Tarasankar Bandyopadhyay: Exploring Red Soil of Rural Life

His political ideas are reflected in his novels. His themes include communal riots, war, famine, the political implications of economic inequality, the independence movement, social conditions, the conflict of modernism with traditionalism etc. However, there is no sense of doom in Tarasankar's writings. They are a source of motivation and a celebration of human strength in the face of all onslaughts of inscrutable destiny. 

It was he who felt the vastness of the panorama of life but asked curiously in one of his novels "Why life is so small?" He was the real 'Ganadevata' of rural Bengal. He wrote what he saw and felt in his village in Labhpur of Birbhum, which was rich in folklores and myths. His novels belong to the 'Laal Matir Desh', primarily Labhpur of Birbhum. Be it 'Hansuli Banker Upakatha' or 'Dhatridebata', his love for Bengal's red soil is palpable. His creativity was all rooted in his childhood in the village. He was none other than Tarasankar Bandyopadhyay, the chronicler of Bengal village life, who received his Jnanpith Award in 1966 for the masterpiece Ganadevata (People as God) which was written in 1942. This novel which was filmed by Tarun Majumdar in 1978 depicted the poverty, ignorance and primitive instincts of the village people of Bengal. None with the exception of Bibhutibhusan Bandyopadhyay who wrote Pather Panchali and Munshi Premchand who wrote Godan can claim this fidelity to facts of real life in the portrayal of Indian rural life. Tarasankar Bandyopadhyay will forever be loved for his ability to work with a vast panorama of life. He wrote what he believed and observed without being biased. He made a mark by breaking away from the poetic tradition in novels and instead adding an element of romance to human relationships.

Tarasankar who was born on July 23 lived for 73 years till his death on September 14, 1971. He was indeed a prolific writer and in his life span wrote 65 novels , 53 story books , 12 plays, four essay books, four autobiographies and two travel stories. He also composed several songs. He was the second writer to receive the Jnanpith Award, the highest civilian honour in literature, given by Government of India. He received it in the year 1966 for his Bengali work, Ganadevta. He has also received Rabindra Puraskar (1955), Sahitya Akademi Award (1956), the Padma Shri in 1962 and the Padma Bhushan in 1969. Tarasankar also received the Sharat Smriti Puraskar and the Jagattarini Gold Medal from the Calcutta University.

He passed the Matriculation examination (1916) from Labhpur and took admission at St Xavier's College, Calcutta. However, he soon left college to join the Non-cooperation Movement in 1920. He was imprisoned for one year in 1930 for his political activities. He took active part in anti-fascist movements and was a member of the West Bengal Bidhan Sabha for eight years and the Rajya Sabha for six years. He had also worked for some time in Kanpur. Tarasankar is no longer a mere Bengali novelist as his novels have acquired a mass appeal in the Indian subcontinent owing to their stark and faithful depiction of rural Indian life.

Tarasankar was associated with a number of literary organisations and became Vice President (1956) and President (1970) of the Bangiya Sahitya Parishad. He led the Indian delegation of writers at the Asian Writers' Conference in Tashkent in 1957. He was President of the Prabasi Banga Sahitya Sammelan of Kanpur (in 1944) and Kolkata (in 1947). The ancestral home of Tarasankar Bandyopadhyay in Labhpur, Birbhum is called 'Dhatridebata,' after one of his novels. The building is about 250 years old and was in a ramshackle condition. With each passing day, the condition of the dilapidated house which had kept memories of Tarasankar alive was slowly worsening. Many parts of the historic building were collapsing. The West Bengal Government finally came up with an initiative of restoring 'Dhatridebata' on the occasion of his 121st birth anniversary.

Tarasankar wrote in a variety of genres but was primarily a novelist. His poetry collection was published with the name 'Tripatra' (1926). But later on, he concentrated mostly on novels, drama and short story collections. His best novels include – Panchagram, Hansuli Banker Upakatha, Aranyabahni, Yogobhrashta, Raikamal, Chhotoder Sandipan Pathshala, Shakkar Bai, Kishkindhya Kando and Shuksari Katha (all of these before writing his masterpiece Ganadevata). His short story collection includes – Chhalanamoyee, Tarasankarer Shrestha Golpo, Tarasankar Bandyopadhyayer Priyo Golpo, Swa-Nirbachito Golpo and Gobin Singher Ghora.

His political ideas are reflected in his novels. His themes include communal riots, war, famine, the political implications of economic inequality, the independence movement, social conditions, the conflict of modernism with traditionalism etc. Out of 131 books the prominent novels are Chaitali Ghurni (1931), Jalsa Ghar (1938), Dhatri Devata (1939), Kalindi (1940), Kavi (1944), Gana Devata (1943), Panchagram (1944), Hansuli Banker Upakatha (1947), Arogya Niketan (1953), Radha (1956), to name only a few. Some popular movies were based on his novels, among them mention may be made of Dui Purus, Kalindi, Arogya Niketan, Jalsa Ghar and of course Ganadevata. He published three volumes of short stories. His famous short stories include 'Rasakali', 'Bedeni' and 'Dak Harkara'. He was also an artist and had produced some fine paintings in his later years.

Tarasankar Bandyopadhyay has served in the Rajya Sabha between 1960 and 1966. He was born at Labhpur, Birbhum District, West Bengal to Haridas Bandyopadhyay and Prabhabati Debi. His novels are rich in material and potentials. His books are yet to be translated into English inorder to reach out to the global readership. Enakshi Chatterjee has translated Tarasankar's Arogyaniketan but we are waiting for more such translations. Grassroots Publisher from Bhubaneswar translated the stories of Tarasankar. Soumya Ghosh translated Tarasankar's 'Tasher Ghar' as House of Cards. Prof Krishna Sen of Calcutta University encouraged research on Tarasankar's 'selected stories'. There is no sense of doom in Tarasankar's writings. They are a source of motivation and a celebration of human strength in the face of all onslaughts of inscrutable destiny. Now we should take care of his vast creative output and enable his work to reach the global arena through translation in various languages. Gabriel Garcia Marquez had once said: "There is always something left to love". In Tarashankar's novels we always find some such elements that inspire us to love life small or great.

Dr. Ratan Bhattacharjee

The writer is an associate professor and the head of the postgraduate department of English at Dum Dum Motijheel College, Kolkata. He is also a trilingual poet. Dr Bhattacharjee may be reached at profratanbhattacharjee@gmail.com

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