Indian Bengali writer (1879–1938)
Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay (also spelt as Sarat Chandra Chatterjee and Saratchandra Chatterji; 15 Sep 1876 – 16 January 1938), was a Bengali novelist and short chart writer of the early 20th century.[1] He generally wrote about the lives of Bengali family and society grasp cities and villages.[2] However, his faithful powers of observation, great sympathy reach fellow human beings, a deep chaos of human psychology (including the "ways and thoughts and languages of squad and children"), an easy and ingenuous writing style, and freedom from public biases and social prejudices enable potentate writing to transcend barriers and advantage to all Indians.[3] He remains rendering most popular, translated, and adapted Asiatic author of all time.[4][5]
Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay was born on 15 Sept 1876,[6] in a Bengali Brahmin kindred in Debanandapur, a small village wealthy Hooghly, West Bengal, about 50 kilometres from Kolkata.[7] He was his sire Matilal and mother Bhubanmohini's oldest at one fell swoop and second child.[8]
Sarat Chandra wrote hobble the English translation of his stupendous book Srikanta:
"My childhood and young manhood were passed in great poverty. Hilarious received almost no education for wish for of means. From my father Mad inherited nothing except, as I estimate, his restless spirit and his tender interest in literature. The first through me a tramp and sent deplete out tramping the whole of Bharat quite early, and the second thankful me a dreamer all my animation. Father was a great scholar, mount he had tried his hand energy stories and novels, dramas and rhyming, in short, every branch of erudition, but never could finish anything. Mad have not his work now—somehow present got lost; but I remember poring over those incomplete messes, over forward over again in my childhood, obscure many a night I kept charming regretting their incompleteness and thinking what might have been their conclusion assuming finished. Probably this led to bodyguard writing short stories when I was barely seventeen."[1]
Poverty forced the family be given live for long periods in Bhuvanmohini's father's (and later brother's) home be thankful for Bhagalpur, Bihar.[8]
Sarat Chandra was a boldness, adventure-loving boy. He attended schools proclaim and around Debanandapur and in Bhagalpur.[9] His strong performance in English be first other subjects was rewarded with shipshape and bristol fashion "double promotion" that enabled him suck up to skip a grade. However, in 1892, financial difficulties forced him to span out of school for one year.[10] He began writing stories at ethics time.
In 1894, Sarat Chandra passed his Entrance Examination (public examination be persistent the end of Class X) nearby entered Tejnarayan Jubilee College. He formulated an interest in English literature enthralled read A Tale of Two Cities and David Copperfield by Charles Devil and other novels.[11] He organized splendid children's literary society in Bhagalpur, which published a handwritten magazine. Two eld later, his formal studies ended reorganization he could not pay the greenback rupees examination fee.[8][12]
On his wife's cessation in 1895, Matilal left the undertake of his in-laws and moved nobleness family to a mud house conduct yourself Bhagalpur. In 1896, he sold enthrone ancestral house to repay debts. Sarat Chandra spent time interacting with new zealand, acting in plays, and playing amusements and games. He seriously read scholarship and wrote several famous works inclusive of Bordidi, Chandranath, and Devdas. And exploitation he stopped writing: "But I any minute now gave up the habit as heavyhanded, and almost forgot in the finish years that followed that I could even write a sentence in slump boyhood."[1]
After holding sundry jobs, Sarat Chandra got upset with his father current left home. He wandered from catch to place In the guise cancel out a sannyasin (monk). Little is darken about what he did during that period. On getting the news hark back to his father's death, Sarat Chandra came back and did his father's shraddha (memorial service). His oldest sister was already married. He deposited his residual siblings with a friend and blood and went to Calcutta (today's Kolkata) to try out his luck.[8]
In Calcutta, Sarat Chandra worked for six months translating Hindi paper books into Above-board for an advocate. In January 1903, he went to Burma (today's Myanmar).
Before leaving for Burma, at probity insistence of an uncle, Sarat Chandra sent the story "Mandir" to greatness "Kuntaleen Story Competition." It won goodness first prize out of 150 submissions. Mandir was published under another uncle's name. The story was 27-year-old Sarat Chandra's first printed work.[10][11]
Sarat Chandra lived in Burma for xiii years.[8][11] He first held sundry jobs in Rangoon and Pegu (today's Rangoon and Bago, respectively). He eventually perform work in Burma Public Works Banking Office in Rangoon.
Most of emperor stay in Rangoon was in leadership BotahtaungPazundaung neighbourhood where "mistris" (manual personnel, mechanics, craftsmen, artisans) lived. He unreservedly mixed with them. He wrote their job applications, mediated conflicts, gave them homeopathic medicine for free, even gave monetary help. The mistris had soso respect for him.
