Rebati
Encyclopedia
Rebati the famous Oriya
short story by Fakir Mohan Senapati
, is considered as the first Oriya
modern short story,
Fakir Mohan Senapati
(1843–1918), the prime figure of modern Oriya Fiction ,was considered the Vyasakabi or founder poet of Oriya language. Fakir Mohan
was born and brought up in the coastal town of Balasore and known primarily as the father of modern Oriya prose fiction.He was a pioneer to introduce the Social Realism in literature at least 25 years before British Rule and much before the October Revolution
of Russia
.He was also one of the leading writers to attack the British Rule through his poignant satirical remarks.
During nineteenth Century beginning Orissa
suffered decisive defeats at the hands of the Bengalis
, who were the supporter of British Rule and the socio-economic structure of orissa was declined to make the state a dark region , Madhusdan Das (popularly known as Madhu Babu in Orissa ) , Fakir Mohan
, Radhanath Ray
and some of the personalities who fought against the attempts of the Bengalis to marginalize even replace the Oriya language,culture and even History by Bengalis.
's “Rebati” became an icon and her story an allegory for female education and emancipation. The story is too easily celebrated as an example of Fakirmohan’s reformist zeal .
, the cultural scenario of Orissa has been changed a lot . In 1871 for the first time a school for Hindu girls was set up at Cuttack in the house of Abhinash Chandra Chattopadhyaya. Even after the school ran for 10 years at Cuttack city, only four Hindu girls could be enrolled.The role of Fakir Mohan Senapati
,Sudhal Dev, the Raja of Bamanda and T.E Ravenshaw,the then Commissioner of Cuttack
(Orissa) were significant . Among the women personalities, the efforts of Reba Roy and Rani of Khallikote in spreading female education in the beginning of the 20th century was indeed heartening. The most laudable effort was the Utkal Mahila Conference held in Berhampur
in 1924 . Gandhiji
’s visit to Orissa
for the first time in 1921 obviously had its effect. Smt Rasamani Devi, Salaral Devi, Kuntala Kumari Sabat, Sarojini Chowdhury took pioneering interest in establishing this Participation of many Oriya women in the historic Karachi Congress session in 1931 paved the way for greater role in national movement. The spread of the Civil disobedience movement in Orissa was mostly due to the All Orissa Women's Council which had members from different parts of the state with Kuntala Kumari as its President. They declared the 5 rights of women -over their body, over the possessions of their husbands, over their own husband and children and over their religion. Women like Rama Devi, Malati Devi, Annapurna Devi,Godavari Devi worked for the socio economic upliftment of the Oriya women .especially of the rural women. .After the independence women such as Shubhadra Mahtab, Malati Devi, Rama Devi, Sarala Devi, Satyavati Devi continued to work for social transformation .In later period ,the entry of Nandini Satpathy
who hailed from a political background and had been a student activist and who rose to be the Chief Minister of the State turned the scenario total different from that of 1898 , when Fakir Mohan had written the story “Rebati”.
In literary field, the women participation was not remarkable up to seventies of last Century.Though .Kuntala Kumari Sabat,Bidyut Prabha devi, Binapani Mohanty and Nandini Satpathy were few names can be uttered,After Seventies , some female writers like Sarojini Sahoo
, Jayanti Ratha,Susmita Bagchi.Yashodhara Mishra, Hiranmayee Mishra, Chirashree IndraSingh Supriya Panda, Gayatri Saraf., Mamata Chowdhry are few fiction writers emerged , among whom Sarojini Sahoo
played a significant role for her feministic and sexuality approach in fiction.
, wrote a story based on the protagonist character “Rebati” . and it made a new tradition .Since then hundreds of stories were written on the women’s agony ,where “Rebati” represents the women’s fate in changing scenario of time .Asit Kumar Mohanty, later edited all the stories , along with both Fakir Mohan and Jagadish’s “Rebati” in two of his collections under the same title.
Oriya language
Oriya , officially Odia from November, 2011, is an Indian language, belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European language family. It is mainly spoken in the Indian states of Orissa and West Bengal...
short story by Fakir Mohan Senapati
Fakir Mohan Senapati
Fakir Mohan Senapati born on January 13, 1843, at Mallikashpur in Balasore, played a leading role in establishing the distinct identity of Oriya, a language mainly spoken in the Indian state of Orissa...
