channels such as ETV Bangla, Aakash Bangla, DD7 Bangla and so forth; many of them are available on video CD. Notably, she allegedly refused the Dadasaheb Phalke Award (the Indian equivalent of a lifetime Oscar) in 2005, preferring to live in seclusion out of the public eye.
Contents [hide]
1 Personal life and education
2 Career
3 Selected Bengali filmography
4 Selected Hindi filmography
5 Biographies
6 References
7 External links
[edit]Personal life and education
Sen was born in Pabna, British India (now Bangladesh). Her father Karunamoy Dasgupta was the head master of the local school and her mother's name was Indira Dasgupta. She was their fifth child and third daughter. She had formal education in Pabna.
She married Dibanath Sen, son of a wealthy Bengali industrialist, Adinath Sen, in 1947 and had one child, Moon Moon Sen, a noted actress.
Sen made a successful entry after marriage into Bengali films circa 1952, and then a less successful transition to the Bollywood film industry. According to some unconfirmed but persistent reports in the Bengali press, her marriage was severely strained by her success in the film industry.
[edit]Career
Sen made her debut in films with Shesh Kothaay in 1952, but the film was never released. The following year saw her act opposite Uttam Kumar in Sharey Chuattor. The film became a box-office hit and it was remembered for launching Uttam-Suchitra as a leading pair. They went on to become the icons for Bengali dramas for more than 20 years, becoming almost a genre to themselves.
She received a Best Actress Award for the film Devdas (1955), which was her first Hindi movie. Her patented Bengali melodramas and romances especially with Uttam Kumar, made her the most famous Bengali actress ever. Her films ran through the 1960s and the 1970s. Her husband died, but she continued to act in films, such as the Hindi hit film Aandhi (1974), where she played a politician. Aandhi was inspired by India's Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. Sen received a Filmfare nomination as Best Actress, while Sanjeev Kumar, who essayed the role of her husband, won the Filmfare as Best Actor.
Her international success came in the year of 1963, when she won the best actress award in Moscow Film Festival for the movie Saat Paake Bandha. In fact, she is the first female to receive an international film award.
She refused Satyajit Ray's offer due to date problem, as a result Ray never made the film Devi Chawdhurani. She also refused Raj Kapoor's offer for a film under RK banner. She retired from the screen in 1978 after a career of over 25 years to a life of quiet seclusion. She has avoided the public gaze after her retirement and has devoted her time to the Ramakrishna Mission.[1] Suchitra Sen was a contender for the Dadasaheb Phalke Award for the year 2005, provided she was ready to accept it in person. Her refusal to go to New Delhi and personally receive the award from the President of India deprived her of that award.
[edit]Selected Bengali filmography
Year Movie Director Co-stars
1953 Saat Number Kayedi Sukumar Dasgupta Samar Roy
1953 Bhagaban Srikrishna Chaitanya Debaki Bose Basanta Choudhuri
1953 Saare Chuattor Nirmal Dey Uttam Kumar
1953 Kajori Niren Lahiri
1954 Sadanander Mela Sukumar Dasgupta Uttam Kumar
1954 Agnipariksha Agradoot Uttam Kumar
1954 Ora Thaake Odhare Sukumar Dasgupta Uttam Kumar
1954 Grihaprabesh Ajay Kar Uttam Kumar
1954 Atom Bomb Taru Mukherjee Robin Majumdar
1954 Dhuli Pinaki Mukherjee Prasanta Kumar
1954 Maraner Parey Satish Dasgupta Uttam Kumar
1954 Balaygraas Pinaki Mukherjee Uttam Kumar
1954 Annapurnar Mandir Naresh Mitra Uttam Kumar
1955 Shapmochan Sudhir Mukherjee Uttam Kumar
1955 Sabar Uparey Agradoot Uttam Kumar
1955 Snaajhghar Ajay Kar Bikash Roy
1955 Devdas (Hindi) Bimal Roy Dilip Kumar
1955 Snaajher Pradeep Sudhangshu Mukherjee Uttam Kumar
1955 Mejo Bou Debnarayan Gupta Bikash Roy
1955 Bhalabaasa Debaki Bose Bikash Roy
1956 Sagarika Agragami Uttam Kumar
1956 Trijama Agradoot Uttam Kumar
1956 Amar Bou Khagen Roy Bikash Roy
1956 Shilpi Agragami Uttam Kumar
1956 Ekti Raat Chitto Bose Uttam Kumar
1956 Subharaatri Sushil Majumdar Basanta Choudhury
1957 Harano Sur Ajay Kar Uttam Kumar
1957 Pathe Holo Deri Agradoot Uttam Kumar
1957 Jeeban Trishna Asit Sen Uttam Kumar
1957 Chandranath Kartick Chatterjee Uttam Kumar
1957 Musafir (Hindi) Hrishikesh Mukherjee Dilip Kumar
1957 Champakali (Hindi) Nandlal Jaswantlal Bharat Bhushan
1958 Rajlakshmi O Srikanta Haridas Bhattacharya Uttam Kumar
1958 SuryaToran Agradoot Uttam Kumar
1958 Indrani Niren Lahiri Uttam Kumar
1959 Deep Jwele Jaai Asit Sen Basanta Choudhury
1959 Chaaowa Pawoa Jatrik Uttam Kumar
1960 Hospital Sushil Majumdar Ashok Kumar
1960 Smriti Tuku Thaak Jatrik Asitbaran
1960 Bombai Kaa Babu (Hindi) Raj Khosla Dev Anand
1960 Sarhad (Hindi) Shankar Mukherjee Dev Anand
1961 Saptapadi Ajay Kar Uttam Kumar
1961 Saathihara Sukumar Dasgupta Uttam Kumar
1962 Bipasha Agradoot Uttam Kumar
1963 Saat Paake Badha Ajay Kar Soumitra Chatterjee
1963 Uttar Phalguni Asit Sen Bikash Roy, Dilip Mukherjee
1964 Sandhya Deeper Sikha Haridas Bhattacharya Bikash Roy
1966 Mamta (Hindi) Asit Sen Ashok Kumar, Dharmendra
1967 Grihadaha Subodh Mitra Uttam Kumar
1969 Kamallata Harisadhan Dasgupta
1970 Megh Kalo Sushil Mukherjee Basanta Choudhury
1971 Fariyaad Bijoy Bose Utpal Dutta
1971 Nabaraag Bijoy Bose Uttam Kumar
1972 Alo Amaar Alo Pinaki Mukherjee Uttam Kumar
1972 Haar Maana Haar Salil Sen Uttam Kumar
1974 Devi Chaudhurani Dinen Gupta Ranjit Mallick
1974 Srabana Sandhya Chitra Sarathi Samar Roy
1975 Priyo Bandhabi Hiren Nag Uttam Kumar
1975 Aandhi (Hindi) Gulzar Sanjeev Kumar
1976 Datta Ajay Kar Soumitra Chatterjee
1978 Pranoy Pasha Mangal Chakrabarty Soutmitra Chatterjee
[edit]Selected Hindi filmography
Devdas (1955), co-starring Dilip Kumar;
Musafir (1957), co-starring Dev Anand;
Champakali (1957)
Bombay ka Babu (1960),co-starring Dev Anand;
Mamta (1966) (a remake of her Bengali film Uttor Falguni) co-starring Dharmendra and Ashok Kumar
Aandhi (1975), co-starring Sanjeev Kumar; this film was banned for a while, because it was felt to portray Indira Gandhi[1]
[edit]Biographies
1. Suchitra Sen : A Legend in Her Lifetime by Shoma A. Chatterji. New Delhi, Rupa & Co., 2002, 80 p., photographs, ISBN 81-7167998-6.[2] 2. Suchitra Sen autobiography
[edit]References
^ a b Deb, Alok Kumar. "APRIL BORN a few PERSONALITIES". www.tripurainfo.com. Retrieved 2008-10-23.
^ Books on Cinema: Bollywood, Indian Cinema
Bengali Cinema
Bengali cinema refers to the Bengali language filmmaking industries in the Bengal region of South Asia. There are two major filmmaking hubs in the region: one in Kolkata, West Bengal, India and one in Dhaka, Bangladesh.
The history of cinema in Bengal dates back to the 1890s, when the first "bioscopes" were shown in theatres in Kolkata. Within a decade, the first seeds of the industry was sown by Hiralal Sen, considered a stalwart of Victorian era cinema [1] when he set up the Royal Bioscope Company, producing scenes from the stage productions of a number of popular shows[1] at the Star Theatre, Minerva Theatre , Classic Theatre. Following a long gap after Sen's works,[2] Dhirendra Nath Ganguly (Known as D.G) established Indo British Film Co, the first Bengali owned production company, in 1918. However, the first Bengali Feature film, Billwamangal, was produced in 1919, under the banner of Madan Theatre. Bilat Ferat was the IBFC's first production in 1921. The Madan Theatre production of Jamai Shashthi (1931), under Amar Chauduri's direction was the first Bengali talkie [3][4] A long history has been traversed since then, with stalwarts such as Satyajit Ray, Mrinal Sen and Ritwik Ghatak and others having earned international acclaim and securing their place in the movie history.
On the other side of the border, Mukh O Mukhosh was released on 3 August 1956, written and directed by Abdul Jabbar Khan, based on his drama scrip Dacoit, produced by Nuruz Zaman and Shahidul Alam, distributed by Iqbal Films and acted by Inam Ahmed and Zahrat Azra.
Contents [hide]
1 Two film industries
2 Early history
3 West Bengal film industry
4 Bangladeshi film industry
5 See also
6 References
7 External links
[edit]Two film industries
Today, there are two Bengali-language film industries: the one in Kolkata, West Bengal, India (the Cinema of West Bengal, sometimes called Tollywood, a portmanteau of the words Tollygunge and Hollywood),[5][6] is one of many centres for Indian regional filmmaking; and the other one in Dhaka, Bangladesh (the Cinema of Bangladesh, sometimes called Dhallywood, a portmanteau of the words Dhaka and Hollywood), is the mainstream national film industry of Bangladesh.
[edit]Early history
Hiralal Sen is credited as one of Bengal's, and India's first directors. However, these were all silent films. Hiralal Sen is also credited as one of the pioneers of advertisement films in India. The first Bengali-language movie was the silent feature Billwamangal, produced by the Madan Theatre Company of Calcutta and released on 8 November 1919, only six years after the first full-length Indian feature film, Raja Harish Chandra, was released.[7]
The early beginnings of the "talking film" industry go back to the early 1930s, when it came to British India, and to Calcutta. The movies were originally made in Urdu or Persian as to accommodate a specific elite market. One of the earliest known studios was the East India Film Company. The first Bengali film to be made as a talkie was Jamai Shashthi, released in 1931. It was at this time that the early heroes of the Bengali film industry like Pramathesh Barua and Debaki Bose were at the peak of their popularity. Barua also directed a number of movies, exploring new dimension in Indian cinema. Debaki Bose directed Chandidas in 1932; this film is noted for its breakthrough in recording sound. Sound recordist Mukul Bose found out solution to the problem of spacing out dialogue and frequency modulation.
The 'Parallel Cinema' movement of Indian cinema began in the Bengali film industry during the 1950s, and then gained prominence in the other film industries of India.
[edit]West Bengal film industry
Main article: Cinema of West Bengal
The contribution of Bengali film industry to Indian film is quite significant. Based in Tollygunge, an area of South Kolkata, West Bengal and is more elite and artistically-inclined than the usual musical cinema fare in India. In the past, it enjoyed a large, even disproportionate, representation in Indian cinema, and produced film directors like Satyajit Ray, who was an Academy Honorary Award winner, and the recipient of India and France's greatest civilian honours, the Bharat Ratna and Legion of Honor respectively, and Mrinal Sen, who is the recipient of the French distinction of Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters and the Russian Order of Friendship. The early nickname for the Tollygunge film industry, "Tollywood", was also the very first Hollywood-inspired name, dating back to a 1932 article in the American Cinematographer by Wilford E. Deming (due to Tollygunge rhyming with Hollywood) and went on to inspire the name "Bollywood" and other similar names.[8]
Other prominent film makers in the Bengali film industry are Bimal Roy, Ritwik Ghatak, and Aparna Sen. The Bengali film industry has produced classics such as Nagarik (1952) The Apu Trilogy (1955–1959), Jalsaghar (1958), Ajantrik (1958), Neel Akasher Neechey (1959), Devdas, Devi (1960), Meghe Dhaka Tara (1960), the Calcutta trilogies (1971–1976), etc. In particular, The Apu Trilogy is now frequently listed among the greatest films of all time.[9][10][11][12]
The most well known Bengali actor to date has been Uttam Kumar; he and co-star Suchitra Sen were known as The Eternal Pair in the early 1950s. Soumitra Chatterjee is a notable actor, having acted in several Satyajit Ray films, and considered as a rival to Uttam Kumar in the 1960s but not at the level of Uttam Kumar. He is famous for the characterization of Feluda in Sonar Kella (1974) and Joy Baba Felunath (1978), written and directed by Ray. He also played the adult version of Apu in The World of Apu (1959), also directed by Ray. One of the most well known Bengali actresses was Sharmila Tagore, who debuted in Ray's The World of Apu, and became a major actress in Bengali cinema as well as Bollywood.
The pioneers in Bengali film music include Raichand Boral, Pankaj Mullick and K. C. Dey, all associated with New Theatres Calcutta [13]. Other famous playback singers in Bengali film music were Hemanta Mukherjee, Manna Dey, Sandhya Mukhopadhyay and Kishore Kumar.
In the 1980s, however, the Bengal film industry went through a period of turmoil, with a shift from its traditional artistic and emotional inclinations to an approach more imitating the increasingly more popular Hindi films, along with a decline in the audience and critical appreciation, with notable exceptions of the works of directors like Gautam Ghose. However, even at this time, a number of actors and actresses enjoyed popularity, including Tapas Pal, Prosenjit, Chiranjit, Rituparna Sengupta and others. However, toward the end of the 90s, with the a number of directors coming increasingly into prominence, including Rituparno Ghosh, Gautam Ghose, Aparna Sen, Sandip Ray among others, a number of popular and critically acclaimed movies have come out of the Bengali film industry in recent years. These include, Unishe April, Titli, Mr. and Mrs. Iyer, Bombaiyer Bombete, etc and signal a resurgence of the Bengali film industry.Now after 2000 their rise another group of actor (Jeet, Dev, Parambrata, Rudranil), actress(Koel Mallik, Paoli Dam), Director(Anirudha Roychodhury, Raj chackrobarty), musicians (Jeet Ganguly).
Jahar Kanungo’s 'Nisshabd' made in 2005 has been critically acclaimed for its originality in the treatment of image and sound.
The market for Bengali films has expanded to a 340-million-strong Bengali audience in Bangladesh, West Bengal, Tripura and Assam. The industry could truly flourish if films from this state have a proper distribution network. While around 50 films are produced in West Bengal every year, only 30 make it to the theatres.[14]
[edit]Bangladeshi film industry
Main article: Cinema of Bangladesh
The Bangladeshi film industry is based in Dhaka. As of 2004, it produced approximately 100 movies a year. The average movie budget was about 12 crore Bangladeshi taka.[15]
Although the majority of the films made in Bangladesh are strictly commercial in nature, a handful of directors from Bangladesh have attained critical acclaim for their outstanding work. Zahir Raihan, Khan Ataur Rahman, Salahuddin, Alamgir Kabir, Amjad Hussain, Moshiuddin Shaker, Sheikh Niyamat Ali, Humayun Ahmed, Morshedul Islam, Tanvir Mokammel, Tareque Masud are among those prominent directors. One of the first films produced in Bangladesh after independence was Titash Ekti Nadir Naam (A River Called Titas) in 1973 by acclaimed director Ritwik Ghatak, whose stature in Bengali cinema is comparable to that of Satyajit Ray and Mrinal Sen.
Bangladesh has been officially submitting nominations for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film from 2003. Masud's Matir Moina (The Clay Bird) was the first film to be submitted, and won a number of other international awards from the Edinburgh, Palm Springs, Montreal, Marrakech, Cairo and Cannes Film Festivals. Another internationally acclaimed filmmaker from Bangladesh is Morshedul Islam, who won major awards at the International Filmfestival Mannheim-Heidelberg and other international film festivals.
[edit]See also
Bengal portal
Bengali Cinema
South Asian cinema
List of Bengali films
Cinema of Bangladesh
Cinema of India
Cinema of West Bengal
Parallel Cinema
Asian cinema
World cinema
[edit]References
^ a b Who's Who of Victorian Cinema. Hiralal Sen
^ Pioneers of Bangladeshi Cinema
^ Gokulsing, K.; Wimal Dissanayake (2004). Indian popular cinema: a narrative of cultural change. Trentham Books. p. 24. ISBN 1858563291.
^ IMDB page on Jamai Shashthi
^ http://www.indfy.com/kolkata/special-attractions/tollywood-trip.html
^ http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1251462050.cms
^ BANGLAPEDIA: Film, Feature, accessed 27-VII-2006
^ Sarkar, Bhaskar (2008), "The Melodramas of Globalization", Cultural Dynamics 20: 31–51 [34]
^ "The Sight & Sound Top Ten Poll: 1992". Sight & Sound. British Film Institute. Retrieved 2008-05-20.
^ "Take One: The First Annual Village Voice Film Critics' Poll". The Village Voice. 1999. Archived from the original on 2007-08-26. Retrieved 2006-07-27.
^ The Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made By THE FILM CRITICS OF THE NEW YORK TIMES, New York Times, 2002.
^ "All-time 100 Movies". Time. Time Inc.. 2005. Retrieved 2008-05-19.
^ New Theatres Calcutta
^ http://www.screenindia.com/news/Bengali-cinema-in-independent-India/347909/
^ Bangladeshis reject "smutty" Bengali films, AFP/Helen Rowe, accessed 27-VII-2006
The history of cinema in Bengal dates back to the 1890s, when the first "bioscopes" were shown in theatres in Kolkata. Within a decade, the first seeds of the industry was sown by Hiralal Sen, considered a stalwart of Victorian era cinema [1] when he set up the Royal Bioscope Company, producing scenes from the stage productions of a number of popular shows[1] at the Star Theatre, Minerva Theatre , Classic Theatre. Following a long gap after Sen's works,[2] Dhirendra Nath Ganguly (Known as D.G) established Indo British Film Co, the first Bengali owned production company, in 1918. However, the first Bengali Feature film, Billwamangal, was produced in 1919, under the banner of Madan Theatre. Bilat Ferat was the IBFC's first production in 1921. The Madan Theatre production of Jamai Shashthi (1931), under Amar Chauduri's direction was the first Bengali talkie [3][4] A long history has been traversed since then, with stalwarts such as Satyajit Ray, Mrinal Sen and Ritwik Ghatak and others having earned international acclaim and securing their place in the movie history.