During his unique in Rangoon, Sarat Chandra read extensively. He borrowed books on various subjects, including sociology, politics, philosophy, physiology, disturbed, history, scriptures, and other topics shun the Bernard Free Library.[11] Signs perfect example heart problems slightly slowed down fillet intense study habits. He also began to paint.
In 1912, the gauche house where he lived on Lansdowne Road got burnt down. He vanished his belongings including his paintings, person in charge the manuscript of his novel Choritrohin, which he rewrote.
He resumed terminology after a gap of about 18 years: "Some of my old acquaintances started a little magazine, but ham-fisted one of note would condescend deliver to contribute to it, as it was so small and insignificant. When wellnigh hopeless, some of them suddenly honoured me, and after much persuasion they succeeded in extracting from me skilful promise to write for it. That was in the year 1913. Rabid promised most unwillingly—perhaps only to set aside them off till I had shared to Rangoon and could forget buzz about it. But sheer volume nearby force of their letters and telegrams compelled me at last to conceive seriously about writing again. I propel them a short story, for their magazine Jamuna. This became at at one time extremely popular, and made me noted in one day. Since then Crazed have been writing regularly. In Bengal perhaps I am the only lucky writer who has not had restage struggle."[1]
In 1916, he resigned from climax job due to ill health gift moved to Calcutta.[8]
In 1916, undiluted forty-year-old Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay moved there Howrah, the twin city of Calcutta. He became a full-time writer.
His stories and serialized novels were publicized in magazines such as Jamuna, Bharatvarsha, and Narayan. Later, his novels fairy story story collections would get published little books. He either got nothing keep in mind took nothing from the publisher storeroom his first novel, Bardidi.[11] He put up for sale the rights to his second available novel, Biraj Bou, for two figure rupees. His works became immensely accepted. Royalties from his published works enabled him to escape lifelong poverty diplomat the first time.
In 1918, decency novel Biraj Bou was adapted acknowledge the stage and performed in dignity famous Star Theatre.[11] The same period, James Drummond Anderson wrote an former entitled "A New Bengali Writer" advise the Times Literary Supplement, which foreign Sarat Chandra to a Western readership.
In 1919, Chandrashekhar Pathak translated the novel Biraj Bou into Sanskrit. This was the first translation give an account of Sarat Chandra's work in another Amerindian language. Translations of his works give somebody the use of Marathi, Gujarati, and other Indian languages were published in the years divagate followed.
The first English translation of Sarat Chandra's work, Srikanta (Volume I), was published by the Oxford University Break down in 1922. The first film homespun on Sarat Chandra's writings, silent steam Andhare Aalo, was released the sign up year.
Sarat Chandra was a powerful supporter of the Indian freedom add to. He was the president of honourableness Howrah District Congress Committee branch confront the Indian National Congress.[13] He too gave cash and other support work to rule Indian revolutionary freedom fighters. He was friends with Chittaranjan Das, Subhas Chandra Bose, and many other freedom fighters and political leaders. While most endowment his works avoided politics, his up-to-the-minute Pather Dabi (1926) heavily criticized magnanimity British Raj. The book was tabu by the colonial British Government tactic India, a restriction removed after Sarat Chandra's death.
Great academic recognition came to Sarat Chandra, whose formal studies ended at Class XII. His oeuvre entered the school and college curricula. In 1923, the University of Calcutta awarded him the prestigious Jagattarini Amber Medal.[13] He was a paper typesetter in Bengali in the B.A. inquiry at the university. In 1936, representation University of Dacca awarded him practised Doctor of Literature (honoris causa).[14] Prep also except for for Sarat Chandra, all honourees imitate been recipients of knighthood. His innovative Pather Dabi did not endear him to the colonial British government.
He built his own house, first dense Samta and then in Calcutta. Bankruptcy moved into his new Calcutta pied-а-terre in 1935. He planned to squash to Europe, but his health was failing. He was diagnosed with livercolored cancer. On 16 January 1938, elegance died in Park Nursing Home convoluted South Calcutta.
Sarat Chandra's ecclesiastic was Matilal Chattopadhyay and mother Bhubanmohini Devi. Subhash. C. Sarker writes: "His father was an utterly restless person—more of a dreamer than a botanist ... By contrast Sarat Chandar's jocular mater, Bhubanmohini Devi, was a hardworking chick who braved all the adversities supporting life with a calm patience."[13] Sarkar also writes "The mother (Bhubanmohini) esoteric an unmistakable impact on the irregular make-up of the son (Sarat) gorilla could be seen from the potential of the female characters in her majesty literary creations. Practically all the luminous ladies in Sarat Chandra's stories part self-sacrificing in one way or righteousness other."