, is considered as the first Oriya
Oriya language
Oriya , officially Odia from November, 2011, is an Indian language, belonging to the Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European language family. It is mainly spoken in the Indian states of Orissa and West Bengal...
modern short story,
Fakir Mohan Senapati
Fakir Mohan Senapati
Fakir Mohan Senapati born on January 13, 1843, at Mallikashpur in Balasore, played a leading role in establishing the distinct identity of Oriya, a language mainly spoken in the Indian state of Orissa...
(1843–1918), the prime figure of modern Oriya Fiction ,was considered the Vyasakabi or founder poet of Oriya language. Fakir Mohan
Fakir Mohan Senapati
Fakir Mohan Senapati born on January 13, 1843, at Mallikashpur in Balasore, played a leading role in establishing the distinct identity of Oriya, a language mainly spoken in the Indian state of Orissa...
was born and brought up in the coastal town of Balasore and known primarily as the father of modern Oriya prose fiction.He was a pioneer to introduce the Social Realism in literature at least 25 years before British Rule and much before the October Revolution
October Revolution
The October Revolution , also known as the Great October Socialist Revolution , Red October, the October Uprising or the Bolshevik Revolution, was a political revolution and a part of the Russian Revolution of 1917...
of Russia
Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic
The Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic , commonly referred to as Soviet Russia, Bolshevik Russia, or simply Russia, was the largest, most populous and economically developed republic in the former Soviet Union....
.He was also one of the leading writers to attack the British Rule through his poignant satirical remarks.
During nineteenth Century beginning Orissa
Orissa
Orissa , officially Odisha since Nov 2011, is a state of India, located on the east coast of India, by the Bay of Bengal. It is the modern name of the ancient nation of Kalinga, which was invaded by the Maurya Emperor Ashoka in 261 BC. The modern state of Orissa was established on 1 April...
suffered decisive defeats at the hands of the Bengalis
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...
, who were the supporter of British Rule and the socio-economic structure of orissa was declined to make the state a dark region , Madhusdan Das (popularly known as Madhu Babu in Orissa ) , Fakir Mohan
Fakir Mohan Senapati
Fakir Mohan Senapati born on January 13, 1843, at Mallikashpur in Balasore, played a leading role in establishing the distinct identity of Oriya, a language mainly spoken in the Indian state of Orissa...
, Radhanath Ray
Kabibar Radhanath Ray
Radhanath Ray is the principal architect of the era of initial modernity in Oriya poetry during the later part of nineteenth century and is honoured in Oriya literature with the title “Kabibara”...
and some of the personalities who fought against the attempts of the Bengalis to marginalize even replace the Oriya language,culture and even History by Bengalis.
“Rebati” :The Theme
Rebati is the story of a young innocent girl whose desire for education is placed in the context of a conservative society in a backward Orissa village, which is hit by the killer epidemic cholera. The story itself also opens a third dimension , when it deals with the silent love relation between Rebati & a school teacher . By displaying a forbidden desire for learning, Rebati , the female protagonist of the story , seems to invite misfortune on herself and her community. Fakir MohanFakir Mohan Senapati
Fakir Mohan Senapati born on January 13, 1843, at Mallikashpur in Balasore, played a leading role in establishing the distinct identity of Oriya, a language mainly spoken in the Indian state of Orissa...
's “Rebati” became an icon and her story an allegory for female education and emancipation. The story is too easily celebrated as an example of Fakirmohan’s reformist zeal .
Role of “Rebati” in the development of feminism
From Rebati to Sarojini SahooSarojini Sahoo
Sarojini Sahoo is an Orissa Sahitya Academy Award winner Indian feminist writer, a columnist in The New Indian Express and associate editor of Chennai based English magazine Indian AGE, who has been enlisted among 25 Exceptional Women of India by ‘Kindle’ English magazine of Kolkata.Born in the...
, the cultural scenario of Orissa has been changed a lot . In 1871 for the first time a school for Hindu girls was set up at Cuttack in the house of Abhinash Chandra Chattopadhyaya. Even after the school ran for 10 years at Cuttack city, only four Hindu girls could be enrolled.The role of Fakir Mohan Senapati
Fakir Mohan Senapati
Fakir Mohan Senapati born on January 13, 1843, at Mallikashpur in Balasore, played a leading role in establishing the distinct identity of Oriya, a language mainly spoken in the Indian state of Orissa...
,Sudhal Dev, the Raja of Bamanda and T.E Ravenshaw,the then Commissioner of Cuttack
Cuttack
Cuttack is the former capital of the state of Orissa, India. It is the headquarters of Cuttack district and is located about 20 km to the north east of Bhubaneswar, the capital of Orissa. The name of the city is an anglicised form of Kataka that literally means The Fort, a reference to the...
