Arun Mitra
Encyclopedia
Arun Mitra (November, 1909 - August, 2000) was a Bengali
poet.
He was born in Jessore
, now in Bangladesh
, Arun moved to Kolkata when he was a young boy and did most of his schooling there. In college he was very fascinated by the life sciences, although he was officially a student of English. At that time he was also writing a lot of poetry and reading his way through his new-found love—French literature.
After college, Arun Mitra became a successful journalist in the Bengali
daily Ananda Bazar Patrika which at that time was edited by Satyendranath Majumdar, a prominent Bengali journalist-writer of that time. Arun's colleagues included the playwright Bijon Bhattacharya
, and the novelist Subodh Ghosh
. In 1937 Arun Mitra married Shanti and together they lived with Satyendranath who also happened to be Shanti Mitra's uncle. Shanti herself was an important short fiction writer.
In collaboration with Satyendranath, Arun edited Arani a progressive literary magazine which spearheaded the anti-fascist writers' movement in Bengal
and where many of the stalwarts of Bengali literature were first published. Throughout the period that spanned World War II and the partition of India (into India and Pakistan), Arun Mitra remained a staunch advocate of freedom and sanity—as poet, journalist and writer. This commitment to humanity was the driving force of his life.
In 1948, Arun Mitra was awarded a scholarship by the French government to do his doctoral work at the Sorbonne, and Arun went reluctantly as he was not happy to leave Shanti and their two children behind. In Paris, Arun befriended the historian Ranajit Guha and the painter Paritosh Sen and also spent time with Aldous Huxley
and French poets like Paul Éluard
and Louis Aragon
. After his return to India, Arun joined the faculty at Allahabad University
and taught there until his retirement. He was always a poet first, and during his Allahabad years published much, including his only novel and translations of various French poets and writers—from Rimbaud to Sartre, from Voltaire to St. John-Perse.
The Mitras finally settled once again in Kolkata, living most of the rest of their lives in Tiljala, a poor and working-class neighborhood of the city. It was in Tiljala that Arun Mitra produced his best work and brought a decidedly new direction to Bengali poetry. Throughout their lives, people from all walks of life and across many generations befriended Shanti and Arun Mitra. Arun's fame actually made him more accessible to ordinary people, and along with them he mourned Shanti's passing in 1998 in several of his last poems about his "fallen fellow-warrior".
He died in Kolkata
, India. Two days before his death, Arun Mitra said his head was full of poetry that must be spoken, and dictated some lines, his last poem, to a young publisher friend.
Bengali people
The Bengali people are an ethnic community native to the historic region of Bengal in South Asia. They speak Bengali , 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...
poet.
He was born in Jessore
Jessore District
Jessore is a district located in the Khulna Division of southwestern Bangladesh. It is bordered by India to the west.The district produces a variety of crops year-round. Date-sugar called patali is made from the sap of locally grown date trees that is cooked, thickened and crystallised using a...
, now in Bangladesh
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
, Arun moved to Kolkata when he was a young boy and did most of his schooling there. In college he was very fascinated by the life sciences, although he was officially a student of English. At that time he was also writing a lot of poetry and reading his way through his new-found love—French literature.
After college, Arun Mitra became a successful journalist in the Bengali
Bengali language
Bengali or Bangla is an eastern Indo-Aryan language. It is native to the region of eastern South Asia known as Bengal, which comprises present day Bangladesh, the Indian state of West Bengal, and parts of the Indian states of Tripura and Assam. It is written with the Bengali script...
daily Ananda Bazar Patrika which at that time was edited by Satyendranath Majumdar, a prominent Bengali journalist-writer of that time. Arun's colleagues included the playwright Bijon Bhattacharya
Bijon Bhattacharya
Bijon Bhattacharya was a prominent Indian theatre and film personality from Bengal.Bijon was born in 1917 at Faridpur in a Hindu Brahmin family, and was early a witness to the destitution and penury of the peasantry of that land...
, and the novelist Subodh Ghosh
Subodh Ghosh
Subodh Ghosh was a noted Bengali author and journalist, with Kolkata-based daily newspaper Ananda Bazar Patrika. His best known work Bharat Premkatha, about the romances of epic Indian characters, has remained a sensation in bengali literature world...