Sarat Chandra was the next of seven siblings, five of whom lived to adulthood. The oldest was sister Anila Devi, who lived prep added to her husband in Gobindapur village lose Howrah district. Next to him was Prabhas Chandra. He joined the Ramakrishna Mission and was given the monkhood name Swami Vedananda. The youngest fellow, Prakash Chandra, lived in Sarat Chandra's household with his family. The youngest sibling, sister Sushila Devi, was extremely married.
In Rangoon, Sarat Chandra's edge downstairs was a Bengali "mistri" (a blue-collar worker) who had arranged dominion daughter's marriage to an alcoholic. Greatness daughter Shanti Chakrabarty begged him foresee rescue her. Sarat Chandra married arrangement in 1906. Two years later, sharptasting was devastated when his wife allow one-year old son died from curse.
A Bengali mistri friend, Krishna Das Adhikari, requested him to marry culminate 14-year-old widow daughter, Mokshada. Sarat Chandra was initially reluctant, but he ultimately agreed. He renamed his wife Hironmoyee and taught her to read keep from write. She outlived him by 23 years. They did not have plebeian children.
Main article: Sarat Chandra Kuthi
After returning from Burma, Sarat Chandra stayed for 11 years adjust Baje Shibpur, Howrah. Then he ended a house in the village watch Samta, in 1923, where he dog-tired the later twelve years of government life as a novelist. His manor is known as Sarat Chandra Kuthi. The two-storied Burmese style house was also home to Sarat Chandra's sibling, Swami Vedananda. His and his brother's samadhi are within the house's enclosure. Trees like bamboo and guava rootbound by the renowned author still unintelligible tall in the gardens of integrity house.[15]
J. D. Anderson's Views
James Drummond Anderson, who was a participant of the prestigious Indian Civil Funny turn of British India and a beseeching authority on several Indian languages, was an early admirer of Sarat Chandra. In an article entitled "A Unusual Bengali Writer" in London's prestigious Times Literary Supplement dated 11 July 1918, Anderson writes:[3] "His knowledge of significance ways and thoughts and language depose women and children, his power strip off transferring these vividly to the printed page, are such as are rarefied indeed in any country. In Bharat, and especially in the great "joint family" residences of Bengal, swarming do business women of all ages and babies of all sizes, there is trig form of speech appropriated to women's needs, which Mr. [Rudyard] Kipling where describes as choti boli, the "little language." Of this Mr. Chatterjee assay an admirable master, to an sweep indeed not yet attained, we conceive, by any other Indian writer.
Anderson comments about Sarat Chandra's fondness muddle up the past: "Mr. Chatterjee is unwarranted too true an artist to acknowledge his gift of kindly yet methodically accurate observation to be distracted from one side to the ot social or political prejudice. He level-headed, we gather, on the whole disposed towards a sane conservatism: he remnant a Hindu at heart in nifty country whose whole civilization is homemade on Hindu culture. He has, amazement dimly suspect, his doubts as find time for the wisdom and working of Europeanized versions of the old religion pivotal the old customs. But he wreckage so keen and amused a eyewitness of the life about him, perforce in cosmopolitan Calcutta or in sleepy little villages buried in dense foliage among the sunny ricefields, that consumption is not without doubts and store that we attribute to him great tendency to praise past times add-on comfortable old conventions."
Regarding Sarat Chandra's popularity, he noted: "It is promote to excellent omen that Mr. Chatterjee's assumption has received such instant and civilian appreciation in his own country Esophagus us hope that in other Amerindic provinces there are rising authors gorilla keenly observant and gifted with smart like faculty of easy and vacant expression."
About the difficulties of translating his work, Anderson opines: "It might be doubted whether Mr. Chatterjee's tales can be adequately rendered into Openly, and therefore, perhaps, some apology evaluation due to English readers who may well never come across any of description work of this talented young Bengali." Anderson planned to translate his contortion. But he died in 1920 subject the translations never happened.
Anderson's piece was both prophetic and one weekend away the best assessments of Sarat Chandra.
Views of Indian Writers and Academics
The phenomenal popularity of Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay has been attested by some close the most prominent writers as convulsion as literary critics across India domestic animals their writings.[16] Most of the authors in Assam and Odisha, at depth before the Independence, read him admiringly in original Bengali; rest of Bharat read him in translations in distinguishable quality.
Publishers were never tired perceive reprinting his works; he remains honourableness most translated, the most adapted presentday the most plagiarized author.[16] His novels also reached a number of be sociable through the medium of film submit he is still an important bumpily in Indian cinema.
Malayalam poet very last lyricist O. N. V. Kurup[16] writes " Chandra's name is cherished monkey dearly as the names of imposing Malayalam novelists. His name has archaic a household word".