On the other side of the border, Mukh O Mukhosh was released on 3 August 1956, written and directed by Abdul Jabbar Khan, based on his drama scrip Dacoit, produced by Nuruz Zaman and Shahidul Alam, distributed by Iqbal Films and acted by Inam Ahmed and Zahrat Azra.
Contents [hide]
1 Two film industries
2 Early history
3 West Bengal film industry
4 Bangladeshi film industry
5 See also
6 References
7 External links
[edit]Two film industries
Today, there are two Bengali-language film industries: the one in Kolkata, West Bengal, India (the Cinema of West Bengal, sometimes called Tollywood, a portmanteau of the words Tollygunge and Hollywood),[5][6] is one of many centres for Indian regional filmmaking; and the other one in Dhaka, Bangladesh (the Cinema of Bangladesh, sometimes called Dhallywood, a portmanteau of the words Dhaka and Hollywood), is the mainstream national film industry of Bangladesh.
[edit]Early history
Hiralal Sen is credited as one of Bengal's, and India's first directors. However, these were all silent films. Hiralal Sen is also credited as one of the pioneers of advertisement films in India. The first Bengali-language movie was the silent feature Billwamangal, produced by the Madan Theatre Company of Calcutta and released on 8 November 1919, only six years after the first full-length Indian feature film, Raja Harish Chandra, was released.[7]
The early beginnings of the "talking film" industry go back to the early 1930s, when it came to British India, and to Calcutta. The movies were originally made in Urdu or Persian as to accommodate a specific elite market. One of the earliest known studios was the East India Film Company. The first Bengali film to be made as a talkie was Jamai Shashthi, released in 1931. It was at this time that the early heroes of the Bengali film industry like Pramathesh Barua and Debaki Bose were at the peak of their popularity. Barua also directed a number of movies, exploring new dimension in Indian cinema. Debaki Bose directed Chandidas in 1932; this film is noted for its breakthrough in recording sound. Sound recordist Mukul Bose found out solution to the problem of spacing out dialogue and frequency modulation.
The 'Parallel Cinema' movement of Indian cinema began in the Bengali film industry during the 1950s, and then gained prominence in the other film industries of India.
[edit]West Bengal film industry
Main article: Cinema of West Bengal
The contribution of Bengali film industry to Indian film is quite significant. Based in Tollygunge, an area of South Kolkata, West Bengal and is more elite and artistically-inclined than the usual musical cinema fare in India. In the past, it enjoyed a large, even disproportionate, representation in Indian cinema, and produced film directors like Satyajit Ray, who was an Academy Honorary Award winner, and the recipient of India and France's greatest civilian honours, the Bharat Ratna and Legion of Honor respectively, and Mrinal Sen, who is the recipient of the French distinction of Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters and the Russian Order of Friendship. The early nickname for the Tollygunge film industry, "Tollywood", was also the very first Hollywood-inspired name, dating back to a 1932 article in the American Cinematographer by Wilford E. Deming (due to Tollygunge rhyming with Hollywood) and went on to inspire the name "Bollywood" and other similar names.[8]
Other prominent film makers in the Bengali film industry are Bimal Roy, Ritwik Ghatak, and Aparna Sen. The Bengali film industry has produced classics such as Nagarik (1952) The Apu Trilogy (1955–1959), Jalsaghar (1958), Ajantrik (1958), Neel Akasher Neechey (1959), Devdas, Devi (1960), Meghe Dhaka Tara (1960), the Calcutta trilogies (1971–1976), etc. In particular, The Apu Trilogy is now frequently listed among the greatest films of all time.[9][10][11][12]
The most well known Bengali actor to date has been Uttam Kumar; he and co-star Suchitra Sen were known as The Eternal Pair in the early 1950s. Soumitra Chatterjee is a notable actor, having acted in several Satyajit Ray films, and considered as a rival to Uttam Kumar in the 1960s but not at the level of Uttam Kumar. He is famous for the characterization of Feluda in Sonar Kella (1974) and Joy Baba Felunath (1978), written and directed by Ray. He also played the adult version of Apu in The World of Apu (1959), also directed by Ray. One of the most well known Bengali actresses was Sharmila Tagore, who debuted in Ray's The World of Apu, and became a major actress in Bengali cinema as well as Bollywood.
The pioneers in Bengali film music include Raichand Boral, Pankaj Mullick and K. C. Dey, all associated with New Theatres Calcutta [13]. Other famous playback singers in Bengali film music were Hemanta Mukherjee, Manna Dey, Sandhya Mukhopadhyay and Kishore Kumar.
In the 1980s, however, the Bengal film industry went through a period of turmoil, with a shift from its traditional artistic and emotional inclinations to an approach more imitating the increasingly more popular Hindi films, along with a decline in the audience and critical appreciation, with notable exceptions of the works of directors like Gautam Ghose. However, even at this time, a number of actors and actresses enjoyed popularity, including Tapas Pal, Prosenjit, Chiranjit, Rituparna Sengupta and others. However, toward the end of the 90s, with the a number of directors coming increasingly into prominence, including Rituparno Ghosh, Gautam Ghose, Aparna Sen, Sandip Ray among others, a number of popular and critically acclaimed movies have come out of the Bengali film industry in recent years. These include, Unishe April, Titli, Mr. and Mrs. Iyer, Bombaiyer Bombete, etc and signal a resurgence of the Bengali film industry.Now after 2000 their rise another group of actor (Jeet, Dev, Parambrata, Rudranil), actress(Koel Mallik, Paoli Dam), Director(Anirudha Roychodhury, Raj chackrobarty), musicians (Jeet Ganguly).
Jahar Kanungo’s 'Nisshabd' made in 2005 has been critically acclaimed for its originality in the treatment of image and sound.
The market for Bengali films has expanded to a 340-million-strong Bengali audience in Bangladesh, West Bengal, Tripura and Assam. The industry could truly flourish if films from this state have a proper distribution network. While around 50 films are produced in West Bengal every year, only 30 make it to the theatres.[14]
[edit]Bangladeshi film industry
Main article: Cinema of Bangladesh
The Bangladeshi film industry is based in Dhaka. As of 2004, it produced approximately 100 movies a year. The average movie budget was about 12 crore Bangladeshi taka.[15]
Although the majority of the films made in Bangladesh are strictly commercial in nature, a handful of directors from Bangladesh have attained critical acclaim for their outstanding work. Zahir Raihan, Khan Ataur Rahman, Salahuddin, Alamgir Kabir, Amjad Hussain, Moshiuddin Shaker, Sheikh Niyamat Ali, Humayun Ahmed, Morshedul Islam, Tanvir Mokammel, Tareque Masud are among those prominent directors. One of the first films produced in Bangladesh after independence was Titash Ekti Nadir Naam (A River Called Titas) in 1973 by acclaimed director Ritwik Ghatak, whose stature in Bengali cinema is comparable to that of Satyajit Ray and Mrinal Sen.
Bangladesh has been officially submitting nominations for the Academy Award for Best Foreign Language Film from 2003. Masud's Matir Moina (The Clay Bird) was the first film to be submitted, and won a number of other international awards from the Edinburgh, Palm Springs, Montreal, Marrakech, Cairo and Cannes Film Festivals. Another internationally acclaimed filmmaker from Bangladesh is Morshedul Islam, who won major awards at the International Filmfestival Mannheim-Heidelberg and other international film festivals.
[edit]See also
Bengal portal
Bengali Cinema
South Asian cinema
List of Bengali films
Cinema of Bangladesh
Cinema of India
Cinema of West Bengal
Parallel Cinema
Asian cinema
World cinema
[edit]References
^ a b Who's Who of Victorian Cinema. Hiralal Sen
^ Pioneers of Bangladeshi Cinema
^ Gokulsing, K.; Wimal Dissanayake (2004). Indian popular cinema: a narrative of cultural change. Trentham Books. p. 24. ISBN 1858563291.
^ IMDB page on Jamai Shashthi
^ http://www.indfy.com/kolkata/special-attractions/tollywood-trip.html
^ http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/1251462050.cms
^ BANGLAPEDIA: Film, Feature, accessed 27-VII-2006
^ Sarkar, Bhaskar (2008), "The Melodramas of Globalization", Cultural Dynamics 20: 31–51 [34]
^ "The Sight & Sound Top Ten Poll: 1992". Sight & Sound. British Film Institute. Retrieved 2008-05-20.
^ "Take One: The First Annual Village Voice Film Critics' Poll". The Village Voice. 1999. Archived from the original on 2007-08-26. Retrieved 2006-07-27.
^ The Best 1,000 Movies Ever Made By THE FILM CRITICS OF THE NEW YORK TIMES, New York Times, 2002.
^ "All-time 100 Movies". Time. Time Inc.. 2005. Retrieved 2008-05-19.
^ New Theatres Calcutta
^ http://www.screenindia.com/news/Bengali-cinema-in-independent-India/347909/
^ Bangladeshis reject "smutty" Bengali films, AFP/Helen Rowe, accessed 27-VII-2006
Uttam Kumar
Uttam Kumar (Bangla: উত্তম কুমার ) (3 September 1926 - 24 July 1980) born as Arun Kumar Chatterjee; was an eminent Bengali actor from India. He is fondly called the Mahanayak or the "Great Hero" of Bengali cinema. He was born Arun Kumar Chatterjee on 3 September 1926 in Kolkata.
He had been an actor, director and producer. Apart from acting in two films with Satyajit Ray, Nayak (The Hero) and Chiriyakhana (The Zoo, a thriller written by Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay, in which he played the famous Bengali detective Byomkesh Bakshi), he has acted in some Hindi films like "Chhoti si Mulaqat" (with Vyjayantimala Bali), Amanush (with Sharmila Tagore), Ananda Ashram(with Sharmila Tagore), Kitaab and Dooriyaan.
There is a theatre(Uttam Mancha)in his name in Kolkata.A life-size statue has been erected near Tollygunj metro station which has recently been renamed after the iconic actor by the central railway ministry.Besides,Shilpi Sansad,the actor's pet project of safegurading the artises especially the poor and the old, has still been active.There is a grapevine that the state government is planning to build a museum to preserve the memorabilia of the legend.
Contents [hide]
1 Early life
2 Film debut
3 Uttam-Suchitra
4 Branching out
5 Off screen romance(s)
6 Death
7 Family
8 Selected Filmography
9 12 Films With Highest Running Success At Release
10 Tributes
10.1 Awards
10.2 Quotes
11 External links
[edit]Early life
Uttam Kumar was born in Kolkata in his ancestral house in Girish Mukherjee Road, Bhowanipore. After his schooling in South Suburban School (Main), he went for higher studies in Goenka College of Commerce and Business Administration, an affiliated college of the University of Calcutta system. However, he couldn't complete his studies as he started working at the Kolkata Port as a clerk. During this period, he acted for amateur theater groups.
[edit]Film debut
Uttam's first released film was Drishtidan (The gift of sight) directed by Nitin Bose, though he worked in an earlier unreleased film called Mayador (Embrace of affection). He came into promonence in the film Basu Paribar and his breakthrough film was Sharey Chuattor (74 and a half) with a young actress called Suchitra Sen. This romantic comedy launched the career of the greatest romantic duo to grace the Bangla film industry.
[edit]Uttam-Suchitra
Uttam-Suchitra have ever since been a household name. Some of Uttam's famous films co-starring, with Suchitra include Saptapadi (Seven Steps), Pathe Holo Deri (Delay on the road), Harano Sur (Lost Music), Chaowa Paowa (Wish and Achievement), Bipasha (Bipasha), Jiban Trishna (Thirst for Life) and Sagarika (Sagarika). It is however debatable as whether on-screen chemistry between the two actors translated to off-screen romance.[citation needed]
[edit]Branching out
Uttam Kumar tried his hand at the popular Bombay/Hindi film with the oft-criticised box office bomb Chhoti Si Mulakat, a film he produced and starred in, among others that were better received. But his towering contribution was to Bengali cinema, or Tollywood (as it is primarily located in Tollygunge in South Kolkata). Many of his Bengali films were directed by notable directors or directing groups of the sixties and the seventies, such as Agradut, Agragami, and Yatrik. Arguably, one of his most lauded appearances was in Satyajit Ray's Nayak (film) (The Hero). It has been rumored that Ray wrote the script with Uttam in mind. Later in his career, Uttam branched out into producing and directing much-lauded films such as Bon Palashir Padaboli.
He had a huge phenomenal fan base which continues even to this day. Reruns of his films on television twenty nine years after his death is still eagerly watched. Uttam Kumars time is considered by many as the golden age of Bengali (West Bengal) cinema.
[edit]Off screen romance(s)
Uttam Kumar's affair with Supriya Debi was the only one that has been validated as they lived together for several years. Although his on-screen chemistry with Suchitra Sen is legendary, their alleged romance has never been substantiated. It is suspected that most of it was the figment of the public's and media's collective imagination. Sabitri Chatterjee, another of his heroines was treated like a very young little sister by Uttam. She has stated in numerous interviews that Uttam would scold her as if she were a little child.
[edit]Death
A strict workaholic, he was rumored to have said that his preferred demise would be on the floor of a studio, doing what he loved best, acting. Indeed, that is exactly how he died. While filming the Bengali film Ogo Bodhu Shundori in 1980, he died of a massive heart attack at the age of 55.
Uttam Kumar's funeral -- mourned by hundreds of thousands of Bengalis spilling into the streets as a slow-moving procession with his garlanded body moved along the major arteries of Calcutta -- was an elaborate, yet ultimately a simple affair. With his passing, Bengal marked the end of an era as Tollygunge (the area in Calcutta where most of the film studios are located) slowly but inexorably transformed itself into Tollywood (marked by an imitation of Bollywood).
As for actors -- to date, and arguably, there has appeared in Tollywood no adequate replacement with comparable star power, box office magnetism, as well as acting acumen. Some of his films like "NishiPadmo" were copied into Bollywood blockbusters like Amar Prem starring Rajesh Khanna and Sharmila Tagore.
In 1966, he turned in a much-lauded performance in the Satyajit Ray directed film Nayak. When the Indian Government instituted the National Awards for Best Actor and Actress in 1967, Uttam Kumar was the first ever recipient of the Best Actor Award for his performances in Chiriakhana directed by Satyajit Ray, and Antony Firingi (1967).
[edit]Family
Uttam Kumar was the eldest among three brothers. His second brother Barun Kumar Chatterjee died a decade back. However, his youngest brother Tarun Kumar Chatterjee (screen name Tarun Kumar) has acted in numerous Bengali feature films and considered a character actor of considerable repute. Tarun Kumar often paired onscreen with his real life wife, character actress Subrata Chatterjee. The films where Uttam Kumar and Tarun Kumar have starred together include Saptapadi, Mayamriga, Agnishwar, Deya Neya etc.
Uttam Kumar's only son Gautam (a businessman, who had no link with films) died of cancer. His grandson Gaurav is now an actor in Bengali movies, though he isn't as famous as the great man himself.
It is known that he was family to Pulak Bandyopadhyay, the famous lyricist. Bandhopadhyay was his uncle, according to records, and he is thus a member of the Salkia House.