(Orissa) were significant . Among the women personalities, the efforts of Reba Roy and Rani of Khallikote in spreading female education in the beginning of the 20th century was indeed heartening. The most laudable effort was the Utkal Mahila Conference held in Berhampur
Berhampur
Brahmapur , nicknamed "The Silk City", is a city located in the eastern coastline of Ganjam district of the Indian state of Orissa, about south to state capital, Bhubaneswar.It is also dubbed as "The Dance City" of Orissa after Prince Dance Group and Harihar Das made the state famous in India's...
in 1924 . Gandhiji
Mahatma Gandhi
Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi , pronounced . 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948) was the pre-eminent political and ideological leader of India during the Indian independence movement...
’s visit to Orissa
Orissa
Orissa , officially Odisha since Nov 2011, is a state of India, located on the east coast of India, by the Bay of Bengal. It is the modern name of the ancient nation of Kalinga, which was invaded by the Maurya Emperor Ashoka in 261 BC. The modern state of Orissa was established on 1 April...
for the first time in 1921 obviously had its effect. Smt Rasamani Devi, Salaral Devi, Kuntala Kumari Sabat, Sarojini Chowdhury took pioneering interest in establishing this Participation of many Oriya women in the historic Karachi Congress session in 1931 paved the way for greater role in national movement. The spread of the Civil disobedience movement in Orissa was mostly due to the All Orissa Women's Council which had members from different parts of the state with Kuntala Kumari as its President. They declared the 5 rights of women -over their body, over the possessions of their husbands, over their own husband and children and over their religion. Women like Rama Devi, Malati Devi, Annapurna Devi,Godavari Devi worked for the socio economic upliftment of the Oriya women .especially of the rural women. .After the independence women such as Shubhadra Mahtab, Malati Devi, Rama Devi, Sarala Devi, Satyavati Devi continued to work for social transformation .In later period ,the entry of Nandini Satpathy
Nandini Satpathy
Nandini Satpathy , was an Indian politician and author, and was the former Chief Minister of Orissa.-Family:...
who hailed from a political background and had been a student activist and who rose to be the Chief Minister of the State turned the scenario total different from that of 1898 , when Fakir Mohan had written the story “Rebati”.
In literary field, the women participation was not remarkable up to seventies of last Century.Though .Kuntala Kumari Sabat,Bidyut Prabha devi, Binapani Mohanty and Nandini Satpathy were few names can be uttered,After Seventies , some female writers like Sarojini Sahoo
Sarojini Sahoo
Sarojini Sahoo is an Orissa Sahitya Academy Award winner Indian feminist writer, a columnist in The New Indian Express and associate editor of Chennai based English magazine Indian AGE, who has been enlisted among 25 Exceptional Women of India by ‘Kindle’ English magazine of Kolkata.Born in the...
, Jayanti Ratha,Susmita Bagchi.Yashodhara Mishra, Hiranmayee Mishra, Chirashree IndraSingh Supriya Panda, Gayatri Saraf., Mamata Chowdhry are few fiction writers emerged , among whom Sarojini Sahoo
Sarojini Sahoo
Sarojini Sahoo is an Orissa Sahitya Academy Award winner Indian feminist writer, a columnist in The New Indian Express and associate editor of Chennai based English magazine Indian AGE, who has been enlisted among 25 Exceptional Women of India by ‘Kindle’ English magazine of Kolkata.Born in the...
played a significant role for her feministic and sexuality approach in fiction.
Role of “Rebati” in the development of Oriya short stories
Not only in women education, women’s writing or feminism , but also the story “Rebati” has influenced a lot to the short story writers of Orissa in later period .In early Eighties of last century Jagadish MohantyJagadish Mohanty
Jagadish Mohanty ' is a renowned Oriya writer, considered as a trendsetter in modern Oriya fiction, has received the prestigious Sarala Award 2003, Orissa Sahitya Akademy Award 1990, Jhankar Award, 1985 Dharitri Award, Prajatantra Award....
, wrote a story based on the protagonist character “Rebati” . and it made a new tradition .Since then hundreds of stories were written on the women’s agony ,where “Rebati” represents the women’s fate in changing scenario of time .Asit Kumar Mohanty, later edited all the stories , along with both Fakir Mohan and Jagadish’s “Rebati” in two of his collections under the same title.