Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay
Encyclopedia
Bibhutibhushan Bandyopadhyay (12 September 1894 - 1 November 1950) was one of the most famous Bengali
novelist and writer of modern Bengali literature. His best known work, is the autobiographical novel, Pather Panchali
(The Song of the Road), adapted (along with Aparajito, the sequel) into the memorable Apu Trilogy
films, directed by Satyajit Ray
.
in undivided Bengal
, British India at his maternal uncle's house in a Hindu
Brahmin
family. His father, Mahananda Bandyopadhyay, was a Sanskrit
scholar and a kathak, a person who tells stories for a living.
His home was near Gopalnagar police station in Bongaon, North Twenty Four Parganas (location 23'41+88'46). He studied in Bongaon High School, one of the oldest institutions in Brithish controlled India. Incidentally, he also taught at this school at the beginning of his working life. His Pather Panchali, Adarsha Hindu Hotel, Ichhamati, Bipiner Sansar and a few others were all set in Bongaon. Ichhamati reflects on the life of rural society on the banks of river Ichhamati in undivided southern Bengal. The story of indigo planters and plantation life, rural communities and the divers castes and their societal roles in early last century of Bengal have been captured in vivid detail. Relationships have been sensitively portrayed in their subtlest nuances. Soul stirring descriptions of nature in the smallest details and unselfconscious but poetic portrayal of the flora and fauna on the banks of Ichhamati are the added features of this magnificent creation. There are a lot of dialogues which bring up deep spiritual thought, advaita vedanta
in particular. Peppered with a few characters who show the hypocrisy of the brahminical order, then prevalent, which dictated the social and religious life of rural Bengal under a deeply stratified caste system, the novel is an invaluable and otherwise inadequately documented time capsule.
His early days were spent in abject poverty. Nevertheless, he fought his way to complete his undergraduate degree in History, at the Surendranath College
, Kolkata
; although he could not afford to enroll for the postgraduate course at the University of Calcutta
. The economic burden of his family rested squarely on his shoulders.
He married Gouri Devi, but she died at childbirth after only a year of their marriage. The tragic theme of her death and his loneliness is a recurrent motif in his early writings.
At 46, Bibhutibhushan married Rama Chattopadhyay. Their only son, Taradas, was born in 1947. and Taradas was died in 2010.
Bandopadhyay had a stout constitution and walked miles in the woods every day. He usually took his notebook with him and loved to write surrounded by the wilderness.
. He has 16 novels and over two hundred short stories to his credit.
Humayun Azad
opined that the novel is superior to its cinematic rendition. This is not necessarily a commonly held view in the West, as the Apu Trilogy
is considered to be among the finest films in the history of cinema, and the unavailability of a complete translation of Pather Panchali into English makes it an issue hard for the English-speaking audience to resolve: the available translation (by T. W. Clark and Tarapada Mukherji) is a truncated version of the novel. However, in the Bengali-speaking world, the stature of the novel is not seriously in doubt. Martin Seymour-Smith, in his Guide to Modern World Literature (1973), calls Bandopadhyay (he uses the form Banerji) "perhaps the best of all modern Indian novelists" and says "probably nothing in twentieth-century Indian literature, in prose or poetry, comes to the level of Pather Panchali".
Apart from the translation of the truncated text by T. W. Clark and Tarapada Mukherji, Amit Chaudhuri has translated a few excerpts for inclusion in the anthology The Picador Book of Modern Indian Literature. In his introduction to these excerpts, Chaudhuri writes: "Unique for its tenderness and poetry ... Pather Panchali rejects both nineteenth-century realism and social realism (the social milieu described in it would have logically lent itself to the latter) for an enquiry into perception and memory."
The complete text of Aparajito, the sequel to Pather Panchali, has been translated into English by Gopa Majumdar.
Bibhutibhushan's works are mostly concerned with the lives of people from rural Bengal. His writings come alive with vibrant and normal characters from the countryside.
.
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...
novelist and writer of modern Bengali literature. His best known work, is the autobiographical novel, Pather Panchali
Pather Panchali (novel)
Pather Panchali is a novel written by Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay and was later adapted into a film of the same name by Satyajit Ray...
(The Song of the Road), adapted (along with Aparajito, the sequel) into the memorable Apu Trilogy
Apu trilogy
The Apu Trilogy is a trilogy consisting of three Bengali films directed by Satyajit Ray: Pather Panchali , Aparajito and Apur Sansar . The films — completed 1955-1959 — were based on two Bengali novels written by Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay: Pather Panchali and Aparajito...
films, directed by Satyajit Ray
Satyajit Ray
Satyajit Ray was an Indian Bengali filmmaker. He is regarded as one of the greatest auteurs of 20th century cinema. Ray was born in the city of Kolkata into a Bengali family prominent in the world of arts and literature...