[edit]Selected Filmography
See Filmography of Uttam Kumar
1948 ---- Drishtidan
1949 ---- Kamona
1950 ---- Marjada
1951 ---- Sahajatri
1951 ---- Nastanir
1951 ---- O re Jatri
1952 ---- Sanjeevani
1952 ---- Kaar Paape
1952 ---- Basu Paribar
1953 ---- Sharey Chuattor
1953 ---- Lakh Taka
1953 ---- Bou Thakuranir Haat
1953 ---- Nabin Jatra
1954 ---- Maraner Pare
1954 ---- Ora Thake Odhare
1954 ---- Chapadangar Bou
1954 ---- Annapurnar Mandir
1954 ---- Agnipariksha
1954 ---- Maner Mayur
1954 ---- Grihaprabesh
1954 ---- Bakul
1954 ---- Mantrashakti
1954 ---- Kalyani
1955 ---- Sabar Upare
1955 ---- Raikamal
1955 ---- Saajher Pradip
1955 ---- Debatra
1955 ---- Anupama
1956 ---- Saheb Bibi Golam
1956 ---- Sanakr Narayan Bank
1956 ---- Sagarika
1956 ---- Chirakumar Sabha
1956 ---- Ekti Raat
1956 ---- Shyamali
1956 ---- Lakshaheera
1956 ---- Trijama
1956 ---- Putrabadhu
1956 ---- Shilpi
1956 ---- Nabajanma
1957 ---- Haranu Sur
1957 ---- Prithibi Amare Chay
1957 ---- Baradidi
1957 ---- Surer Parash
1957 ---- Jatra Holo Suru
1957 ---- Tasher Ghar
1957 ---- Punarmilan
1957 ---- Chandranath
1957 ---- Abhayer Biye
1957 ---- Pathe Holo Deri
1957 ---- Harjeet
1957 ---- Jeeban Trishna
1958 ---- Indrani
1958 ---- Bandhu
1958 ---- Joutuk
1958 ---- Shikar
1958 ---- Suryatoran
1958 ---- Rajlakshmi O Srikanta
1958 ---- Manmoyee Girls School
1958 ---- Daktarbabu
1959 ---- Marutirtha Hinglaj
1959 ---- Chaowa Pawoa
1959 ---- Bicharak
1959 ---- Sonar Harin
1959 ---- Pushpadhanu
1959 ---- Gali Theke Rajpath
1959 ---- Khelaghar
1959 ---- Abak Prithibi
1960 ---- Khokababur Pratyabartan
1960 ---- Haat Baralei Bandhu
1960 ---- Mayamriga
1960 ---- Kuhak
1960 ---- Rajasaja
1960 ---- Sakher Chor
1960 ---- Uttar Megh
1960 ---- Saharer Itikatha
1960 ---- Shuno Baranari
1961 ---- Jhinder Bandi
1961 ---- Saptapadi
1961 ---- Dui Bhai
1961 ---- Saathihara
1961 ---- Agnisanskar
1961 ---- Neckless
1962 ---- Bipasha
1962 ---- Kanna
1962 ---- Siulibari
1963 ---- Bhrantibilas
1963 ---- Suryasikha
1963 ---- Deya Neya
1963 ---- Nisithe
1963 ---- Sesh Anka
1963 ---- Uttarayan
1964 ---- Jatugriha
1964 ---- Laal Pathar
1964 ---- Momer Alo
1964 ---- Bibhas
1964 ---- Natun Tirtha
1965 ---- Thana Theke Aaschhi
1965 ---- Raajkanya
1965 ---- Suryatapa
1966 ---- Nayak
1966 ---- Sankhabela
1966 ---- Kaal Tumi Aleya
1966 ---- Shudhu Ekti Bachhar
1966 ---- Rajadrohi
1967 ---- Naayika Sangbad
1967 ---- Chiriakhana
1967 ---- Anthoni Phiringi
1967 ---- Jeeban Mrityu
1968 ---- Teen Adhyay
1968 ---- Chowrangee
1968 ---- Kakhano Megh
1968 ---- Garh Nasimpur
1969 ---- Chirodiner
1969 ---- Sabarmati
1969 ---- Man Niye
1969 ---- Aparichito
1969 ---- Shuksari
1969 ---- Kamallata
1970 ---- Nishipadma
1970 ---- Bilambita Loy
1970 ---- Duti Mon
1970 ---- Rajkumari
1970 ---- Kalankita Nayak
1970 ---- Manjari Apera
1971 ---- Chhadmabesi
1971 ---- Joyjayanti
1971 ---- Ekhane Pinjor
1971 ---- Dhannyi Meye
1971 ---- Jiban Jiggasa
1971 ---- Nabaraag
1972 ---- Memsaheb
1972 ---- Andha Atit
1972 ---- Biraj Bou
1972 ---- Alo Amar Alo
1972 ---- Stree
1972 ---- Haar Mana Haar
1972 ---- Chhinnapatra
1973 ---- Sonar Khacha
1973 ---- Bonpalashir Padabali
1973 ---- Raudrachhaya
1973 ---- Raater Rajanigandha
1973 ---- Kayaheener Kaahini
1974 ---- Amanush
1974 ---- Bikele Bhorer Phul
1974 ---- Raktatilak
1974 ---- Jadi Jantem
1974 ---- Alor Thikana
1974 ---- Jadibangsha
1974 ---- Rodan Bhara Basanta
1975 ---- Agniswar
1975 ---- Mouchak
1975 ---- Kajallata
1975 ---- Ami Se O Sakha
1975 ---- Nagar Darparne
1975 ---- Priyo Bandhabi
1976 ---- Banhisikha
1976 ---- Nidhiram Sardar
1976 ---- Hotel Snow Fox
1976 ---- Sei Chokh
1976 ---- Anandamela
1976 ---- Mombati
1976 ---- Chander Kachhakaachhi
1977 ---- Ananda Ashram
1975 ---- Sannyasi Raja
1977 ---- Sabyasachi
1977 ---- Rajbangsha
1977 ---- Bhola Moyra
1977 ---- Sister
1978 ---- Dui Purush
1978 ---- Bandi
1978 ---- Nishan
1978 ---- Dhanraj Tamang
1979 ---- Debdas
1979 ---- Srikanter Will
1979 ---- Samadhan
1979 ---- Brajabuli
1979 ---- Sunayani
1979 ---- Naba Diganta
1980 ---- Dui Prithibi
1980 ---- Raja Saheb
1980 ---- Pakhhiraj
1980 ---- Darpachurna
1980 ---- Aaro Ekjon
1980 ---- Ogo Badhu Sundari
1980 ---- Khana Barah
1980 ---- Pratishodh
1980 ---- Kalankini Kankabati
1980 ---- Suryasakkhi
1981 ---- Iman Kalyan
[edit]12 Films With Highest Running Success At Release
1.Sagarika(1956 - 24 weeks
2.Mayamriga(1960) - 18 weeks
3.Nishipadma(1970 - 17 weeks
4.Chadmabeshi(1971) - 18 weeks
5.Stri(1972)- 24 weeks
6.Banpalashir Padabali(1973) - 17 weeks
7.Amanush(1974) - 32 weeks
8.Ami Se o Sakha(1975) - 26 weeks
9.Mouchak(1975) - 17 weeks
10.Sannyasi Raja(1975) - 18 weeks
11.Ananda Ashrama(1977) - 26 weeks
12.Ogo Badhu Sundori(1981) - 23 weeks
Late journalist Rintu Mukherjee in his " Khanojonma Uttam" did map out the incredible bankability of ths star. From 1947 to 1980, both in Bengali and Hindi, Uttam Kumar acted in 202 films. Among them 39 were blockbusters, 57 were superhits, 57 made profits above the average and the rest flop.
[edit]Tributes
"It is the demise of a leading light of the Bengali film industry…There isn't - there won't be another hero like him." -- Satyajit Ray
"I personally felt that the acting of Uttam Kumar could be compared to the best actor of any country. His great attribute is his diligence...Many are born with talent, but the talent gets eclipsed due to the lack of diligence. Uttam Kumar has both of them. Perhaps, that is the reason why he still sparkles." -- Tapan Sinha
"Uttam is my friend. In a word, he is a great,great artist. But still sometimes i feel as if he is not properly exploited." -- Suchitra Sen
"Uttam was a great human being...it can easily be underscored -- actor of his class is a rare kind" -- Shakti Samanta
"...slowly Uttam Kumar got popular. And a fairy tale was born. I was never bothered to know the individual self of the romantic hero of this fairy tale. I would never want to. What if the dream gets shattered! Let the beautiful spell be alive!Long live Uttam Kumar -- The evergreen romatic hero." -- Madhabi Mukherjee
" It feels good to see all praising one. Uttam is one such person...He never had any pose or pretension...God gave him everything but a friend." -- Kanan Devi
" Uttam Kumar,the numero uno hero of Bengal,the most loving." -- Samaresh Basu
" Sri Uttam Kumar is not merely the actor, I regard him as the creator of character.May be as the creator of character,he has achieved such stupendous popularity." -- Bimal Mitra
" He is the hero and life of many of my fictions." -- Ashutosh Mukhopadhyay
" Uttam!An extraordinary artist!The artistic self of Uttam Kumar never dies down!Oh God give him Uttam health,Uttam strength, Uttam longevity(in Sanskrit and in Bengali, 'Uttam' means 'good')-- Ashapoorna Devi
" In Uttam Kumar we have found a director who shows his brilliance on diverse levels." -- Hindustan Standard (on Uttam Kumar's directorial debut)
[edit]Awards
B.F.J.A Best Actor Award for Hrod(1955)
Recognition from the Government of India for Harano Sur(1957)
B.F.J.A Best Actor award for Saptopadi(1961). Uttam Kumar received the award from the legendary film-maker Debaki Bose.
B.F.J.A Best Actor award for Nayak(1966). Attended the Berlin Film Festicval as the distinguished guest.
The very first recipient of the 'Bharat' award in the Best Actor category for both 'Chiriyakhana' and 'Antony Firingi'(1967).
B.F.J.A Best Actor award for 'Grihadha'(1967).
B.F.J.A Best Actor award for 'Ekhane Pinjar'(1971).
Best Actor award from 'Prosad'magazine for 'Stri'(1973). He received the award from Kanan Devi.
B.F.J.A Best Actor award for 'Amanush'(1974).
Best Actor Filmfare Award for 'Amanush'(1975).
He received the Best Actor award for the same film from the Government of West Bengal on January 26,1975.The price was worth 5000 rupees. Uttam Kumar donated the whole sum to the impoverished artists'fund.
B.F.J.A Best Actor award for 'Bahnisikha'(1976).
Best Actor award both from the 'Prosad' magazine and Sanonskritik Sanbadik Sanostha for 'Ananda Ashram'(1977).
[edit]Quotes
" I prefer following my own ways of acting, like the ways we talk, get angry,that kind of natural spontaneous acting. More of portraying a character."
" Sometimes I got scared. So much of accolade -- would they last for long?And that is why I was not ready to get carried away in the waves of admiration. I desire for more work."
" I never fear work. Rather I derive pleasure out of work."
" Films,Shilpi Sansad,then there was the world of my own,my privacy:I was confused.As if my every moment has ben sold..."
" Whenever I set to work,one after the other death news hit me.Again I eased myself by realizing that death is the only truth."
He had been an actor, director and producer. Apart from acting in two films with Satyajit Ray, Nayak (The Hero) and Chiriyakhana (The Zoo, a thriller written by Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay, in which he played the famous Bengali detective Byomkesh Bakshi), he has acted in some Hindi films like "Chhoti si Mulaqat" (with Vyjayantimala Bali), Amanush (with Sharmila Tagore), Ananda Ashram(with Sharmila Tagore), Kitaab and Dooriyaan.
There is a theatre(Uttam Mancha)in his name in Kolkata.A life-size statue has been erected near Tollygunj metro station which has recently been renamed after the iconic actor by the central railway ministry.Besides,Shilpi Sansad,the actor's pet project of safegurading the artises especially the poor and the old, has still been active.There is a grapevine that the state government is planning to build a museum to preserve the memorabilia of the legend.
Contents [hide]
1 Early life
2 Film debut
3 Uttam-Suchitra
4 Branching out
5 Off screen romance(s)
6 Death
7 Family
8 Selected Filmography
9 12 Films With Highest Running Success At Release
10 Tributes
10.1 Awards
10.2 Quotes
11 External links
[edit]Early life
Uttam Kumar was born in Kolkata in his ancestral house in Girish Mukherjee Road, Bhowanipore. After his schooling in South Suburban School (Main), he went for higher studies in Goenka College of Commerce and Business Administration, an affiliated college of the University of Calcutta system. However, he couldn't complete his studies as he started working at the Kolkata Port as a clerk. During this period, he acted for amateur theater groups.
[edit]Film debut
Uttam's first released film was Drishtidan (The gift of sight) directed by Nitin Bose, though he worked in an earlier unreleased film called Mayador (Embrace of affection). He came into promonence in the film Basu Paribar and his breakthrough film was Sharey Chuattor (74 and a half) with a young actress called Suchitra Sen. This romantic comedy launched the career of the greatest romantic duo to grace the Bangla film industry.
[edit]Uttam-Suchitra
Uttam-Suchitra have ever since been a household name. Some of Uttam's famous films co-starring, with Suchitra include Saptapadi (Seven Steps), Pathe Holo Deri (Delay on the road), Harano Sur (Lost Music), Chaowa Paowa (Wish and Achievement), Bipasha (Bipasha), Jiban Trishna (Thirst for Life) and Sagarika (Sagarika). It is however debatable as whether on-screen chemistry between the two actors translated to off-screen romance.[citation needed]
[edit]Branching out
Uttam Kumar tried his hand at the popular Bombay/Hindi film with the oft-criticised box office bomb Chhoti Si Mulakat, a film he produced and starred in, among others that were better received. But his towering contribution was to Bengali cinema, or Tollywood (as it is primarily located in Tollygunge in South Kolkata). Many of his Bengali films were directed by notable directors or directing groups of the sixties and the seventies, such as Agradut, Agragami, and Yatrik. Arguably, one of his most lauded appearances was in Satyajit Ray's Nayak (film) (The Hero). It has been rumored that Ray wrote the script with Uttam in mind. Later in his career, Uttam branched out into producing and directing much-lauded films such as Bon Palashir Padaboli.
He had a huge phenomenal fan base which continues even to this day. Reruns of his films on television twenty nine years after his death is still eagerly watched. Uttam Kumars time is considered by many as the golden age of Bengali (West Bengal) cinema.
[edit]Off screen romance(s)
Uttam Kumar's affair with Supriya Debi was the only one that has been validated as they lived together for several years. Although his on-screen chemistry with Suchitra Sen is legendary, their alleged romance has never been substantiated. It is suspected that most of it was the figment of the public's and media's collective imagination. Sabitri Chatterjee, another of his heroines was treated like a very young little sister by Uttam. She has stated in numerous interviews that Uttam would scold her as if she were a little child.
[edit]Death
A strict workaholic, he was rumored to have said that his preferred demise would be on the floor of a studio, doing what he loved best, acting. Indeed, that is exactly how he died. While filming the Bengali film Ogo Bodhu Shundori in 1980, he died of a massive heart attack at the age of 55.
Uttam Kumar's funeral -- mourned by hundreds of thousands of Bengalis spilling into the streets as a slow-moving procession with his garlanded body moved along the major arteries of Calcutta -- was an elaborate, yet ultimately a simple affair. With his passing, Bengal marked the end of an era as Tollygunge (the area in Calcutta where most of the film studios are located) slowly but inexorably transformed itself into Tollywood (marked by an imitation of Bollywood).
As for actors -- to date, and arguably, there has appeared in Tollywood no adequate replacement with comparable star power, box office magnetism, as well as acting acumen. Some of his films like "NishiPadmo" were copied into Bollywood blockbusters like Amar Prem starring Rajesh Khanna and Sharmila Tagore.
In 1966, he turned in a much-lauded performance in the Satyajit Ray directed film Nayak. When the Indian Government instituted the National Awards for Best Actor and Actress in 1967, Uttam Kumar was the first ever recipient of the Best Actor Award for his performances in Chiriakhana directed by Satyajit Ray, and Antony Firingi (1967).
[edit]Family
Uttam Kumar was the eldest among three brothers. His second brother Barun Kumar Chatterjee died a decade back. However, his youngest brother Tarun Kumar Chatterjee (screen name Tarun Kumar) has acted in numerous Bengali feature films and considered a character actor of considerable repute. Tarun Kumar often paired onscreen with his real life wife, character actress Subrata Chatterjee. The films where Uttam Kumar and Tarun Kumar have starred together include Saptapadi, Mayamriga, Agnishwar, Deya Neya etc.
Uttam Kumar's only son Gautam (a businessman, who had no link with films) died of cancer. His grandson Gaurav is now an actor in Bengali movies, though he isn't as famous as the great man himself.
It is known that he was family to Pulak Bandyopadhyay, the famous lyricist. Bandhopadhyay was his uncle, according to records, and he is thus a member of the Salkia House.
[edit]Selected Filmography
See Filmography of Uttam Kumar
1948 ---- Drishtidan
1949 ---- Kamona
1950 ---- Marjada
1951 ---- Sahajatri
1951 ---- Nastanir
1951 ---- O re Jatri
1952 ---- Sanjeevani
1952 ---- Kaar Paape
1952 ---- Basu Paribar
1953 ---- Sharey Chuattor
1953 ---- Lakh Taka
1953 ---- Bou Thakuranir Haat
1953 ---- Nabin Jatra
1954 ---- Maraner Pare
1954 ---- Ora Thake Odhare
1954 ---- Chapadangar Bou
1954 ---- Annapurnar Mandir
1954 ---- Agnipariksha
1954 ---- Maner Mayur
1954 ---- Grihaprabesh
1954 ---- Bakul
1954 ---- Mantrashakti
1954 ---- Kalyani
1955 ---- Sabar Upare
1955 ---- Raikamal
1955 ---- Saajher Pradip
1955 ---- Debatra
1955 ---- Anupama
1956 ---- Saheb Bibi Golam
1956 ---- Sanakr Narayan Bank
1956 ---- Sagarika
1956 ---- Chirakumar Sabha
1956 ---- Ekti Raat
1956 ---- Shyamali
1956 ---- Lakshaheera
1956 ---- Trijama
1956 ---- Putrabadhu
1956 ---- Shilpi
1956 ---- Nabajanma
1957 ---- Haranu Sur
1957 ---- Prithibi Amare Chay
1957 ---- Baradidi
1957 ---- Surer Parash
1957 ---- Jatra Holo Suru
1957 ---- Tasher Ghar
1957 ---- Punarmilan
1957 ---- Chandranath
1957 ---- Abhayer Biye
1957 ---- Pathe Holo Deri
1957 ---- Harjeet
1957 ---- Jeeban Trishna
1958 ---- Indrani
1958 ---- Bandhu
1958 ---- Joutuk
1958 ---- Shikar
1958 ---- Suryatoran
1958 ---- Rajlakshmi O Srikanta
1958 ---- Manmoyee Girls School
1958 ---- Daktarbabu
1959 ---- Marutirtha Hinglaj
1959 ---- Chaowa Pawoa
1959 ---- Bicharak
1959 ---- Sonar Harin
1959 ---- Pushpadhanu
1959 ---- Gali Theke Rajpath
1959 ---- Khelaghar
1959 ---- Abak Prithibi
1960 ---- Khokababur Pratyabartan
1960 ---- Haat Baralei Bandhu
1960 ---- Mayamriga
1960 ---- Kuhak
1960 ---- Rajasaja
1960 ---- Sakher Chor
1960 ---- Uttar Megh
1960 ---- Saharer Itikatha
1960 ---- Shuno Baranari
1961 ---- Jhinder Bandi
1961 ---- Saptapadi
1961 ---- Dui Bhai
1961 ---- Saathihara
1961 ---- Agnisanskar
1961 ---- Neckless
1962 ---- Bipasha
1962 ---- Kanna
1962 ---- Siulibari
1963 ---- Bhrantibilas
1963 ---- Suryasikha
1963 ---- Deya Neya
1963 ---- Nisithe
1963 ---- Sesh Anka
1963 ---- Uttarayan
1964 ---- Jatugriha
1964 ---- Laal Pathar
1964 ---- Momer Alo
1964 ---- Bibhas
1964 ---- Natun Tirtha
1965 ---- Thana Theke Aaschhi
1965 ---- Raajkanya
1965 ---- Suryatapa
1966 ---- Nayak
1966 ---- Sankhabela
1966 ---- Kaal Tumi Aleya
1966 ---- Shudhu Ekti Bachhar
1966 ---- Rajadrohi
1967 ---- Naayika Sangbad
1967 ---- Chiriakhana
1967 ---- Anthoni Phiringi
1967 ---- Jeeban Mrityu
1968 ---- Teen Adhyay
1968 ---- Chowrangee
1968 ---- Kakhano Megh
1968 ---- Garh Nasimpur
1969 ---- Chirodiner
1969 ---- Sabarmati
1969 ---- Man Niye
1969 ---- Aparichito
1969 ---- Shuksari
1969 ---- Kamallata
1970 ---- Nishipadma
1970 ---- Bilambita Loy
1970 ---- Duti Mon
1970 ---- Rajkumari
1970 ---- Kalankita Nayak
1970 ---- Manjari Apera
1971 ---- Chhadmabesi
1971 ---- Joyjayanti
1971 ---- Ekhane Pinjor
1971 ---- Dhannyi Meye
1971 ---- Jiban Jiggasa
1971 ---- Nabaraag
1972 ---- Memsaheb
1972 ---- Andha Atit
1972 ---- Biraj Bou
1972 ---- Alo Amar Alo
1972 ---- Stree
1972 ---- Haar Mana Haar
1972 ---- Chhinnapatra
1973 ---- Sonar Khacha
1973 ---- Bonpalashir Padabali
1973 ---- Raudrachhaya
1973 ---- Raater Rajanigandha
1973 ---- Kayaheener Kaahini
1974 ---- Amanush
1974 ---- Bikele Bhorer Phul
1974 ---- Raktatilak
1974 ---- Jadi Jantem
1974 ---- Alor Thikana
1974 ---- Jadibangsha
1974 ---- Rodan Bhara Basanta
1975 ---- Agniswar
1975 ---- Mouchak
1975 ---- Kajallata
1975 ---- Ami Se O Sakha
1975 ---- Nagar Darparne
1975 ---- Priyo Bandhabi
1976 ---- Banhisikha
1976 ---- Nidhiram Sardar
1976 ---- Hotel Snow Fox
1976 ---- Sei Chokh
1976 ---- Anandamela
1976 ---- Mombati
1976 ---- Chander Kachhakaachhi
1977 ---- Ananda Ashram
1975 ---- Sannyasi Raja
1977 ---- Sabyasachi
1977 ---- Rajbangsha
1977 ---- Bhola Moyra
1977 ---- Sister
1978 ---- Dui Purush
1978 ---- Bandi
1978 ---- Nishan
1978 ---- Dhanraj Tamang
1979 ---- Debdas
1979 ---- Srikanter Will
1979 ---- Samadhan
1979 ---- Brajabuli
1979 ---- Sunayani
1979 ---- Naba Diganta
1980 ---- Dui Prithibi
1980 ---- Raja Saheb
1980 ---- Pakhhiraj
1980 ---- Darpachurna
1980 ---- Aaro Ekjon
1980 ---- Ogo Badhu Sundari
1980 ---- Khana Barah
1980 ---- Pratishodh
1980 ---- Kalankini Kankabati
1980 ---- Suryasakkhi
1981 ---- Iman Kalyan
[edit]12 Films With Highest Running Success At Release
1.Sagarika(1956 - 24 weeks
2.Mayamriga(1960) - 18 weeks
3.Nishipadma(1970 - 17 weeks
4.Chadmabeshi(1971) - 18 weeks
5.Stri(1972)- 24 weeks
6.Banpalashir Padabali(1973) - 17 weeks
7.Amanush(1974) - 32 weeks
8.Ami Se o Sakha(1975) - 26 weeks
9.Mouchak(1975) - 17 weeks
10.Sannyasi Raja(1975) - 18 weeks
11.Ananda Ashrama(1977) - 26 weeks
12.Ogo Badhu Sundori(1981) - 23 weeks
Late journalist Rintu Mukherjee in his " Khanojonma Uttam" did map out the incredible bankability of ths star. From 1947 to 1980, both in Bengali and Hindi, Uttam Kumar acted in 202 films. Among them 39 were blockbusters, 57 were superhits, 57 made profits above the average and the rest flop.