. In 1937 Arun Mitra married Shanti and together they lived with Satyendranath who also happened to be Shanti Mitra's uncle. Shanti herself was an important short fiction writer.
In collaboration with Satyendranath, Arun edited Arani a progressive literary magazine which spearheaded the anti-fascist writers' movement in Bengal
Bengal
Bengal is a historical and geographical region in the northeast region of the Indian Subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal. Today, it is mainly divided between the sovereign land of People's Republic of Bangladesh and the Indian state of West Bengal, although some regions of the previous...
and where many of the stalwarts of Bengali literature were first published. Throughout the period that spanned World War II and the partition of India (into India and Pakistan), Arun Mitra remained a staunch advocate of freedom and sanity—as poet, journalist and writer. This commitment to humanity was the driving force of his life.
In 1948, Arun Mitra was awarded a scholarship by the French government to do his doctoral work at the Sorbonne, and Arun went reluctantly as he was not happy to leave Shanti and their two children behind. In Paris, Arun befriended the historian Ranajit Guha and the painter Paritosh Sen and also spent time with Aldous Huxley
Aldous Huxley
Aldous Leonard Huxley was an English writer and one of the most prominent members of the famous Huxley family. Best known for his novels including Brave New World and a wide-ranging output of essays, Huxley also edited the magazine Oxford Poetry, and published short stories, poetry, travel...
and French poets like Paul Éluard
Paul Éluard
Paul Éluard, born Eugène Émile Paul Grindel , was a French poet who was one of the founders of the surrealist movement.-Biography:...
and Louis Aragon
Louis Aragon
Louis Aragon , was a French poet, novelist and editor, a long-time member of the Communist Party and a member of the Académie Goncourt.- Early life :...
. After his return to India, Arun joined the faculty at Allahabad University
Allahabad University
Allahabad University , is a premier Central University located in Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh, India. Its origins lie in the Muir Central College, named after Lt...
and taught there until his retirement. He was always a poet first, and during his Allahabad years published much, including his only novel and translations of various French poets and writers—from Rimbaud to Sartre, from Voltaire to St. John-Perse.
The Mitras finally settled once again in Kolkata, living most of the rest of their lives in Tiljala, a poor and working-class neighborhood of the city. It was in Tiljala that Arun Mitra produced his best work and brought a decidedly new direction to Bengali poetry. Throughout their lives, people from all walks of life and across many generations befriended Shanti and Arun Mitra. Arun's fame actually made him more accessible to ordinary people, and along with them he mourned Shanti's passing in 1998 in several of his last poems about his "fallen fellow-warrior".
He died in Kolkata
Kolkata
Kolkata , formerly known as Calcutta, is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River, it was the commercial capital of East India...
, India. Two days before his death, Arun Mitra said his head was full of poetry that must be spoken, and dictated some lines, his last poem, to a young publisher friend.
Selected bibliography
(This does not include numerous essays, reviews, news articles, commentaries, translations, recorded and/or published interviews that are not contained in the publications listed here. English translations of titles are literal in most instances. Transcription of Bengali titles try to represent, as much as possible, the Bengali vernacular and not Sanskrit pronunciation of words.)Poetry
- Prantorekha [Horizon Line] Arani Publication, Kolkata. 1943
- Utser Dikey [Toward the Source] Dipankar Publication, Kolkata. 1955
- Ghonishto Taap [Intimate Warmth] Tribeni Publishers, Kolkata. 1963
- Mancher Bairey Matitey [Beyond the Stage On the Earth] Saraswat Publication, Kolkata. 1970
- Shudhu Raater Shabdo Noi [Not Just the Rustle of the Night] Nabopatro Publication, Kolkata. 1978 (Winner, Rabindranath Tagore Award)
- Prathom Poli Shesh Pathor [First Silt Last Stone] Karuna Publication, Kolkata. 1981
- Khunjtey Khunjtey Eto Door [So Far After Searching So Long] Pratikhshan Publication, Kolkata. 1986 (Winner, Sahitya Akademi AwardSahitya Akademi AwardSahitya Akademi Award is a literary honor in India which Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, annually confers on writers of outstanding works in one of the following twenty-four major Indian languagesAssamese, Bengali, Bodo, Dogri, English, Gujarati, Hindi, Kannada, Kashmiri,...