.
Personal life and education
Bandopadhyay was born in Kalyani, Muratipur village (Under Kanchapara Gram Panchayet), in the district of NadiaNadia District
Nadia district is a district of the state of West Bengal, in the north east of India. It borders with Bangladesh to the east, North 24 Parganas and Hooghly districts to the south, Bardhaman district to the west, and Murshidabad district to the north....
in undivided 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...
, British India at his maternal uncle's house in a Hindu
Hindu
Hindu refers to an identity associated with the philosophical, religious and cultural systems that are indigenous to the Indian subcontinent. As used in the Constitution of India, the word "Hindu" is also attributed to all persons professing any Indian religion...
Brahmin
Brahmin
Brahmin Brahman, Brahma and Brahmin.Brahman, Brahmin and Brahma have different meanings. Brahman refers to the Supreme Self...
family. His father, Mahananda Bandyopadhyay, was a Sanskrit
Sanskrit
Sanskrit , is a historical Indo-Aryan language and the primary liturgical language of Hinduism, Jainism and Buddhism.Buddhism: besides Pali, see Buddhist Hybrid Sanskrit Today, it is listed as one of the 22 scheduled languages of India and is an official language of the state of Uttarakhand...
scholar and a kathak, a person who tells stories for a living.
His home was near Gopalnagar police station in Bongaon, North Twenty Four Parganas (location 23'41+88'46). He studied in Bongaon High School, one of the oldest institutions in Brithish controlled India. Incidentally, he also taught at this school at the beginning of his working life. His Pather Panchali, Adarsha Hindu Hotel, Ichhamati, Bipiner Sansar and a few others were all set in Bongaon. Ichhamati reflects on the life of rural society on the banks of river Ichhamati in undivided southern Bengal. The story of indigo planters and plantation life, rural communities and the divers castes and their societal roles in early last century of Bengal have been captured in vivid detail. Relationships have been sensitively portrayed in their subtlest nuances. Soul stirring descriptions of nature in the smallest details and unselfconscious but poetic portrayal of the flora and fauna on the banks of Ichhamati are the added features of this magnificent creation. There are a lot of dialogues which bring up deep spiritual thought, advaita vedanta
Advaita Vedanta
Advaita Vedanta is considered to be the most influential and most dominant sub-school of the Vedānta school of Hindu philosophy. Other major sub-schools of Vedānta are Dvaita and ; while the minor ones include Suddhadvaita, Dvaitadvaita and Achintya Bhedabheda...
in particular. Peppered with a few characters who show the hypocrisy of the brahminical order, then prevalent, which dictated the social and religious life of rural Bengal under a deeply stratified caste system, the novel is an invaluable and otherwise inadequately documented time capsule.
His early days were spent in abject poverty. Nevertheless, he fought his way to complete his undergraduate degree in History, at the Surendranath College
Surendranath College
Surendranath College is an undergraduate college affiliated to the University of Calcutta, in Kolkata, India. It was founded in 1884 by the nationalist leader Surendranath Banerjea....
, 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...
; although he could not afford to enroll for the postgraduate course at the University of Calcutta
University of Calcutta
The University of Calcutta is a public university located in the city of Kolkata , India, founded on 24 January 1857...
. The economic burden of his family rested squarely on his shoulders.
He married Gouri Devi, but she died at childbirth after only a year of their marriage. The tragic theme of her death and his loneliness is a recurrent motif in his early writings.
At 46, Bibhutibhushan married Rama Chattopadhyay. Their only son, Taradas, was born in 1947. and Taradas was died in 2010.
Career
Bandopadhyay, before becoming a writer, took up various jobs to make ends meet. He taught school, became a secretary, managed an estate. Finally, in 1921 he published his first short story, "Upekshita," in Probashi, one of the leading literary magazines of Bengal at that time. However, it was not until 1928, when his first novel, Pather Panchali (also known in English as Song of the Little Road), was published, that Bibhutibhushan got critical attention. With Pather Panchali Bibhutibhushan became, instantly, a prominent name in Bengali literature.Bandopadhyay had a stout constitution and walked miles in the woods every day. He usually took his notebook with him and loved to write surrounded by the wilderness.
Critical acclaim
Pather Panchali is considered to be Bibhutibhushan's masterpiece. It has been included in the CBSE syllabus for students choosing to study BengaliBengali 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...
. He has 16 novels and over two hundred short stories to his credit.