[edit]Tributes
"It is the demise of a leading light of the Bengali film industry…There isn't - there won't be another hero like him." -- Satyajit Ray
"I personally felt that the acting of Uttam Kumar could be compared to the best actor of any country. His great attribute is his diligence...Many are born with talent, but the talent gets eclipsed due to the lack of diligence. Uttam Kumar has both of them. Perhaps, that is the reason why he still sparkles." -- Tapan Sinha
"Uttam is my friend. In a word, he is a great,great artist. But still sometimes i feel as if he is not properly exploited." -- Suchitra Sen
"Uttam was a great human being...it can easily be underscored -- actor of his class is a rare kind" -- Shakti Samanta
"...slowly Uttam Kumar got popular. And a fairy tale was born. I was never bothered to know the individual self of the romantic hero of this fairy tale. I would never want to. What if the dream gets shattered! Let the beautiful spell be alive!Long live Uttam Kumar -- The evergreen romatic hero." -- Madhabi Mukherjee
" It feels good to see all praising one. Uttam is one such person...He never had any pose or pretension...God gave him everything but a friend." -- Kanan Devi
" Uttam Kumar,the numero uno hero of Bengal,the most loving." -- Samaresh Basu
" Sri Uttam Kumar is not merely the actor, I regard him as the creator of character.May be as the creator of character,he has achieved such stupendous popularity." -- Bimal Mitra
" He is the hero and life of many of my fictions." -- Ashutosh Mukhopadhyay
" Uttam!An extraordinary artist!The artistic self of Uttam Kumar never dies down!Oh God give him Uttam health,Uttam strength, Uttam longevity(in Sanskrit and in Bengali, 'Uttam' means 'good')-- Ashapoorna Devi
" In Uttam Kumar we have found a director who shows his brilliance on diverse levels." -- Hindustan Standard (on Uttam Kumar's directorial debut)
[edit]Awards
B.F.J.A Best Actor Award for Hrod(1955)
Recognition from the Government of India for Harano Sur(1957)
B.F.J.A Best Actor award for Saptopadi(1961). Uttam Kumar received the award from the legendary film-maker Debaki Bose.
B.F.J.A Best Actor award for Nayak(1966). Attended the Berlin Film Festicval as the distinguished guest.
The very first recipient of the 'Bharat' award in the Best Actor category for both 'Chiriyakhana' and 'Antony Firingi'(1967).
B.F.J.A Best Actor award for 'Grihadha'(1967).
B.F.J.A Best Actor award for 'Ekhane Pinjar'(1971).
Best Actor award from 'Prosad'magazine for 'Stri'(1973). He received the award from Kanan Devi.
B.F.J.A Best Actor award for 'Amanush'(1974).
Best Actor Filmfare Award for 'Amanush'(1975).
He received the Best Actor award for the same film from the Government of West Bengal on January 26,1975.The price was worth 5000 rupees. Uttam Kumar donated the whole sum to the impoverished artists'fund.
B.F.J.A Best Actor award for 'Bahnisikha'(1976).
Best Actor award both from the 'Prosad' magazine and Sanonskritik Sanbadik Sanostha for 'Ananda Ashram'(1977).
[edit]Quotes
" I prefer following my own ways of acting, like the ways we talk, get angry,that kind of natural spontaneous acting. More of portraying a character."
" Sometimes I got scared. So much of accolade -- would they last for long?And that is why I was not ready to get carried away in the waves of admiration. I desire for more work."
" I never fear work. Rather I derive pleasure out of work."
" Films,Shilpi Sansad,then there was the world of my own,my privacy:I was confused.As if my every moment has ben sold..."
" Whenever I set to work,one after the other death news hit me.Again I eased myself by realizing that death is the only truth."
Gurusaday Dutt
Gurusaday Dutt, Esq., ICS (Bengali: গুরুসদয় দত্ত) was a civil servant, politician, folklorist, and writer.
Contents [hide]
1 Early Life and education
2 Career
3 Contributions to social work
4 Contributions to art and culture
5 Controversies
6 Organisations founded
7 Publications
8 Commemoration
9 References
10 External links
[edit]Early Life and education
He was the son of the Ramkrishna Dutta Chaudhuri and Anandamayee Debi. His father was the zamindar of Birasri village in Karimganj sub-division of Sylhet district, in eastern Bengal (present day Bangladesh).
Always a brilliant student, he completed his schooling at Minor School which had been set up by his father's elder brother Radhakrishna Dutta Chaudhuri. He completed his Entrance (School Leaving) examination at Government College, Sylhet where he stood 2nd in 1898. He stood 1st in the F.A. examination (prior to Graduate studies) from Presidency College, Calcutta in 1901 and was awarded the Scindia Gold Medal. He went on a Scholarship from the Sylhet Union to Emmanuel College, Cambridge, UK and then took the Indian Civil service (ICS) examination, in which he stood 7th in the First Part and 1st in the Second Part in 1904. He also passed the Bar examination with a First Class, and was called to the Bar by the Honourable Society of Gray's Inn.
He repaid the scholarship money to Sylhet Union after working for a few years, so that the Union could help another student from the same district with that money. In 1905, he returned to India and started work as an ICS officer.
[edit]Career
He served with distinction in the Bengal cadre which in 1905 included the present the Bangladesh and the Indian states of West Bengal, Bihar and Orissa in India. He served in various capacities in the districts of Arrah, Hooghly, Pabna, Bogra, Jessore, Faridpur, Comilla, Dacca, Barisal, Khulna, Birbhum, Bankura, Howrah and Mymensingh, before coming to Calcutta. He was District Magistrate, Mymensingh, Secretary, Industries and Local Self Government and Public Health, and also the Government Chief Whip in the Bengal Legislative Council. From 1930-1933, he was a nominated Member of the Council of State and of the Central Legislative Assembly (the erstwhile Parliament of British India).
[edit]Contributions to social work
From his youth, he started to take active interest in social service and participated in helping in fire-fighting and assisting in relief work during floods and other natural disasters. He was one of the social reformers of the first half of the nineteenth century who thought independently about various avenues of service to the rural poor. He realized that in order to establish any progressive idea on firm foundation it was necessary to educate women and make them self-reliant. Saroj Nalini Dutt, who became an eminent Social Worker in her own right, was inspired by Gurusaday to start Mahila Samitis (Women’s Institutes) as early as 1913, at Pabna district in British India, where he was then the District Magistrate.
In 1918, he started the first Rural Reconstruction Movement in India in Birbhum. He then extended the movement to several districts where he was subsequently posted, like Bankura, Howrah and Mymensingh. This movement was a bold and unique India that was under British Rule at the time. In fact, he was advised by his senior officer that he should spend time in the Club socializing with other officers rather than pursuing activities to promote rural development and social welfare.
He was the first amongst Civilian officers to set an example of the dignity of labour, by manually working with a group of followers to eradicate the water hyacinth, a plant that covers ponds and makes water unusable. He would also re-excavate silted irrigation canals with a band of workers. In those days, it was unthinkable for a Magistrate to work manually with common people.
In 1922, he started a Society for co-operative irrigation in Bankura, which he later extended to Mymensingh and Birbhum.
He headed the Indian delegation as a representative of the British Indian Government at a meeting of the Agricultural Institute at Rome in 1924.
In 1925, he lost his wife at a very early age. He established the Saroj Nalini Dutt Memorial Association, in February 1925, as a Central Training Institute for training crafts and basic education to provide livelihood to women who had been deprived from receiving formal education in early life and lived at the mercy of relatives. He thought of non-formal education many years before it was officially started. His pioneering work was started when most women in India were still behind the purdah (veil), and would not dare to come out in the world to create a future for themselves. This organization became the apex organization for Mahila Samitis (Women’s Institutes) in Eastern India, and was later affiliated to the Associated Country Women of the World (ACWW) and the International Alliance of Women.
In October 1925, he started Bangalakshmi, a monthly magazine that is still published.
In 1929, he started a magazine called Gramer Daak that dealt with agrarian and rural matters of concern.
It was at Mymensingh that he started a Folk Dance Revival Society. He revived the Jaari dance, being inspired by the secular nature of the dance and its spirit of unifying both Hindus and Muslims, at a time when communal tensions were running high.
In 1930, he discovered the Raibeshe folk dance, a martial dance of un-divided Bengal, in Birbhum. He studied the origins of the dance and discovered its rich cultural past and its connection with the army of Raja Man Singh of Rajasthan. Subsequently, he also revived the Kaathi, Dhamail, Baul, Jhumur, Brata and Dhali dances from different parts of un-divided Bengal.
In 1931, he met Cecil Sharpe, who revived Morris dancing in England, when he visited London. He also attended All-England Folk Dance & Folk Song Festival. This inspired him to set up the Bangiya Palli Sampad Raksha Samiti (translated as Cultural Heritage Protection Society of Bengal) on his return.
In 1932, he started the Bratachari movement. In his words in The Bratachari Synthesis, first published in 1937,
“ the Movement is to bring back to humanity, in all countries, the ideal and practice of the wholeness of life which, alike in the individual, the national and the international sphere has been so grievously shattered in the modern world in every country by the fragmentary outlook on, and treatment of, life in education, science, work, play and social functioning. ”
In its aim to re-establish life on its fundamental unity, while preserving the inherent values of the individual and regional diversities, the Bratachari movement relies on a system of simultaneous physical, moral and spiritual culture with the three-fold objectives of i) shaping of life in accordance with a fully balanced ideal comprising the five Bratas or ultimate ideals which are of universal application, and adopting a course for their pursuit for the integration of the culture of the body and the soul, and of the thought, speech, and behaviour; ii) the pursuit of rhythmic discipline for bringing about unification, harmony and joy as well as inner transformation; and iii) bringing men and women of every country in touch with the regional culture of their own soil and with the arts and crafts, dances and songs, and customs and manners of their own region, thus providing a natural cultural medium for their healthy all-round growth. By this three-fold sadhana (devotion), the Bratachari system seeks to enable men and women in each land to become, simultaneously, truly national and truly international.
In 1934, the Bangiya Palli Sampad Raksha Samiti was renamed as The Bengal Bratachari Society.
In 1936, he started a magazine Banglar Shakti for The Bengal Bratachari Society.
Gurusaday Dutt did extensive research in the field of Folk art, crafts and folk dances of Bengal. He collected objects of folk art and crafts from the countryside. He had great compassion for the artists and craftsmen who created unique art objects without any training or technical knowledge. Folk art was neglected and not appreciated in those days. He wrote in different journals about the wealth and beauty of folk art and left his collection on his death to The Bengal Bratachari Society.
[edit]Contributions to art and culture
Gurusaday Dutt was mostly known for his interest and contribution to folk dance, folk music and other folk institutions. He started a number of organisations and societies aimed at preserving the elements of folk literature. He spent a lifetime collecting and studying art objects and handiwork from the remotest corners of undivided rural Bengal collecting items of folk art such as Kalighat paintings, patuas’ scrolls, embroidered kanthas, terracotta panels, stone sculptures, wooden carvings, dolls and toys, moulds used for making patterns on sweets or mango-paste etc. Most of the several thousand specimens of folk art and craft he collected, along with other folk artefacts, are on display at the Gurusaday Museum in Thakurpur in the suburbs of Kolkata. Gurusaday Dutt also wrote extensively on folk culture. Rabindranath Tagore and C.F. Andrews wrote in the foreword of the biography of his wife, Saroj Nalini Dutt, which he wrote. Gurusaday Dutt also wrote much about the Bratachari movement and village development. In 1936 he started publishing a monthly magazine named Banglar Shakti (The Force of Bengal).
[edit]Controversies
His fearless independence and indomitable spirit of nationalism brought him into conflict with the British Government on more than one occasion. In 1928, at Howrah, in connection with the Bamangachi Firing case, he condemned the firing on a crowd of protesters by the police led by a British officer. The matter was raised in the British House of Lords and Lord Birkenhead, then Secretary of State for India in the British Government, had to answer angry questions. British Parliamentarians wanted Dutt, referred to as this Indian officer, punished for having the audacity to question a British officer’s action. As a punitive measure he was transferred out of Howrah to Mymensingh.
His stay in Mymensingh was also cut short when he failed to give orders as required by him by the British Indian Government to deal with protesters against The Salt Act imposed by the Government. M.K.Gandhi had called for a satyagraha against this Act. He was transferred to Birbhum by telegram (then the fastest means of communication), which was an unprecedented way of dealing with an ICS officer in those days.
[edit]Organisations founded
Mymensingh Folk Dance and Folk Music Society (1929)
Pallisampad Raksha Samiti (1931)
Bratachari Lokanritya Samiti (1932)
South India Bratachari Society (1932)
Sarbabharatiya Bratachari Society etc.
In 1941 he also set up the Bratachari village near Calcutta, along with a university called Bratachari Janashiksha Pratishthan. The Bratachari movement founded by Gurusaday Dutt (from vrata, vow) was a movement for spiritual and social improvement. The movement aimed at creating a sense of world citizenship as well as national awareness among people, irrespective of caste, religion, sex and age. The movement aimed to nurture the mind and the body and to encourage people to work for national and individual improvement through encouraging traditional and folk culture, especially folk dance and folk song. The bratacharis, or followers of the movement, pledged themselves to build their moral fibre and serve the country on the five principles of knowledge, labour, truth, unity and joy. They aimed at developing the mind and body through dance as well as by undertaking to perform good deeds. The Bratachari movement did not catch on all over India and slowly died away after the death of its founder.
Gurusaday Museum.
[edit]Publications
Gurusaday Dutt wrote many books and articles, which are listed below. The latest book to be published is "Banglar Lokashilpa o Lokanritya" (in Bengali), which is a collection of his essays and articles on Folk Art and Folk Dances of Bengal in various magazines between 1928 and 1941(his death), that were painstakingly obtained from the old magazines at Bangiya Sahitya Parishad's library by his grandson Devsaday Dutt and grand daughter-in-law Priyadarshini Dutt. The book has been published by Subhromani De and Subhadra De of Chhatim Books in 2008.
Bhajar Banshi (1922) (in Bengali) (A book of rhymes for children)
Palli Sangskar (in Bengali) (1925)
Village Reconstruction (1925)
Agricultural Organisation and Rural Reconstruction in Bengal (1919)
Ganer Saji (in Bengali) (1932)
Indian Folk Dance and Folklore Movement (in Bengali) (1933)
Bratachari Synthesis (in Bengali) (1937)
Patuya Sangit (in Bengali) (1939)
Bratacharir Marmakatha (in Bengali) (1940)
A Woman of India (1941)
Bratachari: Its Aim and Meaning (1942)
The Folk Dances of Bengal (1954)
Shrihatter Lokasangit (in Bengali) (1966)
Folk Arts and Crafts of Bengal (1990)[2]
Art of Kantha (1995)
Banglar Lokashilpa o Lokanritya (in Bengali) (Calcutta: Chatim Books, 2008)
Goraey Golod (in Bengali)
Gramer Kaajer ka kha Ga(in Bengali)
Saroj Nalini
Palli Sanskar O Sangathan(in Bengali)
Paaglamir Puthi(in Bengali)
Purir Mahathwa(in Bengali)
Gaaner Saaji(in Bengali)
Banglar Samrik Krira(in Bengali)
Chaander Buri(in Bengali)
Bratachari Shakhaa(in Bengali)
Bratachari Marmakatha(in Bengali)
Patua Sangeet(in Bengali)
Bratachari Parichoy(in Bengali)
Srihotter Lokageeti(in Bengali)
Banglar Bir Jodha Raebeshe(in Bengali)
[edit]Commemoration
After he died in 1941 the road in Calcutta on which he built his house - Ballygunge Store Road - was named after him. His portrait adorns the walls of Mahajati Sadan, Calcutta.
Biographies have been written on his life and works in Bangladesh by Shankar Prasad De, Amitabha Chowdhury, Shaikat Azgar, Naresh Banerjee and Habib Ahmed Dutta Chowdhury.
A Medal in his honour, known as “The Gurusaday Dutt Medal” along with a Cash prize, was endowed by his grandson, Devsaday Dutt, at the University of Calcutta, which is given to the student who stands First in the Post-Graduate Examination in Geography, from 2008 onwards.
His articles initially published in the 1930s in journals such as Prabashi, Banglar Shakti, Bangalakshmi and Aloka (in Bengali), have been republished in a book entitled Banglar Lokashipla o Lokanritya in August 2008.