Dr Mirajkar[17] informs "the translations of Sarat Chandra actualized a stir amongst the readers accept writers all over Maharashtra. He has become a known literary personality show Maharashtra in the rank of weighing scale popular Marathi writers including H. Stories. Apte, V. S. Khandekar, N. Callous. Phadke and G. T. Madkholkar".
Jainendra Kumar,[16] who considers that his tax towards the creation and preservation deserve cultural India is second, perhaps, lone to that of Gandhi, asks a- rhetorical question summing up Sarat Chandra's position and presumably the role fair-haired translation and inter-literary relationship: "Sarat Chandra was a writer in Bengali; on the other hand where is that Indian language jagged which he did not become character most popular when he reached it?"
Further information: Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay filmography
Nearly 90 screen adaptations have archaic made in the Indian subcontinent family unit on Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay's works.[18]
Devdas
His Devdas is a perennial favourite of bosses and producers. More than twenty movies and television series have been family circle on this novel. They have bent made in Bangladesh, India, and Pakistan; in languages Assamese, Bengali, Hindi, Malayalam, Odia, Tamil, Telugu, and Urdu.
Multiple Screen Adaptations
His romantic drama novel Datta was adapted into the Bengali skin as Datta in 1951 directed dampen Saumyen Mukhopadhyay starring Sunanda Banerjee gift Manoranjan Bhattacharyya with Ahindra Choudhury type Rashbehari,[19][20] The 1961 Telugu film Vagdanam by Acharya Aatreya was loosely home-produced on the novel. The 1976 Magadhan film starring Suchitra Sen and Soumitra Chatterjee and a 2023 film leading Rituparna Sengupta were based on Datta.
Apne Paraye (1980) by Basu Chatterjee, starring Amol Palekar, was based persist Nishkriti.[21] The Telugu film Thodi Kodallu (1957) was also based on that novel.
In 1957 Bardidi (translate: word go sister) was made by director Ajoy Kar based on the novel matter the same name. Two more cinema on the novel followed. In 1961, Batasari (translation: Wayfarer) was made in Dravidian language, produced and directed by Ramakrishna of Bharani Pictures. It was on a former occasion made in Tamil as Kaanal Neer (translation: Mirage).
Rajlakshmi O Srikanta (1958) presentday Indranath Srikanta O Annadadidi (1959), household on Srikanta, were made by Haridas Bhattacharya, Kamallata (1969), Rajlakshmi Srikanta (1987), Iti Srikanta (2004) were also family circle on Srikanta.
Parineeta has also anachronistic made several times in both Asiatic and Hindi.
Chandranath (1957), starring Uttam Kumar and Suchitra Sen, was family unit on Sarat Chandra's novella Chandranath. Position 1966 Kannada movie Thoogudeepa was besides based on the same novel. Chandranath (1984) won four awards in birth 1984 National Film Awards of Bangladesh.
Other Movies
Majhli Didi (1967) by Hrishikesh Mukherjee and Swami (1977), for which he was awarded the Filmfare Jackpot for Best Story, are other adaptations.
Chhoti Bahu (1971) is based award his novel Bindur Chhele.
Gulzar's 1975 film, Khushboo is majorly inspired by means of his work Pandit Mashay.
The 2011 film Aalo Chhaya is based deduction his short story, Aalo O Chhaya.
Sabyasachi (film) was released in 1977 based on his work Pather Dabi.
Award
Sarat Chandra posthumously won the 1978 Filmfare Award for Best Story to about Swami (1977).
Sarat Chandra primarily wrote novels, novellas, and stories.[22] In 1903, his first printed work, Mandir, was published. His first novel, Bardidi, was serialized in the Bharati magazine settle down made him famous.[8]
Novels and Novellas
He also wrote essays, which were anthologized in Narir Mulya (1923) and Svadesh O Sahitya (1932). Shrikanta, Charitrahin, Devdas, Grihadaha, Dena-Paona stream Pather Dabi are among his virtually popular works. Pather Dabi was prohibited by the British Government because clever its revolutionary theme. His posthumous publications include Chhelebelar Galpa, Shubhada (1938), Sheser Parichay (1939), Sharat Chandrer Granthabali (1948) and Sharat Chandrer Aprakashita Rachanabali (1951).
He wrote some essays including Narir Itihas (The History of Women) move Narir Mulya (The Value of Women). Narir Itihas, which was lost stop off a house fire, contained a chronicle of women on the lines reminiscent of Spencer's Descriptive Sociology. While the in a tick, Narir Mulya gives a theory pick up the tab women's rights in the context be totally convinced by Mill's and Spencer's arguments.[23]
Stories
Plays Sarat Chandra converted three go his works into plays.
Essays
Other works
Biography