Humayun Azad
Humayun Azad
Humayun Azad was a prolific Bangladeshi author and scholar. He wrote more than seventy titles...
opined that the novel is superior to its cinematic rendition. This is not necessarily a commonly held view in the West, as the Apu Trilogy
Apu trilogy
The Apu Trilogy is a trilogy consisting of three Bengali films directed by Satyajit Ray: Pather Panchali , Aparajito and Apur Sansar . The films — completed 1955-1959 — were based on two Bengali novels written by Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay: Pather Panchali and Aparajito...
is considered to be among the finest films in the history of cinema, and the unavailability of a complete translation of Pather Panchali into English makes it an issue hard for the English-speaking audience to resolve: the available translation (by T. W. Clark and Tarapada Mukherji) is a truncated version of the novel. However, in the Bengali-speaking world, the stature of the novel is not seriously in doubt. Martin Seymour-Smith, in his Guide to Modern World Literature (1973), calls Bandopadhyay (he uses the form Banerji) "perhaps the best of all modern Indian novelists" and says "probably nothing in twentieth-century Indian literature, in prose or poetry, comes to the level of Pather Panchali".
Apart from the translation of the truncated text by T. W. Clark and Tarapada Mukherji, Amit Chaudhuri has translated a few excerpts for inclusion in the anthology The Picador Book of Modern Indian Literature. In his introduction to these excerpts, Chaudhuri writes: "Unique for its tenderness and poetry ... Pather Panchali rejects both nineteenth-century realism and social realism (the social milieu described in it would have logically lent itself to the latter) for an enquiry into perception and memory."
The complete text of Aparajito, the sequel to Pather Panchali, has been translated into English by Gopa Majumdar.
Bibhutibhushan's works are mostly concerned with the lives of people from rural Bengal. His writings come alive with vibrant and normal characters from the countryside.
Death
Bandopadhyay died on 1 November 1950, of a heart attack while staying at GhatshilaGhatshila
Ghatshila is a census town in Purbi Singhbhum district in the state of Jharkhand, India. The city is located on the bank of the Subarnarekha River, and is situated in a forested area. It contains a station on the main line of the South Eastern Railway...
.
Partial short story collections
- MeghaMallar
- Mauriphool
- Jatrabadol
- "Jonmo o mrittu"
- "Kinnardal"
- "Benigir fulbari"
- "Nabagata"
- "Talnabami"
Films based on his works
- Pather Panchali (1955)
- AparajitoAparajitoAparajito is a 1956 Bengali film directed by Satyajit Ray, and is the second part of The Apu Trilogy. It is adapted from the last one-fifth of Bibhutibhushan Bannerjee's novel Pather Panchali and the first one-third of its sequel Aparajito. It focuses on the life of Apu from childhood to college...
(1956) - Apur SansarApur SansarApur Sansar , also known as The World of Apu, is a Bengali film directed by Satyajit Ray. It is the third part of The Apu Trilogy, about the childhood and early adulthood of a young Bengali named Apu in the early twentieth century Indian subcontinent...
(1959) - Baksa Badal(1970)
- Nishipadma(1970)
- Amar PremAmar PremAmar Prem is a 1971 Hindi film directed by Shakti Samanta, based on a story by Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay and starring Sharmila Tagore, Rajesh Khanna, Vinod Mehra and Madan Puri....
(1971) - Nimantran(1971)
- Ashani SanketAshani SanketDistant Thunder is a 1973 Bengali film by the renowned Indian director Satyajit Ray, based on the novel by the same name by Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay....
(1973) - Fuleswari(1974)
- AloAlo (film)Alo is a 2003 Bengali film directed by Tarun Majumder and starring Rituparna Sengupta. The story is based on a short story by Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay. It was shown in Bengal cinemas for eight months and broke several box office records....
(2003)
See also
- Balai Chand Mukhopadhyay
- Ashapoorna DeviAshapoorna DeviAshapoorna Devi , also Ashapurna Debi or Asha Purna Devi, is a prominent Bengali novelist and poet. She was born in 8 January 1909. She has been widely honoured with a number of prizes and awards...
- Manik BandopadhyayManik BandopadhyayManik Bandopadhyay ; ; was an Indian Bengali novelist and is considered one of the leading lights of modern Bangla fiction. During a short lifespan of forty-eight years, plagued simultaneously by illness and financial crisis, he produced 36 novels and 177 short-stories...
- Bimal MitraBimal MitraBimal Mitra was a prominent Bengali writer who wrote several novels.Bimal Mitra was equally adept in writing in Bengali as well as in Hindi, and has more than one hundred novels and short stories to his credit...
- Sukumar Roy