[edit]References
^ Tapati Das Gupta, Social Thought of Rabindranath Tagore: A Historical Analysis, (Calcutta, 1993), p. 138
^ Publications of G.S.Dutt
Contents [hide]
1 Early Life and education
2 Career
3 Contributions to social work
4 Contributions to art and culture
5 Controversies
6 Organisations founded
7 Publications
8 Commemoration
9 References
10 External links
[edit]Early Life and education
He was the son of the Ramkrishna Dutta Chaudhuri and Anandamayee Debi. His father was the zamindar of Birasri village in Karimganj sub-division of Sylhet district, in eastern Bengal (present day Bangladesh).
Always a brilliant student, he completed his schooling at Minor School which had been set up by his father's elder brother Radhakrishna Dutta Chaudhuri. He completed his Entrance (School Leaving) examination at Government College, Sylhet where he stood 2nd in 1898. He stood 1st in the F.A. examination (prior to Graduate studies) from Presidency College, Calcutta in 1901 and was awarded the Scindia Gold Medal. He went on a Scholarship from the Sylhet Union to Emmanuel College, Cambridge, UK and then took the Indian Civil service (ICS) examination, in which he stood 7th in the First Part and 1st in the Second Part in 1904. He also passed the Bar examination with a First Class, and was called to the Bar by the Honourable Society of Gray's Inn.
He repaid the scholarship money to Sylhet Union after working for a few years, so that the Union could help another student from the same district with that money. In 1905, he returned to India and started work as an ICS officer.
[edit]Career
He served with distinction in the Bengal cadre which in 1905 included the present the Bangladesh and the Indian states of West Bengal, Bihar and Orissa in India. He served in various capacities in the districts of Arrah, Hooghly, Pabna, Bogra, Jessore, Faridpur, Comilla, Dacca, Barisal, Khulna, Birbhum, Bankura, Howrah and Mymensingh, before coming to Calcutta. He was District Magistrate, Mymensingh, Secretary, Industries and Local Self Government and Public Health, and also the Government Chief Whip in the Bengal Legislative Council. From 1930-1933, he was a nominated Member of the Council of State and of the Central Legislative Assembly (the erstwhile Parliament of British India).
[edit]Contributions to social work
From his youth, he started to take active interest in social service and participated in helping in fire-fighting and assisting in relief work during floods and other natural disasters. He was one of the social reformers of the first half of the nineteenth century who thought independently about various avenues of service to the rural poor. He realized that in order to establish any progressive idea on firm foundation it was necessary to educate women and make them self-reliant. Saroj Nalini Dutt, who became an eminent Social Worker in her own right, was inspired by Gurusaday to start Mahila Samitis (Women’s Institutes) as early as 1913, at Pabna district in British India, where he was then the District Magistrate.
In 1918, he started the first Rural Reconstruction Movement in India in Birbhum. He then extended the movement to several districts where he was subsequently posted, like Bankura, Howrah and Mymensingh. This movement was a bold and unique India that was under British Rule at the time. In fact, he was advised by his senior officer that he should spend time in the Club socializing with other officers rather than pursuing activities to promote rural development and social welfare.
He was the first amongst Civilian officers to set an example of the dignity of labour, by manually working with a group of followers to eradicate the water hyacinth, a plant that covers ponds and makes water unusable. He would also re-excavate silted irrigation canals with a band of workers. In those days, it was unthinkable for a Magistrate to work manually with common people.
In 1922, he started a Society for co-operative irrigation in Bankura, which he later extended to Mymensingh and Birbhum.
He headed the Indian delegation as a representative of the British Indian Government at a meeting of the Agricultural Institute at Rome in 1924.
In 1925, he lost his wife at a very early age. He established the Saroj Nalini Dutt Memorial Association, in February 1925, as a Central Training Institute for training crafts and basic education to provide livelihood to women who had been deprived from receiving formal education in early life and lived at the mercy of relatives. He thought of non-formal education many years before it was officially started. His pioneering work was started when most women in India were still behind the purdah (veil), and would not dare to come out in the world to create a future for themselves. This organization became the apex organization for Mahila Samitis (Women’s Institutes) in Eastern India, and was later affiliated to the Associated Country Women of the World (ACWW) and the International Alliance of Women.
In October 1925, he started Bangalakshmi, a monthly magazine that is still published.
In 1929, he started a magazine called Gramer Daak that dealt with agrarian and rural matters of concern.
It was at Mymensingh that he started a Folk Dance Revival Society. He revived the Jaari dance, being inspired by the secular nature of the dance and its spirit of unifying both Hindus and Muslims, at a time when communal tensions were running high.
In 1930, he discovered the Raibeshe folk dance, a martial dance of un-divided Bengal, in Birbhum. He studied the origins of the dance and discovered its rich cultural past and its connection with the army of Raja Man Singh of Rajasthan. Subsequently, he also revived the Kaathi, Dhamail, Baul, Jhumur, Brata and Dhali dances from different parts of un-divided Bengal.
In 1931, he met Cecil Sharpe, who revived Morris dancing in England, when he visited London. He also attended All-England Folk Dance & Folk Song Festival. This inspired him to set up the Bangiya Palli Sampad Raksha Samiti (translated as Cultural Heritage Protection Society of Bengal) on his return.
In 1932, he started the Bratachari movement. In his words in The Bratachari Synthesis, first published in 1937,
“ the Movement is to bring back to humanity, in all countries, the ideal and practice of the wholeness of life which, alike in the individual, the national and the international sphere has been so grievously shattered in the modern world in every country by the fragmentary outlook on, and treatment of, life in education, science, work, play and social functioning. ”
In its aim to re-establish life on its fundamental unity, while preserving the inherent values of the individual and regional diversities, the Bratachari movement relies on a system of simultaneous physical, moral and spiritual culture with the three-fold objectives of i) shaping of life in accordance with a fully balanced ideal comprising the five Bratas or ultimate ideals which are of universal application, and adopting a course for their pursuit for the integration of the culture of the body and the soul, and of the thought, speech, and behaviour; ii) the pursuit of rhythmic discipline for bringing about unification, harmony and joy as well as inner transformation; and iii) bringing men and women of every country in touch with the regional culture of their own soil and with the arts and crafts, dances and songs, and customs and manners of their own region, thus providing a natural cultural medium for their healthy all-round growth. By this three-fold sadhana (devotion), the Bratachari system seeks to enable men and women in each land to become, simultaneously, truly national and truly international.
In 1934, the Bangiya Palli Sampad Raksha Samiti was renamed as The Bengal Bratachari Society.
In 1936, he started a magazine Banglar Shakti for The Bengal Bratachari Society.
Gurusaday Dutt did extensive research in the field of Folk art, crafts and folk dances of Bengal. He collected objects of folk art and crafts from the countryside. He had great compassion for the artists and craftsmen who created unique art objects without any training or technical knowledge. Folk art was neglected and not appreciated in those days. He wrote in different journals about the wealth and beauty of folk art and left his collection on his death to The Bengal Bratachari Society.
[edit]Contributions to art and culture
Gurusaday Dutt was mostly known for his interest and contribution to folk dance, folk music and other folk institutions. He started a number of organisations and societies aimed at preserving the elements of folk literature. He spent a lifetime collecting and studying art objects and handiwork from the remotest corners of undivided rural Bengal collecting items of folk art such as Kalighat paintings, patuas’ scrolls, embroidered kanthas, terracotta panels, stone sculptures, wooden carvings, dolls and toys, moulds used for making patterns on sweets or mango-paste etc. Most of the several thousand specimens of folk art and craft he collected, along with other folk artefacts, are on display at the Gurusaday Museum in Thakurpur in the suburbs of Kolkata. Gurusaday Dutt also wrote extensively on folk culture. Rabindranath Tagore and C.F. Andrews wrote in the foreword of the biography of his wife, Saroj Nalini Dutt, which he wrote. Gurusaday Dutt also wrote much about the Bratachari movement and village development. In 1936 he started publishing a monthly magazine named Banglar Shakti (The Force of Bengal).
[edit]Controversies
His fearless independence and indomitable spirit of nationalism brought him into conflict with the British Government on more than one occasion. In 1928, at Howrah, in connection with the Bamangachi Firing case, he condemned the firing on a crowd of protesters by the police led by a British officer. The matter was raised in the British House of Lords and Lord Birkenhead, then Secretary of State for India in the British Government, had to answer angry questions. British Parliamentarians wanted Dutt, referred to as this Indian officer, punished for having the audacity to question a British officer’s action. As a punitive measure he was transferred out of Howrah to Mymensingh.
His stay in Mymensingh was also cut short when he failed to give orders as required by him by the British Indian Government to deal with protesters against The Salt Act imposed by the Government. M.K.Gandhi had called for a satyagraha against this Act. He was transferred to Birbhum by telegram (then the fastest means of communication), which was an unprecedented way of dealing with an ICS officer in those days.
[edit]Organisations founded
Mymensingh Folk Dance and Folk Music Society (1929)
Pallisampad Raksha Samiti (1931)
Bratachari Lokanritya Samiti (1932)
South India Bratachari Society (1932)
Sarbabharatiya Bratachari Society etc.
In 1941 he also set up the Bratachari village near Calcutta, along with a university called Bratachari Janashiksha Pratishthan. The Bratachari movement founded by Gurusaday Dutt (from vrata, vow) was a movement for spiritual and social improvement. The movement aimed at creating a sense of world citizenship as well as national awareness among people, irrespective of caste, religion, sex and age. The movement aimed to nurture the mind and the body and to encourage people to work for national and individual improvement through encouraging traditional and folk culture, especially folk dance and folk song. The bratacharis, or followers of the movement, pledged themselves to build their moral fibre and serve the country on the five principles of knowledge, labour, truth, unity and joy. They aimed at developing the mind and body through dance as well as by undertaking to perform good deeds. The Bratachari movement did not catch on all over India and slowly died away after the death of its founder.
Gurusaday Museum.
[edit]Publications
Gurusaday Dutt wrote many books and articles, which are listed below. The latest book to be published is "Banglar Lokashilpa o Lokanritya" (in Bengali), which is a collection of his essays and articles on Folk Art and Folk Dances of Bengal in various magazines between 1928 and 1941(his death), that were painstakingly obtained from the old magazines at Bangiya Sahitya Parishad's library by his grandson Devsaday Dutt and grand daughter-in-law Priyadarshini Dutt. The book has been published by Subhromani De and Subhadra De of Chhatim Books in 2008.
Bhajar Banshi (1922) (in Bengali) (A book of rhymes for children)
Palli Sangskar (in Bengali) (1925)
Village Reconstruction (1925)
Agricultural Organisation and Rural Reconstruction in Bengal (1919)
Ganer Saji (in Bengali) (1932)
Indian Folk Dance and Folklore Movement (in Bengali) (1933)
Bratachari Synthesis (in Bengali) (1937)
Patuya Sangit (in Bengali) (1939)
Bratacharir Marmakatha (in Bengali) (1940)
A Woman of India (1941)
Bratachari: Its Aim and Meaning (1942)
The Folk Dances of Bengal (1954)
Shrihatter Lokasangit (in Bengali) (1966)
Folk Arts and Crafts of Bengal (1990)[2]
Art of Kantha (1995)
Banglar Lokashilpa o Lokanritya (in Bengali) (Calcutta: Chatim Books, 2008)
Goraey Golod (in Bengali)
Gramer Kaajer ka kha Ga(in Bengali)
Saroj Nalini
Palli Sanskar O Sangathan(in Bengali)
Paaglamir Puthi(in Bengali)
Purir Mahathwa(in Bengali)
Gaaner Saaji(in Bengali)
Banglar Samrik Krira(in Bengali)
Chaander Buri(in Bengali)
Bratachari Shakhaa(in Bengali)
Bratachari Marmakatha(in Bengali)
Patua Sangeet(in Bengali)
Bratachari Parichoy(in Bengali)
Srihotter Lokageeti(in Bengali)
Banglar Bir Jodha Raebeshe(in Bengali)
[edit]Commemoration
After he died in 1941 the road in Calcutta on which he built his house - Ballygunge Store Road - was named after him. His portrait adorns the walls of Mahajati Sadan, Calcutta.
Biographies have been written on his life and works in Bangladesh by Shankar Prasad De, Amitabha Chowdhury, Shaikat Azgar, Naresh Banerjee and Habib Ahmed Dutta Chowdhury.
A Medal in his honour, known as “The Gurusaday Dutt Medal” along with a Cash prize, was endowed by his grandson, Devsaday Dutt, at the University of Calcutta, which is given to the student who stands First in the Post-Graduate Examination in Geography, from 2008 onwards.
His articles initially published in the 1930s in journals such as Prabashi, Banglar Shakti, Bangalakshmi and Aloka (in Bengali), have been republished in a book entitled Banglar Lokashipla o Lokanritya in August 2008.
[edit]References
^ Tapati Das Gupta, Social Thought of Rabindranath Tagore: A Historical Analysis, (Calcutta, 1993), p. 138
^ Publications of G.S.Dutt
The Partition of Bengal
The Partition of Bengal in 1947, part of the Partition of India, was a religious based partition that divided the British Indian province of Bengal between India and Pakistan. West Bengal became a province of India, and Muslim East Bengal became a province of Pakistan - and was later to become Bangladesh.
The partition, with the power transferred officially to Pakistan and India on August 14–15, 1947, was done according to what has come to be known as the 3 June Plan or Mountbatten Plan. India’s freedom on August 15, 1947 ended almost 350 years of British presence in the Indian subcontinent.
East Bengal, which became a province of Pakistan according to the provisions set forth the Mountbatten Plan, later became the independent country of Bangladesh after the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War.
Contents [hide]
1 Background
2 The Partition
3 The Aftermath
4 See also
5 Bibliography
6 References
[edit]Background
In 1905, the first partition in Bengal was implemented as an administrative preference, making governing the two provinces, West and East Bengal easier. While the partition split the province between West, in which the majority was Hindu, and the East, where the majority was Muslim, the Partition of Bengal (1905) left considerable minorities of Hindus in East Bengal and Muslims in the West Bengal. While the Muslims were in favor of this partition, due to their obtainment of their own province, Hindus were not. This controversy led to increased violence and protest and, in 1911, the two provinces were once again united.
However, the disagreements between Hindus and Muslims in Bengal which had sparked the Partition of Bengal in 1905 still remained and laws, including the Partition of Bengal in 1947, had to be implemented in order to fulfill the political needs of the parties involved.
[edit]The Partition
As per the plan, on 20 June 1947, the members of the Bengal Legislative Assembly cast three separate votes on the proposal to partition Bengal:
In the joint session of the house, comprising of all the members of the Assembly, the division of the joint session of the House stood at 126 votes against and 90 votes for joining the present Constituent Assembly (i.e., India)
Then the members of the Muslim-majority areas of Bengal in a separate session passed a motion by 106-35 votes against partitioning Bengal and instead joining a new Constituent Assembly (i.e., Pakistan) as a whole.
This was followed by the separate meeting of the members of the non-Muslim-majority areas of Bengal who by a division of 58-21 voted for partition of the province.
Under the Mountbatten Plan, a single majority vote in favour of partition by either notionally divided half of the Assembly would have decided the division of the province, and hence the house proceedings on 20 June resulted in the decision to partition Bengal. This set the stage for the creation of West Bengal as a province of the Union of India and East Bengal as a province of the Dominion of Pakistan.
Also in accordance with the Mountbatten Plan, in a referendum held on 7 July, the electorate of Sylhet gave a verdict in favor of joining East Bengal. Further, the Boundary Commission headed by Sir Cyril Radcliffe decided on the territorial demarcation between the two newly created provinces. The power was finally officially transferred to Pakistan and India on 14 and 15 August, respectively, under the Indian Independence Act, 1947.
[edit]The Aftermath
The second partition of Bengal left behind a legacy of violence which continues to this day. As Bashabi Fraser put it, “There is the reality of the continuous flow of ‘economic migrants’ / ‘refugees’ / ‘infiltrators’ / ‘illegal immigrants’ who cross over the border and pan out across the sub-continent, looking for work and a new home, setting in metropolitan centres as far off as Delhi and Mumbai, keeping the question of the Partition alive today. “[1]
[edit]See also
Partition of Bengal (1905)
East Bengal
West Bengal
East Pakistan
Bangladesh Liberation War
[edit]Bibliography
Works Cited
1. Bashabi Fraser Bengal Partition Stories: An Unclosed Chapter. New York: Anthem Press, 2008. ISBN 1843312999
Works Referenced
Joya Chatterji Bengal Divided: Hindu Communalism and Partition, 1932-1947. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994. ISBN 0521411289
S.M. Ikram Indian Muslims and Partition of India. New Delhi: Atlantic Publishers and Distributors, 1992. ISBN 8171563740
Hashim S. Raza Mountbatten and the partition of India. New Delhi: Atlantic Publishers and Distributors, 1989. ISBN 8171560598
Craig Baxter Bangladesh: From a Nation to a State. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1997. ISBN 0813328543
Singh, J.J. “Partition of India: British Proposal Said to be Only Feasible Plan Now.” The New York Times 15 Jun. 1947: E8
Gyanendra Pandey Remembering Partition: Violence, Nationalism, and History in India. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001. ISBN 0521002508
Tai Yong Tan and Gyanesh Kudaisya The Aftermath of Partition in South Asia. London: Routledge, 2001. ISBN 0415172977
The partition, with the power transferred officially to Pakistan and India on August 14–15, 1947, was done according to what has come to be known as the 3 June Plan or Mountbatten Plan. India’s freedom on August 15, 1947 ended almost 350 years of British presence in the Indian subcontinent.
East Bengal, which became a province of Pakistan according to the provisions set forth the Mountbatten Plan, later became the independent country of Bangladesh after the 1971 Bangladesh Liberation War.
Contents [hide]
1 Background
2 The Partition
3 The Aftermath
4 See also
5 Bibliography
6 References
[edit]Background
In 1905, the first partition in Bengal was implemented as an administrative preference, making governing the two provinces, West and East Bengal easier. While the partition split the province between West, in which the majority was Hindu, and the East, where the majority was Muslim, the Partition of Bengal (1905) left considerable minorities of Hindus in East Bengal and Muslims in the West Bengal. While the Muslims were in favor of this partition, due to their obtainment of their own province, Hindus were not. This controversy led to increased violence and protest and, in 1911, the two provinces were once again united.
However, the disagreements between Hindus and Muslims in Bengal which had sparked the Partition of Bengal in 1905 still remained and laws, including the Partition of Bengal in 1947, had to be implemented in order to fulfill the political needs of the parties involved.
[edit]The Partition
As per the plan, on 20 June 1947, the members of the Bengal Legislative Assembly cast three separate votes on the proposal to partition Bengal:
In the joint session of the house, comprising of all the members of the Assembly, the division of the joint session of the House stood at 126 votes against and 90 votes for joining the present Constituent Assembly (i.e., India)
Then the members of the Muslim-majority areas of Bengal in a separate session passed a motion by 106-35 votes against partitioning Bengal and instead joining a new Constituent Assembly (i.e., Pakistan) as a whole.