) - Jodio Agun Jhor Dhasha Danga [Although a Bank Ravaged by Firestorm] Pratikhshan Publication, Kolkata. 1988
- Ei Amrito Ei Garol [This Nectar This Venom] Proma Publication, Kolkata. 1991
- Tunikathaar Gherao Thekey Bolchhi [I Speak Surrounded by Small Talk] Anushtup Publication, Kolkata. 1992
- Khara Urboray Chinho Diye Choli [I Put My Signature on Drought and on Plenty] Pratikhshan Publication, kolkata. 1994
- Andhokaar Jatokkhon Jegey Thakey [As Long As Darkness Remains Awake] Ananda Publishers, Kolkata. 1996
- Ora Uritey Noi [Not In Random Flight] Kobita Pakhshik, Kolkata. 1997
- Bhangoner Mati [Eroding Soil] Dey's Publishing House, Kolkata. 1998
- Uchchhanno Shomayer Shukh Dukkho Ghirey [Surrounded By Joy and Sorrow of a Wayward Time] Ananda Publishers, Koklkata. 1999
Anthology
- Arun Mitrer Sreshtho Kobita [Best Poems of Arun Mitra] Bharobi Publication, Kolkata. 1972
- Arun Mitrer Sreshtho Kobita [Best poems of Arun Mitra] Narbaak Publication, Kolkata. 1985
- Kabya Shamagro, Vol. I [Collected Poems] Protibhas Publication, Kolkata. 1988
- Kabya Shamagro, Vol. II [Collected Poems] Protibhas Publication, Kolkata. 1992
- Bulaar Raagmala [Bula's Garland of Raags] Proma Publication, Kolkata. 1994
- Nirbachito Premer Kobita [Selected Poems About Love] Bikash Gronthaboli, Kolkata. 1994
- Panchsho Bachhorer Pharashi Kobita [Five Hundred Years of French Poetry] Translation of various French poets Proma Publication, Kolkata. 1994
- Shwanirbachito Sreshtho Kobita [Best Poems—selected by the poet] Abhijat Publication, Kolkata. 1999
- Arun Mitrer Sreshtho Kobita [Best poems of Arun Mitra] Dey's Publishing House, Kolkata. 1999
Narratives
- Shikawr Jodi Chena Jai [If Roots Are Known] Bengali novelKaruna Publication, Kolkata. 1979
- Candide, Ba Ashabad [Candide, or Optimism] Translation of Voltaire Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi. 1970
Collections (Prose)
- Pharashi Shahitto Proshongey [On French literature] Critical essays Proma Publication, Kolkata. 1985
- Srijan Shahitto Nanaan Bhabna [Creative Literature Various Thoughts] Protibhas Publication, Kolkata. 1987
- Aragon [Aragon] On Louis Aragon: Critical/Biographical Proma Publication, Kolkata. 1991
- Khola Chokhey [With Eyes Open] Proma Publication, Kolkata. 1992
- Pather Morey [At the Crossroads] Remembering writers, artists, friends Proma Publication, Kolkata. 1996
- Kobir Katha, Kobider Katha [About Poet and Poets] Essays on poetry and individual poets Kobita Prakhshik, Kolkata. 1997
- Kobita Ami O Amra [Poetry Myself and We] Essays on Bengali and French literature Dey's Publishing House, Kolkata. 1999
- Jibaner Rangey [In the Color of Life] Memoirs Abhijit Publication, Kolkata. 1999
Seclected works on Arun Mitra
- Kobi Arun Mitra [The Poet Arun Mitra] Collection of critical essays, analyses, commentaries edited by Shankha Ghosh and Arun Sen Parichay/Anushtup, Kolkata. 1986
- Arun Mitra (in English) by Abanti Sanyal "Makers of Indian Literature" series Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi. 2003