This was followed by the separate meeting of the members of the non-Muslim-majority areas of Bengal who by a division of 58-21 voted for partition of the province.
Under the Mountbatten Plan, a single majority vote in favour of partition by either notionally divided half of the Assembly would have decided the division of the province, and hence the house proceedings on 20 June resulted in the decision to partition Bengal. This set the stage for the creation of West Bengal as a province of the Union of India and East Bengal as a province of the Dominion of Pakistan.
Also in accordance with the Mountbatten Plan, in a referendum held on 7 July, the electorate of Sylhet gave a verdict in favor of joining East Bengal. Further, the Boundary Commission headed by Sir Cyril Radcliffe decided on the territorial demarcation between the two newly created provinces. The power was finally officially transferred to Pakistan and India on 14 and 15 August, respectively, under the Indian Independence Act, 1947.
[edit]The Aftermath
The second partition of Bengal left behind a legacy of violence which continues to this day. As Bashabi Fraser put it, “There is the reality of the continuous flow of ‘economic migrants’ / ‘refugees’ / ‘infiltrators’ / ‘illegal immigrants’ who cross over the border and pan out across the sub-continent, looking for work and a new home, setting in metropolitan centres as far off as Delhi and Mumbai, keeping the question of the Partition alive today. “[1]
[edit]See also
Partition of Bengal (1905)
East Bengal
West Bengal
East Pakistan
Bangladesh Liberation War
[edit]Bibliography
Works Cited
1. Bashabi Fraser Bengal Partition Stories: An Unclosed Chapter. New York: Anthem Press, 2008. ISBN 1843312999
Works Referenced
Joya Chatterji Bengal Divided: Hindu Communalism and Partition, 1932-1947. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994. ISBN 0521411289
S.M. Ikram Indian Muslims and Partition of India. New Delhi: Atlantic Publishers and Distributors, 1992. ISBN 8171563740
Hashim S. Raza Mountbatten and the partition of India. New Delhi: Atlantic Publishers and Distributors, 1989. ISBN 8171560598
Craig Baxter Bangladesh: From a Nation to a State. Boulder, CO: Westview Press, 1997. ISBN 0813328543
Singh, J.J. “Partition of India: British Proposal Said to be Only Feasible Plan Now.” The New York Times 15 Jun. 1947: E8
Gyanendra Pandey Remembering Partition: Violence, Nationalism, and History in India. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2001. ISBN 0521002508
Tai Yong Tan and Gyanesh Kudaisya The Aftermath of Partition in South Asia. London: Routledge, 2001. ISBN 0415172977
Bengali People
The Bengali people are an ethnic community native to the historic region of Bengal (now divided between Bangladesh and India) in South Asia. They speak Bengali (বাংলা Bangla), which is an Indo-Aryan language of the eastern Indian subcontinent, evolved from the Magadhi Prakrit and Sanskrit languages. In their native language, they are referred to as বাঙালী (pronounced Bangali). They are considered an Indo-Aryan people although they are also descended from Mongolo-Dravidians, closely related to Austro-Asiatic, Dravidian, Assamese, Sinhalese and Munda peoples. As such, Bengalis are a homogeneous but considerably diverse ethnic group with heterogeneous origins.
Bengalis are mostly concentrated in Bangladesh and the Indian states of West Bengal and Tripura. There are also a number of Bengali communities scattered across North-East India, New Delhi, and the Indian states of Assam, Jharkhand, Bihar, Maharastra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Orissa. In addition, there are significant Bengali communities beyond South Asia; some of the most well established Bengali communities are in the United Kingdom and United States. In addition, many Bengalis have settled in the US and UK; in the US, there are about 150,000 living across the country, mainly in New York.[18] There are also millions living across the Gulf States, the majority of whom are living as foreign workers, and a significant amount of Bengalis in Malaysia, South Korea, Canada, Japan, Australia as well.
Contents [hide]
1 History
1.1 Ancient history
1.2 Middle Ages
1.3 Bengal Renaissance
1.4 Independence movement
1.5 Partitions of Bengal
1.6 Bangladesh Liberation War
2 Religion
3 Culture
4 See also
5 Notes
[edit]History
Main articles: History of Bengal and History of Bangladesh
[edit]Ancient history
Further information: Anga, Gangaridai, Magadha, Pundra Kingdom, Suhma Kingdom and Vanga Kingdom
Mahasthangarh is the oldest archaeological site in Bangladesh. It dates back to 700 BCE and was the ancient capital of the Pundra Kingdom.
Remnants of civilisation in the greater Bengal region date back 4,000 years,[19][20] when the region was settled by Dravidian, Tibeto-Burman and Austro-Asiatic peoples. The exact origin of the word Bangla or Bengal is unknown, though it is believed to be derived from the Dravidian-speaking tribe Bang that settled in the area around the year 1000 BCE.[21]
After the arrival of Indo-Aryans, the kingdoms of Anga, Vanga and Magadha were formed in and around Bengal and were first described in the Atharvaveda around 1000 BCE. From the 6th century BCE, Magadha expanded to include most of the Bihar and Bengal regions. It was one of the four main kingdoms of India at the time of Buddha and was one of the sixteen Mahajanapadas. Under the Maurya Empire founded by Chandragupta Maurya, Magadha extended over nearly all of South Asia, including parts of Persia and Afghanistan, reaching its greatest extent under the Buddhist emperor Ashoka the Great in the 3rd century BCE. One of the earliest foreign references to Bengal is the mention of a land ruled by the king Xandrammes named Gangaridai by the Greeks around 100 BCE. The word is speculated to have come from Gangahrd (Land with the Ganges in its heart) in reference to an area in Bengal.[22] Later from the 3rd to the 6th centuries CE, the kingdom of Magadha served as the seat of the Gupta Empire.
[edit]Middle Ages
See also: Pala Empire and Sena Empire
Pala Empire under Dharmapala
Pala Empire under Devapala
One of the first recorded independent king of Bengal was Shashanka, reigning around the early 7th century.[23] After a period of anarchy, Gopala came to power in 750 by democratic election.[24] He founded the Bengali Buddhist Pala Empire which ruled the region for four hundred years, and expanded across much of Southern Asia, from Assam in the northeast, to Kabul in the west, to Andhra Pradesh in the south. Atisha Deepankar was a renowned Bengali Buddhist teacher who was instrumental in revival of Buddhism in Tibet and also held the position of Abbot at the Vikramshila university. Tilopa was also from Bengal region.
The Pala dynasty was later followed by a shorter reign of the Hindu Sena Empire. Islam was introduced to Bengal in the twelfth century by Sufi missionaries. Subsequent Muslim conquests helped spread Islam throughout the region.[25] Bakhtiar Khilji, an Afghan general of the Slave dynasty of Delhi Sultanate, defeated Lakshman Sen of the Sena dynasty and conquered large parts of Bengal. Consequently, the region was ruled by dynasties of sultans and feudal lords under the Delhi Sultanate for the next few hundred years. In the early 17th century, Mughal general Islam Khan conquered Bengal. However, administration by governors appointed by the court of the Mughal Empire gave way to semi-independence of the area under the Nawabs of Murshidabad, who nominally respected the sovereignty of the Mughals in Delhi. After the weakening of the Mughal Empire with the death of Emperor Aurangzeb in 1707, Bengal was ruled independently by the Nawabs until 1757, when the region was annexed by the East India Company after the Battle of Plassey.
[edit]Bengal Renaissance
Main article: Bengal Renaissance
Raja Ram Mohan Roy is regarded as the "Father of the Bengal Renaissance."
Rabindranath Tagore is Asia's first Nobel laureate and a versatile genious, also composer of Jana Gana Mana the national anthem of India as well as Amar Shonar Bangla the national anthem of Bangladesh.
Swami Vivekananda is considered a key figure in the introduction of Vedanta and Yoga in Europe and America[26] and is also credited with raising interfaith awareness, bringing Hinduism to the status of a world religion during the end of the 19th century.[27]
Jagadish Chandra Bose was a Bengali polymath: a physicist, biologist, botanist, archaeologist, and writer of science fiction.[28] He pioneered the investigation of radio and microwave optics, made very significant contributions to plant science, and laid the foundations of experimental science in the Indian subcontinent.[29] He is considered one of the fathers of radio science,[30] and is also considered the father of Bengali science fiction.
Satyendra Nath Bose was a Bengali physicist, specializing in mathematical physics. He is best known for his work on quantum mechanics in the early 1920s, providing the foundation for Bose-Einstein statistics and the theory of the Bose-Einstein condensate. He is honoured as the namesake of the boson.
The Bengal Renaissance refers to a social reform movement during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries in the region of Bengal in undivided India during the period of British rule. The Bengal renaissance can be said to have started with Raja Ram Mohan Roy (1775-1833) and ended with Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941), although there have been many stalwarts thereafter embodying particular aspects of the unique intellectual and creative output.[31] Nineteenth century Bengal was a unique blend of religious and social reformers, scholars, literary giants, journalists, patriotic orators and scientists, all merging to form the image of a renaissance, and marked the transition from the 'medieval' to the 'modern'.[32]
[edit]Independence movement
See also: Freedom fighters from Bengal
Subhash Chandra Bose s one of the most prominent leader and highly respected freedom fighter from Bengal in the Indian independence movement against the British Raj.
Sri Aurobindo is one of the most respected freedom fighter from Bengal and also a poet, philosopher, and yogi.
Bengal played a major role in the Indian independence movement, in which revolutionary groups such as Anushilan Samiti and Jugantar were dominant. Bengalis also played a notable role in the Indian independence movement. Many of the early proponents of the freedom struggle, and subsequent leaders in movement were Bengalis such as Chittaranjan Das, Khwaja Salimullah, Surendranath Banerjea, Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, Titumir (Sayyid Mir Nisar Ali), Prafulla Chaki, A. K. Fazlul Huq, Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani, Bagha Jatin, Khudiram Bose, Surya Sen, Binoy-Badal-Dinesh, Sarojini Naidu, Aurobindo Ghosh, Rashbehari Bose and many more. Some of these leaders, such as Netaji, did not subscribe to the view that non-violent civil disobedience was the best way to achieve Indian Independence, and were instrumental in armed resistance against the British force. Netaji was the co-founder and leader of the Indian National Army (distinct from the army of British India) that challenged British forces in several parts of India. He was also the head of state of a parallel regime, the Arzi Hukumat-e-Azad Hind, that was recognized and supported by the Axis powers. Bengal was also the fostering ground for several prominent revolutionary organisations, the most notable of which was Anushilan Samiti. A large number of Bengalis were martyred in the freedom struggle and many were exiled in Cellular Jail, the much dreaded prison located in Andaman.
[edit]Partitions of Bengal
Main articles: 1905 Partition of Bengal and 1947 Partition of Bengal
[edit]Bangladesh Liberation War
Main article: Bangladesh Liberation War
[edit]Religion
Main articles: Demographics of Bangladesh, Demographics of West Bengal, and Demographics of Tripura
See also: Religion in Bangladesh
Further information: Islam in Bangladesh, Hinduism in Bangladesh, Buddhism in Bangladesh, and Christianity in Bangladesh
Baitul Mukarram in Dhaka is the National Mosque of Bangladesh.
Dakshineswar Kali Temple in Kolkata, West Bengal, India.
Two major religions practiced in Bengal are Islam and Hinduism. In Bangladesh 88.3% of the population follow Islam (US State Department est. 2007) while 9.2% follow Hinduism. In West Bengal, Hindus are the majority with 70% of the population while Muslims comprise 23%. Other religious groups include Buddhists and Christians.[17] Since West Bengal has a long history of Communism, there are also atheist Bengali people such as Amartya Sen, Prabir Ghosh, Subodh Banarjee, and Sibnarayan Ray.
[edit]Culture
Further information: Culture of Bengal
Satyajit Ray is regarded as one of the greatest auteurs of 20th century cinema.
Noted Bengali saints, authors, scientists, researchers, thinkers, music composers, painters and film-makers have played a significant role in the development of Bengali culture . The Bengal Renaissance of the 19th and early 20th centuries was brought about after the British introduced Western education and ideas. Among the various Indian cultures, the Bengalis were relatively quick to adapt to the British rule and actually use its principles (such as the judiciary and the legislature) in the subsequent political struggle for independence. The Bengal Renaissance contained the seeds of a nascent political Indian nationalism and was the precursor in many ways to modern Indian artistic and cultural expression.
The Bengali poet and novelist, Rabindranath Tagore, became the first Nobel laureate from Asia when he won the 1913 Nobel Prize in Literature. Other Bengali Nobel laureates include Amartya Sen (1999 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences) and Muhammad Yunus (2006 Nobel Peace Prize). Other famous figures in Bengali literature include Ram Mohan Roy, Kazi Nazrul Islam, and Bangla science fiction writers such as Muhammed Zafar Iqbal, Humayun Ahmed, Jagadananda Roy and Roquia Sakhawat Hussain (Begum Rokeya). Famous Bengali musicians include Ravi Shankar and Norah Jones; Famous Bengali scientists include Megh Nad Saha, Prafulla Chandra Roy, Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis, Amal Kumar Raychaudhuri, Jagadish Chandra Bose and Satyendra Nath Bose; famous Bengali engineers include Fazlur Khan and Amar Bose; famous Bengali filmmakers include Satyajit Ray, Bimal Roy, Mrinal Sen, Ritwik Ghatak, Aparna Sen and Tareque Masud; and famous Bengali entrepreneurs include Sake Dean Mahomed, Amar Bose and Jawed Karim.
[edit]See also
Bengal portal
List of Bengalis
List of Bangladeshis
List of people from West Bengal
Rohingya people
Bangladeshi diaspora
British Bangladeshi
Bangladeshi American
[edit]Notes
This article contains Indic text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks or boxes, misplaced vowels or missing conjuncts instead of Indic text.
^ https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/bg.html#People
^ http://www.everyculture.com/wc/Afghanistan-to-Bosnia-Herzegovina/Bengalis.html
^ The 2 Million Bengalis of Karachi - Daily Times
^ http://www.7days.ae/showstory.php?id=62077
^ [1]
^ [2]
^ [3]
^ US Census 2000 foreign born population by country
^ a b Hasan, Rafiq (November 20, 2003), "4,000 Bangladeshis to return from Oman in December", The Daily Star 4 (176), retrieved 2008-12-19
^ [4]
^ [5]
^ [6]
^ [7]
^ [国籍別外国人登録者数の推移]
^ Comparing State Polities: A Framework for Analyzing 100 Governments By Michael J. III Sullivan, pg. 119
^ Bangledesh- CIA World Factbook
^ a b "Data on Religion". Census of India (2001). Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. Retrieved 2006-08-26.
^ Census Profile: New York City’s Bangladeshi American Population Asian American Federation of New York Census Information Center (2005). Retrieved on 2009-05-24.
^ "History of Bangladesh". Bangladesh Student Association @ TTU. Retrieved 2006-10-26.
^ "4000-year old settlement unearthed in Bangladesh". Xinhua. 2006-March.
^ James Heitzman and Robert L. Worden, ed (1989). "Early History, 1000 B.C.-A.D. 1202". Bangladesh: A country study. Library of Congress.
^ Chowdhury, AM. "Gangaridai". Banglapedia. Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. Retrieved 2006-09-08.
^ "Shashanka". Banglapedia. Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. Retrieved 2006-10-26.
^ A. Shiefner, History of Buddhism in India.
^ "Islam (in Bengal)". Banglapedia. Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. Retrieved 2006-10-26.
^ Georg, Feuerstein (2002). The Yoga Tradition. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 600.
^ Clarke, Peter Bernard (2006). New Religions in Global Perspective. Routledge. p. 209.
^ A versatile genius, Frontline 21 (24), 2004.
^ Chatterjee, Santimay and Chatterjee, Enakshi, Satyendranath Bose, 2002 reprint, p. 5, National Book Trust, ISBN 8123704925
^ A. K. Sen (1997). "Sir J.C. Bose and radio science", Microwave Symposium Digest 2 (8-13), p. 557-560.
^ History of the Bengali-speaking People by Nitish Sengupta, p 211, UBS Publishers' Distributors Pvt. Ltd. ISBN 81-7476-355-4.
^ Calcutta and the Bengal Renaissance by Sumit Sarkar in Calcutta, the Living City edited by Sukanta Chaudhuri, Vol I, p 95.
Bengalis are mostly concentrated in Bangladesh and the Indian states of West Bengal and Tripura. There are also a number of Bengali communities scattered across North-East India, New Delhi, and the Indian states of Assam, Jharkhand, Bihar, Maharastra, Karnataka, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Orissa. In addition, there are significant Bengali communities beyond South Asia; some of the most well established Bengali communities are in the United Kingdom and United States. In addition, many Bengalis have settled in the US and UK; in the US, there are about 150,000 living across the country, mainly in New York.[18] There are also millions living across the Gulf States, the majority of whom are living as foreign workers, and a significant amount of Bengalis in Malaysia, South Korea, Canada, Japan, Australia as well.
Contents [hide]
1 History
1.1 Ancient history
1.2 Middle Ages
1.3 Bengal Renaissance
1.4 Independence movement
1.5 Partitions of Bengal
1.6 Bangladesh Liberation War
2 Religion
3 Culture
4 See also
5 Notes
[edit]History
Main articles: History of Bengal and History of Bangladesh
[edit]Ancient history
Further information: Anga, Gangaridai, Magadha, Pundra Kingdom, Suhma Kingdom and Vanga Kingdom
Mahasthangarh is the oldest archaeological site in Bangladesh. It dates back to 700 BCE and was the ancient capital of the Pundra Kingdom.
Remnants of civilisation in the greater Bengal region date back 4,000 years,[19][20] when the region was settled by Dravidian, Tibeto-Burman and Austro-Asiatic peoples. The exact origin of the word Bangla or Bengal is unknown, though it is believed to be derived from the Dravidian-speaking tribe Bang that settled in the area around the year 1000 BCE.[21]
After the arrival of Indo-Aryans, the kingdoms of Anga, Vanga and Magadha were formed in and around Bengal and were first described in the Atharvaveda around 1000 BCE. From the 6th century BCE, Magadha expanded to include most of the Bihar and Bengal regions. It was one of the four main kingdoms of India at the time of Buddha and was one of the sixteen Mahajanapadas. Under the Maurya Empire founded by Chandragupta Maurya, Magadha extended over nearly all of South Asia, including parts of Persia and Afghanistan, reaching its greatest extent under the Buddhist emperor Ashoka the Great in the 3rd century BCE. One of the earliest foreign references to Bengal is the mention of a land ruled by the king Xandrammes named Gangaridai by the Greeks around 100 BCE. The word is speculated to have come from Gangahrd (Land with the Ganges in its heart) in reference to an area in Bengal.[22] Later from the 3rd to the 6th centuries CE, the kingdom of Magadha served as the seat of the Gupta Empire.
[edit]Middle Ages
See also: Pala Empire and Sena Empire
Pala Empire under Dharmapala
Pala Empire under Devapala
One of the first recorded independent king of Bengal was Shashanka, reigning around the early 7th century.[23] After a period of anarchy, Gopala came to power in 750 by democratic election.[24] He founded the Bengali Buddhist Pala Empire which ruled the region for four hundred years, and expanded across much of Southern Asia, from Assam in the northeast, to Kabul in the west, to Andhra Pradesh in the south. Atisha Deepankar was a renowned Bengali Buddhist teacher who was instrumental in revival of Buddhism in Tibet and also held the position of Abbot at the Vikramshila university. Tilopa was also from Bengal region.
The Pala dynasty was later followed by a shorter reign of the Hindu Sena Empire. Islam was introduced to Bengal in the twelfth century by Sufi missionaries. Subsequent Muslim conquests helped spread Islam throughout the region.[25] Bakhtiar Khilji, an Afghan general of the Slave dynasty of Delhi Sultanate, defeated Lakshman Sen of the Sena dynasty and conquered large parts of Bengal. Consequently, the region was ruled by dynasties of sultans and feudal lords under the Delhi Sultanate for the next few hundred years. In the early 17th century, Mughal general Islam Khan conquered Bengal. However, administration by governors appointed by the court of the Mughal Empire gave way to semi-independence of the area under the Nawabs of Murshidabad, who nominally respected the sovereignty of the Mughals in Delhi. After the weakening of the Mughal Empire with the death of Emperor Aurangzeb in 1707, Bengal was ruled independently by the Nawabs until 1757, when the region was annexed by the East India Company after the Battle of Plassey.
[edit]Bengal Renaissance
Main article: Bengal Renaissance
Raja Ram Mohan Roy is regarded as the "Father of the Bengal Renaissance."
Rabindranath Tagore is Asia's first Nobel laureate and a versatile genious, also composer of Jana Gana Mana the national anthem of India as well as Amar Shonar Bangla the national anthem of Bangladesh.
Swami Vivekananda is considered a key figure in the introduction of Vedanta and Yoga in Europe and America[26] and is also credited with raising interfaith awareness, bringing Hinduism to the status of a world religion during the end of the 19th century.[27]
Jagadish Chandra Bose was a Bengali polymath: a physicist, biologist, botanist, archaeologist, and writer of science fiction.[28] He pioneered the investigation of radio and microwave optics, made very significant contributions to plant science, and laid the foundations of experimental science in the Indian subcontinent.[29] He is considered one of the fathers of radio science,[30] and is also considered the father of Bengali science fiction.
Satyendra Nath Bose was a Bengali physicist, specializing in mathematical physics. He is best known for his work on quantum mechanics in the early 1920s, providing the foundation for Bose-Einstein statistics and the theory of the Bose-Einstein condensate. He is honoured as the namesake of the boson.
The Bengal Renaissance refers to a social reform movement during the nineteenth and early twentieth centuries in the region of Bengal in undivided India during the period of British rule. The Bengal renaissance can be said to have started with Raja Ram Mohan Roy (1775-1833) and ended with Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941), although there have been many stalwarts thereafter embodying particular aspects of the unique intellectual and creative output.[31] Nineteenth century Bengal was a unique blend of religious and social reformers, scholars, literary giants, journalists, patriotic orators and scientists, all merging to form the image of a renaissance, and marked the transition from the 'medieval' to the 'modern'.[32]
[edit]Independence movement
See also: Freedom fighters from Bengal
Subhash Chandra Bose s one of the most prominent leader and highly respected freedom fighter from Bengal in the Indian independence movement against the British Raj.
Sri Aurobindo is one of the most respected freedom fighter from Bengal and also a poet, philosopher, and yogi.
Bengal played a major role in the Indian independence movement, in which revolutionary groups such as Anushilan Samiti and Jugantar were dominant. Bengalis also played a notable role in the Indian independence movement. Many of the early proponents of the freedom struggle, and subsequent leaders in movement were Bengalis such as Chittaranjan Das, Khwaja Salimullah, Surendranath Banerjea, Huseyn Shaheed Suhrawardy, Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose, Titumir (Sayyid Mir Nisar Ali), Prafulla Chaki, A. K. Fazlul Huq, Maulana Abdul Hamid Khan Bhashani, Bagha Jatin, Khudiram Bose, Surya Sen, Binoy-Badal-Dinesh, Sarojini Naidu, Aurobindo Ghosh, Rashbehari Bose and many more. Some of these leaders, such as Netaji, did not subscribe to the view that non-violent civil disobedience was the best way to achieve Indian Independence, and were instrumental in armed resistance against the British force. Netaji was the co-founder and leader of the Indian National Army (distinct from the army of British India) that challenged British forces in several parts of India. He was also the head of state of a parallel regime, the Arzi Hukumat-e-Azad Hind, that was recognized and supported by the Axis powers. Bengal was also the fostering ground for several prominent revolutionary organisations, the most notable of which was Anushilan Samiti. A large number of Bengalis were martyred in the freedom struggle and many were exiled in Cellular Jail, the much dreaded prison located in Andaman.
[edit]Partitions of Bengal
Main articles: 1905 Partition of Bengal and 1947 Partition of Bengal
[edit]Bangladesh Liberation War
Main article: Bangladesh Liberation War
[edit]Religion
Main articles: Demographics of Bangladesh, Demographics of West Bengal, and Demographics of Tripura
See also: Religion in Bangladesh
Further information: Islam in Bangladesh, Hinduism in Bangladesh, Buddhism in Bangladesh, and Christianity in Bangladesh
Baitul Mukarram in Dhaka is the National Mosque of Bangladesh.
Dakshineswar Kali Temple in Kolkata, West Bengal, India.
Two major religions practiced in Bengal are Islam and Hinduism. In Bangladesh 88.3% of the population follow Islam (US State Department est. 2007) while 9.2% follow Hinduism. In West Bengal, Hindus are the majority with 70% of the population while Muslims comprise 23%. Other religious groups include Buddhists and Christians.[17] Since West Bengal has a long history of Communism, there are also atheist Bengali people such as Amartya Sen, Prabir Ghosh, Subodh Banarjee, and Sibnarayan Ray.
[edit]Culture
Further information: Culture of Bengal
Satyajit Ray is regarded as one of the greatest auteurs of 20th century cinema.
Noted Bengali saints, authors, scientists, researchers, thinkers, music composers, painters and film-makers have played a significant role in the development of Bengali culture . The Bengal Renaissance of the 19th and early 20th centuries was brought about after the British introduced Western education and ideas. Among the various Indian cultures, the Bengalis were relatively quick to adapt to the British rule and actually use its principles (such as the judiciary and the legislature) in the subsequent political struggle for independence. The Bengal Renaissance contained the seeds of a nascent political Indian nationalism and was the precursor in many ways to modern Indian artistic and cultural expression.
The Bengali poet and novelist, Rabindranath Tagore, became the first Nobel laureate from Asia when he won the 1913 Nobel Prize in Literature. Other Bengali Nobel laureates include Amartya Sen (1999 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences) and Muhammad Yunus (2006 Nobel Peace Prize). Other famous figures in Bengali literature include Ram Mohan Roy, Kazi Nazrul Islam, and Bangla science fiction writers such as Muhammed Zafar Iqbal, Humayun Ahmed, Jagadananda Roy and Roquia Sakhawat Hussain (Begum Rokeya). Famous Bengali musicians include Ravi Shankar and Norah Jones; Famous Bengali scientists include Megh Nad Saha, Prafulla Chandra Roy, Prasanta Chandra Mahalanobis, Amal Kumar Raychaudhuri, Jagadish Chandra Bose and Satyendra Nath Bose; famous Bengali engineers include Fazlur Khan and Amar Bose; famous Bengali filmmakers include Satyajit Ray, Bimal Roy, Mrinal Sen, Ritwik Ghatak, Aparna Sen and Tareque Masud; and famous Bengali entrepreneurs include Sake Dean Mahomed, Amar Bose and Jawed Karim.
[edit]See also
Bengal portal
List of Bengalis
List of Bangladeshis
List of people from West Bengal
Rohingya people
Bangladeshi diaspora
British Bangladeshi
Bangladeshi American
[edit]Notes
This article contains Indic text. Without proper rendering support, you may see question marks or boxes, misplaced vowels or missing conjuncts instead of Indic text.
^ https://www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/bg.html#People
^ http://www.everyculture.com/wc/Afghanistan-to-Bosnia-Herzegovina/Bengalis.html
^ The 2 Million Bengalis of Karachi - Daily Times
^ http://www.7days.ae/showstory.php?id=62077
^ [1]
^ [2]
^ [3]
^ US Census 2000 foreign born population by country
^ a b Hasan, Rafiq (November 20, 2003), "4,000 Bangladeshis to return from Oman in December", The Daily Star 4 (176), retrieved 2008-12-19
^ [4]
^ [5]
^ [6]
^ [7]
^ [国籍別外国人登録者数の推移]
^ Comparing State Polities: A Framework for Analyzing 100 Governments By Michael J. III Sullivan, pg. 119
^ Bangledesh- CIA World Factbook
^ a b "Data on Religion". Census of India (2001). Office of the Registrar General & Census Commissioner, India. Retrieved 2006-08-26.
^ Census Profile: New York City’s Bangladeshi American Population Asian American Federation of New York Census Information Center (2005). Retrieved on 2009-05-24.
^ "History of Bangladesh". Bangladesh Student Association @ TTU. Retrieved 2006-10-26.
^ "4000-year old settlement unearthed in Bangladesh". Xinhua. 2006-March.
^ James Heitzman and Robert L. Worden, ed (1989). "Early History, 1000 B.C.-A.D. 1202". Bangladesh: A country study. Library of Congress.
^ Chowdhury, AM. "Gangaridai". Banglapedia. Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. Retrieved 2006-09-08.
^ "Shashanka". Banglapedia. Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. Retrieved 2006-10-26.
^ A. Shiefner, History of Buddhism in India.
^ "Islam (in Bengal)". Banglapedia. Asiatic Society of Bangladesh. Retrieved 2006-10-26.
^ Georg, Feuerstein (2002). The Yoga Tradition. Motilal Banarsidass. p. 600.
^ Clarke, Peter Bernard (2006). New Religions in Global Perspective. Routledge. p. 209.
^ A versatile genius, Frontline 21 (24), 2004.
^ Chatterjee, Santimay and Chatterjee, Enakshi, Satyendranath Bose, 2002 reprint, p. 5, National Book Trust, ISBN 8123704925
^ A. K. Sen (1997). "Sir J.C. Bose and radio science", Microwave Symposium Digest 2 (8-13), p. 557-560.
^ History of the Bengali-speaking People by Nitish Sengupta, p 211, UBS Publishers' Distributors Pvt. Ltd. ISBN 81-7476-355-4.
^ Calcutta and the Bengal Renaissance by Sumit Sarkar in Calcutta, the Living City edited by Sukanta Chaudhuri, Vol I, p 95.
Poush Mela
Poush Mela (Bengali: পৌষ মেলা) is an annual fair and festival that takes place in Santiniketan, in Birbhum District in the Indian state of West Bengal, marking the harvest season. Commencing on the 7th day of the month of Poush, the fair officially lasts for three days, although vendors may stay up until the month-end. The key characteristic of this fair include its live performances of Bengali folk music, notably baul music.[1]
Contents [hide]
1 Background
2 Inauguration
3 Other days
4 The fair
5 References
6 See also
7 External links
[edit]Background
Devendranath Tagore with twenty followers accepted the Brahmo creed from Ram Chandra Vidyabagish on 21 December 1843 (7 Poush 1250 according to the Bengali calendar). This was the basis of Poush Utsav (the Festival of Poush) at Santiniketan[2]
A Brahma mandir was established at Santiniketan on 21 December 1891 (7 Poush 1298 according to the Bengali calendar). A small fair was organised in 1894 in connection with the establishment anniversary of the Brahma mandir, in the ground opposite the mandir. What started as a small homely Poush Mela now attracts attention of not only the people of Birbhum district but tourists from all around.[3]
In earlier days the mela (fair) was held in the ground on the north side of Brahma mandir (also referred to as glass temple). On that day, a firework display was held in earlier days after evening prayers. As the mela increased in size, it was shifted to the field in Purbapalli.[2]
[edit]Inauguration
Poush Utsav is inaugurated on 7 Poush (around 23 December). At dawn, Santiniketan wakes up to the soft music of shehnai. The first to enter the scenario is the Vaitalik group, who go round the ashrama (hermitage) singing songs. It is followed by a prayer-meeting at Chhatimtala. Then the entire congregation moves on to Uttarayan singing songs.[2]
[edit]Other days
Poush Mela is characterized by the live performances of Bengali folk music, especially the baul music. It includes folk songs, dances and tribal sports. This fair offers a perfect insight of true heritage of the state. The students of Santiniketan present their magnificent performance and make this festival more enjoyable and glamorous. Each day of this festival is filled with different activities. The last day of this fair is devoted to those who are related to Santiniketan.[4]
[edit]The fair
Shoppers at the Poush Mela Fair
Some 1,500 stalls take part in the fair.[5]The number of tourists pouring in for the three day fair is around 10,000.[6]Government statistics put the daily inflow of tourists in to Santiniketan at around 3,500 per day; but during major festival such as Pous Utsav, Basanta Utsav, Rabindra Paksha, and Naba Barsha it goes up to an average 40,000 per day or more. Obviously, many of them do not stay back in Santiniketan, which has 85 lodges with accommodation for 1,650. Biside of this, room on rent can be hire for some days.[7]
Local printed fabrics and handicrafts are available in the stalls erected during the fair.[4]
Contents [hide]
1 Background
2 Inauguration
3 Other days
4 The fair
5 References
6 See also
7 External links
[edit]Background
Devendranath Tagore with twenty followers accepted the Brahmo creed from Ram Chandra Vidyabagish on 21 December 1843 (7 Poush 1250 according to the Bengali calendar). This was the basis of Poush Utsav (the Festival of Poush) at Santiniketan[2]
A Brahma mandir was established at Santiniketan on 21 December 1891 (7 Poush 1298 according to the Bengali calendar). A small fair was organised in 1894 in connection with the establishment anniversary of the Brahma mandir, in the ground opposite the mandir. What started as a small homely Poush Mela now attracts attention of not only the people of Birbhum district but tourists from all around.[3]
In earlier days the mela (fair) was held in the ground on the north side of Brahma mandir (also referred to as glass temple). On that day, a firework display was held in earlier days after evening prayers. As the mela increased in size, it was shifted to the field in Purbapalli.[2]
[edit]Inauguration
Poush Utsav is inaugurated on 7 Poush (around 23 December). At dawn, Santiniketan wakes up to the soft music of shehnai. The first to enter the scenario is the Vaitalik group, who go round the ashrama (hermitage) singing songs. It is followed by a prayer-meeting at Chhatimtala. Then the entire congregation moves on to Uttarayan singing songs.[2]
[edit]Other days
Poush Mela is characterized by the live performances of Bengali folk music, especially the baul music. It includes folk songs, dances and tribal sports. This fair offers a perfect insight of true heritage of the state. The students of Santiniketan present their magnificent performance and make this festival more enjoyable and glamorous. Each day of this festival is filled with different activities. The last day of this fair is devoted to those who are related to Santiniketan.[4]
[edit]The fair
Shoppers at the Poush Mela Fair
Some 1,500 stalls take part in the fair.[5]The number of tourists pouring in for the three day fair is around 10,000.[6]Government statistics put the daily inflow of tourists in to Santiniketan at around 3,500 per day; but during major festival such as Pous Utsav, Basanta Utsav, Rabindra Paksha, and Naba Barsha it goes up to an average 40,000 per day or more. Obviously, many of them do not stay back in Santiniketan, which has 85 lodges with accommodation for 1,650. Biside of this, room on rent can be hire for some days.[7]
Local printed fabrics and handicrafts are available in the stalls erected during the fair.[4]
Jaydev Kenduli
Jaydev Kenduli (Bengali: জয়দেব কেন্দুলি) (also known as Kendubillo) is a village and gram panchayat in Ilambazar community development block in Bolpur subdivision of Birbhum District in the Indian state of West Bengal. Until recently, it was believed by some, to be the birth place of Jayadeva and has developed as a religious centre with many temples and ashramas (hermitages). An annual fair, popular as baul fair, is organized on the occasion of Makar Sankranti.
Contents [hide]
1 History
2 Geography
3 Demographics
4 Transport
5 Culture
5.1 Terracotta carvings
5.2 Fair
6 See also
7 References
8 External links
[edit]History
Jaydev Kenduli had long been considered as a possible birthplace of the poet Jayadeva, who had composed Gita Govinda in Sanskrit. However, now there appears to be a consensus among scholars that Jayadeva was born in another place in Orissa bearing the same name, in Kenduli Sasan.[1][2][3][4][5]. He was populalrly believed to be the court poet of Raja Lakshman Sen, who ruled in the 12th–13th century. The image of Radhamadhav set up by him is daily worshipped. The asana (mat) on which the poet sat and obtained siddhi (salvation) through meditation is carefully preserved.[6]
During the Mughal era Jaydev Kenduli was part of Senpahari pargana. As per a firman issued by Aurangzeb in the 17th century, Senpahari was added to the property of Krishnaram Rai of Bardhaman Raj. Maharani Brajakishori of Bardhaman had set up temples in different places such as Puri and Vrindaban. Jugal Kishore Mukhopadhyay of Jaydev Kenduli was then court-poet at Bardhaman. It is said that it was at his request that the Maharani set up the Radhabinod temple at Jaydev Kenduli in 1683. The temple stands where the house of the poet Jayadeva, was believed locally to have stood, based on the prior assumption of his birth there.[7]
Around 1860-70, Radharaman Brajabasi of the Nirbak Vaisnava sect set up the Nirbak Ashrama at Jaydev Kenduli, the place of birth of their kula guru (patron saint) of the sect, the poet Jayadeva.[7] In the first half of the 20th century, the Radhaballav temple of the Mukhopadhyay family was established. Many more ashramas (hermitages) were set up and thus Jaydev Kenduli developed as a religious centre.[7]
Radhabinode Temple, a navaratna temple with nine turrets
Details of terracotta carving in Radhabinode Temple
[edit]Geography
Jaydev Kenduli is located at 23.63°N 87.43°E. It has an average elevation of 48 metres (157 ft).[8] It is located on the banks of Ajay River.[7]
Villages in Jaydev Kenduli panchayat are: Joydev Kenduli, Tikarbeta, Sahapur, Janubazar, Raghunathpur, Mundira, Balarpur, Santoshpur, Bhubanaswer, Sugar, Chhata Chak, and Akamba.[9]
[edit]Demographics
In the 2001 census, Jaydev Kenduli village had a population of 2,755, of whom 976 belonged to scheduled castes.[9]
[edit]Transport
Jaydev Kenduli is off the Panagarh–Morgram Highway. When one is travelling from Panagarh, one has to turn left a little after Ilambazar.[10]
[edit]Culture
[edit]Terracotta carvings
The Radhabinode temple has exquisite terracotta carvings, some depicting Ramayana scenes.[10]
[edit]Fair
A fair is organized in memory of Jayadeva on the occasion of Poush Sankranti or Makar Sankranti. It starts on the last day of the Bengali calendar month, Poush and continues up to 2 Magh.[7] The start of the fair commemorates the auspicious day on which Jayadeva is claimed to have taken a bath at the Kadaambokhandi ghat of the Ajay river at Jaydev Kenduli.[11] In 1982, the district authorities took control of the fair to provide a better environment, a good sanitation system, drinking water, lighting and security.[12]
Several thousand bauls, a community of wandering minstrels who sing devotional songs to the music of the ektara (one stringed instrument), assemble for the fair and as such it is also referred to as Baul Fair. The bauls stay in 160 temporary hermitages at Jaydev Kenduli for around a month. These bauls appear to have inherited the legacy of Jayadeva songs.[6][7][10]
However, in recent years, the greatest baul fair in the state is gradually losing its character, as the bauls have been outnumbered by kirtanias, who perform in the mela to gain popularity. In 2008, around 2,000 kirtanias came to attend the mela and they obtained contracts worth Rs. 2 crore.[11]
It is not known whether Rabindranath Tagore ever visited Jaydev Kenduli. However, many personalities linked with Santiniketan such as Kshiti Mohan Sen, Nandalal Bose, Provat Kumar Mukhopadhyay, Ramkinkar Baij, and Santideb Ghosh visited Jaydev Kenduli and contributed substantially towards the spread of its name outside Birbhum and added to its fame.[13]
The fair, which is believed by some to have been there for around centuries, caters primarily to the requirements of village folk. Everything from cooking utensils to fishing nets are sold in the fair.[6][7]
Contents [hide]
1 History
2 Geography
3 Demographics
4 Transport
5 Culture
5.1 Terracotta carvings
5.2 Fair
6 See also
7 References
8 External links
[edit]History
Jaydev Kenduli had long been considered as a possible birthplace of the poet Jayadeva, who had composed Gita Govinda in Sanskrit. However, now there appears to be a consensus among scholars that Jayadeva was born in another place in Orissa bearing the same name, in Kenduli Sasan.[1][2][3][4][5]. He was populalrly believed to be the court poet of Raja Lakshman Sen, who ruled in the 12th–13th century. The image of Radhamadhav set up by him is daily worshipped. The asana (mat) on which the poet sat and obtained siddhi (salvation) through meditation is carefully preserved.[6]
During the Mughal era Jaydev Kenduli was part of Senpahari pargana. As per a firman issued by Aurangzeb in the 17th century, Senpahari was added to the property of Krishnaram Rai of Bardhaman Raj. Maharani Brajakishori of Bardhaman had set up temples in different places such as Puri and Vrindaban. Jugal Kishore Mukhopadhyay of Jaydev Kenduli was then court-poet at Bardhaman. It is said that it was at his request that the Maharani set up the Radhabinod temple at Jaydev Kenduli in 1683. The temple stands where the house of the poet Jayadeva, was believed locally to have stood, based on the prior assumption of his birth there.[7]
Around 1860-70, Radharaman Brajabasi of the Nirbak Vaisnava sect set up the Nirbak Ashrama at Jaydev Kenduli, the place of birth of their kula guru (patron saint) of the sect, the poet Jayadeva.[7] In the first half of the 20th century, the Radhaballav temple of the Mukhopadhyay family was established. Many more ashramas (hermitages) were set up and thus Jaydev Kenduli developed as a religious centre.[7]
Radhabinode Temple, a navaratna temple with nine turrets
Details of terracotta carving in Radhabinode Temple
[edit]Geography
Jaydev Kenduli is located at 23.63°N 87.43°E. It has an average elevation of 48 metres (157 ft).[8] It is located on the banks of Ajay River.[7]
Villages in Jaydev Kenduli panchayat are: Joydev Kenduli, Tikarbeta, Sahapur, Janubazar, Raghunathpur, Mundira, Balarpur, Santoshpur, Bhubanaswer, Sugar, Chhata Chak, and Akamba.[9]
[edit]Demographics
In the 2001 census, Jaydev Kenduli village had a population of 2,755, of whom 976 belonged to scheduled castes.[9]
[edit]Transport
Jaydev Kenduli is off the Panagarh–Morgram Highway. When one is travelling from Panagarh, one has to turn left a little after Ilambazar.[10]
[edit]Culture
[edit]Terracotta carvings
The Radhabinode temple has exquisite terracotta carvings, some depicting Ramayana scenes.[10]
[edit]Fair
A fair is organized in memory of Jayadeva on the occasion of Poush Sankranti or Makar Sankranti. It starts on the last day of the Bengali calendar month, Poush and continues up to 2 Magh.[7] The start of the fair commemorates the auspicious day on which Jayadeva is claimed to have taken a bath at the Kadaambokhandi ghat of the Ajay river at Jaydev Kenduli.[11] In 1982, the district authorities took control of the fair to provide a better environment, a good sanitation system, drinking water, lighting and security.[12]
Several thousand bauls, a community of wandering minstrels who sing devotional songs to the music of the ektara (one stringed instrument), assemble for the fair and as such it is also referred to as Baul Fair. The bauls stay in 160 temporary hermitages at Jaydev Kenduli for around a month. These bauls appear to have inherited the legacy of Jayadeva songs.[6][7][10]
However, in recent years, the greatest baul fair in the state is gradually losing its character, as the bauls have been outnumbered by kirtanias, who perform in the mela to gain popularity. In 2008, around 2,000 kirtanias came to attend the mela and they obtained contracts worth Rs. 2 crore.[11]
It is not known whether Rabindranath Tagore ever visited Jaydev Kenduli. However, many personalities linked with Santiniketan such as Kshiti Mohan Sen, Nandalal Bose, Provat Kumar Mukhopadhyay, Ramkinkar Baij, and Santideb Ghosh visited Jaydev Kenduli and contributed substantially towards the spread of its name outside Birbhum and added to its fame.[13]
The fair, which is believed by some to have been there for around centuries, caters primarily to the requirements of village folk. Everything from cooking utensils to fishing nets are sold in the fair.[6][7]
Ajodhya Hills
Ajodhya Hills (Bengali: অযোধ্যা পাহাড়), is a hill located in the Purulia district of the state West Bengal, India. The nearby populated town area is Bagmundi.
Contents [hide]
1 Overview
2 Mythology
3 Development
4 References
5 External links
6 See also
[edit]Overview
It is a popular place for young mountaineers to learn the basic course in rock climbing. There are two routes available to reach Ajodhya Hills. One is via Jhalda and the other one is via Sirkabad. There is a Forest Rest House here. Gorgabunu (900 m), Mayuri etc. are of the some of the peaks of Ajodhya hills range.[1]
The area forms the lowest step of the Chota Nagpur Plateau. The general scenario is undulating land with scattered hills. The area around Bagmundi or Ajodhya Hill is an extended plateau.[2]
[edit]Mythology
According to Hindu mythology, Rama and Sita had come to Ayodhya Hills and stayed during their exile. Sita was thirsty and Ram pierced an arrow through the Earth's soil crust and through that water gushed out. Sita quenched her thirst. The place is known as Sita-kunda. During the full moon day in Baisakh every year tribals of nearby areas come and join in the game of hunting wild animals.[1]
[edit]Development
Purulia Pumped Storage Project with an installed capacity of 900 MW (4 X 225 MW) has been set up in Ajodhya hills under Bagmundi police station with the loan assistance of Japan Bank for International Cooperation.[3]
Near Ajodhya Hills, there is Turga Dam and the Lake, and the pleasant waterfall formed by the River Bamni. The site of the Turga Dam site is a perfect tourist spot, where the visitors can spend their day.[1]
Contents [hide]
1 Overview
2 Mythology
3 Development
4 References
5 External links
6 See also
[edit]Overview
It is a popular place for young mountaineers to learn the basic course in rock climbing. There are two routes available to reach Ajodhya Hills. One is via Jhalda and the other one is via Sirkabad. There is a Forest Rest House here. Gorgabunu (900 m), Mayuri etc. are of the some of the peaks of Ajodhya hills range.[1]
The area forms the lowest step of the Chota Nagpur Plateau. The general scenario is undulating land with scattered hills. The area around Bagmundi or Ajodhya Hill is an extended plateau.[2]
[edit]Mythology
According to Hindu mythology, Rama and Sita had come to Ayodhya Hills and stayed during their exile. Sita was thirsty and Ram pierced an arrow through the Earth's soil crust and through that water gushed out. Sita quenched her thirst. The place is known as Sita-kunda. During the full moon day in Baisakh every year tribals of nearby areas come and join in the game of hunting wild animals.[1]
[edit]Development
Purulia Pumped Storage Project with an installed capacity of 900 MW (4 X 225 MW) has been set up in Ajodhya hills under Bagmundi police station with the loan assistance of Japan Bank for International Cooperation.[3]
Near Ajodhya Hills, there is Turga Dam and the Lake, and the pleasant waterfall formed by the River Bamni. The site of the Turga Dam site is a perfect tourist spot, where the visitors can spend their day.[1]
Bishnupur
Bishnupur (Bengali: বিষ্ণুপুর) is a city and a municipality in Bankura District in the state of West Bengal, India. It is famous for its terracotta temples and the balucheri sarees.
Contents [hide]
1 History
2 Geography
3 Demographics
4 Culture
4.1 Temples and other places of interest
4.2 Music
4.3 Products
4.4 Festivals and fairs
5 Politics
6 References
7 External links
[edit]History
Bishnupur was ruled under the Gupta period by local Hindu kings who paid tribute to Samudra Gupta[citation needed]. Following a long period of obscurity, where the land oscilated between being a minor independent principality and a vassal state . The land is also called Mallabhum after the Malla rulers of this place. The Malla rulers were Vaishnavites and built the famous terracotta temples during the 17th and 18th century at this place. The terracotta temples here are the best specimen of the classical style of Bengal architecture.
Bishnupur (the distance from Kolkata is 132 km), now the headquarters of the subdivision of the same name in Bankura district, is a seat of crafts and culture.
For almost a thousand years it was the capital of the Malla kings of Mallabhum, of which Bankura was a part, till their power waned during the times when Mughal rule weakened under the last monarchs of the dynasty.
The patronage of Malla king Veer Hambir and his successors Raja Raghunath Singha and Veer Singha made Bishnupur one of the principal centres of culture in Bengal. Most of the exquisite terracotta temples for which town is justly famous were built during this period.
Apart from the unique architecture of the period, Bishnupur is also famous for its terracotta craft and its own Baluchari sarees made of tussar silk.
Royal patronage also gave rise to Vishnupuri gharana (school) of Hindustani classical music and the Bishnupur school of painting.
Detail of terracotta relief from the Rasmancha
[edit]Geography
Bishnupur is located at 23.08°N 87.32°E.[1] It has an average elevation of 59 metres (194 feet).
[edit]Demographics
As of 2001 India census,[2] Bishnupur had a population of 61,943. Males constitute 50% of the population and females 50%. Bishnupur has an average literacy rate of 69%, higher than the national average of 59.5%; with male literacy of 77% and female literacy of 61%. 11% of the population is under 6 years of age.
[edit]Culture
[edit]Temples and other places of interest
There are many such temples which stand testimony to the exquite craftsmanship of the artisans of the region. The temples were crafted from the local laterite and brick. The temples are covered with terracota tiles depicting scenes from the epic Mahabharata. The temples are located in Bishnupur and across many other small villages in the Bankura district. These include:
Rasmancha: It is the oldest brick temple. Built in the late 16th century by King Beera Hambira. The temple has an unusual elongated pyramidical tower, surrounded by hut-shaped turrets, which were very typical of Bengali roof structures of the time.
Cluster of temples
Jorebangla Temple of Keshta Rai: Built by King Raghunath Singha Dev II in the 17th century. The ornate terracotta carvings are set off by the roof in the classic chala style of Bengal architecture.
Nandalal Temple
Radhamadhab Temple
Kalachand Temple
Radhagovinda Temple
Sarbamangala
Pancha Ratna Temple of Shyam Rai: Built in 1643 by King Raghunath Singha. The walls are richly decorated with terracotta carvings featuring aspects of Lord Krishna’s life.
Krishna-Valaram Temple
Mrinmayee Temple
Radhashyam Temple
Jor Bangla Temple
Radha Laljiu Temple
Madanmohan Temple
Madanmohan Temple: King Durjana Singh Deva built the temple in 1694 AD in the ekaratna style, a square flat-roofed building with carved cornices, surmounted by a pinnacle. Impressive carvings on the walls depict scenes from the Ramayana, Mahabharata and the Puranas.
Malleswar
Sanreswar
Radhalaljiu
Madangopal
Chhinnamasta Temple
Dalmadal Caman
Lalgarh
Lalbandh
Acharya Jogeshchandra Museum
Gumgarh
Pathar Darwaja (Main Gateway of Bishnupur)
Garh Darwaja (Small Gateway of Bishnupur)
Stone Chariot
Nutan Mahal
Birthplace of Shrinibas Acharya
[edit]Music
A school of music, called the Bishnupur Gharana, was established here in 1370 A.D and flourished under the patronage of the Malla kings. The school hit its peak in the 16th and 17th centuries. This style of music is rooted in the Dhrupad style and is still being kept alive in local academies of music.
[edit]Products
Terracotta is characteristic of Bishnupur. Apart from the temples, terracotta pottery, artifacts and even jewellery made in this very traditional material is famous. The potters here derive their inspiration from the glorious history of kings, soldiers and wars. Bishnupur is also known for its silk (tussar), particularly the Baluchari Sarees. Woven on unusual punch-card looms, these sarees have episodes from the Mahabharata woven into the border and pallu. Bellmetalware, conch-shell jewellery is also available here.
[edit]Festivals and fairs
There is a snake festival in August, Ultorath and the Bishnupur fair in December.
Contents [hide]
1 History
2 Geography
3 Demographics
4 Culture
4.1 Temples and other places of interest
4.2 Music
4.3 Products
4.4 Festivals and fairs
5 Politics
6 References
7 External links
[edit]History
Bishnupur was ruled under the Gupta period by local Hindu kings who paid tribute to Samudra Gupta[citation needed]. Following a long period of obscurity, where the land oscilated between being a minor independent principality and a vassal state . The land is also called Mallabhum after the Malla rulers of this place. The Malla rulers were Vaishnavites and built the famous terracotta temples during the 17th and 18th century at this place. The terracotta temples here are the best specimen of the classical style of Bengal architecture.
Bishnupur (the distance from Kolkata is 132 km), now the headquarters of the subdivision of the same name in Bankura district, is a seat of crafts and culture.
For almost a thousand years it was the capital of the Malla kings of Mallabhum, of which Bankura was a part, till their power waned during the times when Mughal rule weakened under the last monarchs of the dynasty.
The patronage of Malla king Veer Hambir and his successors Raja Raghunath Singha and Veer Singha made Bishnupur one of the principal centres of culture in Bengal. Most of the exquisite terracotta temples for which town is justly famous were built during this period.
Apart from the unique architecture of the period, Bishnupur is also famous for its terracotta craft and its own Baluchari sarees made of tussar silk.
Royal patronage also gave rise to Vishnupuri gharana (school) of Hindustani classical music and the Bishnupur school of painting.
Detail of terracotta relief from the Rasmancha
[edit]Geography
Bishnupur is located at 23.08°N 87.32°E.[1] It has an average elevation of 59 metres (194 feet).
[edit]Demographics
As of 2001 India census,[2] Bishnupur had a population of 61,943. Males constitute 50% of the population and females 50%. Bishnupur has an average literacy rate of 69%, higher than the national average of 59.5%; with male literacy of 77% and female literacy of 61%. 11% of the population is under 6 years of age.
[edit]Culture
[edit]Temples and other places of interest
There are many such temples which stand testimony to the exquite craftsmanship of the artisans of the region. The temples were crafted from the local laterite and brick. The temples are covered with terracota tiles depicting scenes from the epic Mahabharata. The temples are located in Bishnupur and across many other small villages in the Bankura district. These include:
Rasmancha: It is the oldest brick temple. Built in the late 16th century by King Beera Hambira. The temple has an unusual elongated pyramidical tower, surrounded by hut-shaped turrets, which were very typical of Bengali roof structures of the time.
Cluster of temples
Jorebangla Temple of Keshta Rai: Built by King Raghunath Singha Dev II in the 17th century. The ornate terracotta carvings are set off by the roof in the classic chala style of Bengal architecture.
Nandalal Temple
Radhamadhab Temple
Kalachand Temple
Radhagovinda Temple
Sarbamangala
Pancha Ratna Temple of Shyam Rai: Built in 1643 by King Raghunath Singha. The walls are richly decorated with terracotta carvings featuring aspects of Lord Krishna’s life.
Krishna-Valaram Temple
Mrinmayee Temple
Radhashyam Temple
Jor Bangla Temple
Radha Laljiu Temple
Madanmohan Temple
Madanmohan Temple: King Durjana Singh Deva built the temple in 1694 AD in the ekaratna style, a square flat-roofed building with carved cornices, surmounted by a pinnacle. Impressive carvings on the walls depict scenes from the Ramayana, Mahabharata and the Puranas.
Malleswar
Sanreswar
Radhalaljiu
Madangopal
Chhinnamasta Temple
Dalmadal Caman
Lalgarh
Lalbandh
Acharya Jogeshchandra Museum
Gumgarh
Pathar Darwaja (Main Gateway of Bishnupur)
Garh Darwaja (Small Gateway of Bishnupur)
Stone Chariot
Nutan Mahal
Birthplace of Shrinibas Acharya
[edit]Music
A school of music, called the Bishnupur Gharana, was established here in 1370 A.D and flourished under the patronage of the Malla kings. The school hit its peak in the 16th and 17th centuries. This style of music is rooted in the Dhrupad style and is still being kept alive in local academies of music.
[edit]Products
Terracotta is characteristic of Bishnupur. Apart from the temples, terracotta pottery, artifacts and even jewellery made in this very traditional material is famous. The potters here derive their inspiration from the glorious history of kings, soldiers and wars. Bishnupur is also known for its silk (tussar), particularly the Baluchari Sarees. Woven on unusual punch-card looms, these sarees have episodes from the Mahabharata woven into the border and pallu. Bellmetalware, conch-shell jewellery is also available here.
[edit]Festivals and fairs
There is a snake festival in August, Ultorath and the Bishnupur fair in December.
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