Author: Rinky S

The first-ever Ramayana to be written in a regional language, the Bichitra Ramayana claims a special place in the larger tradition of Ramayana writing as much for its independent retelling practice as for its indigenous, secular distinctiveness. Originally written in Odia in the mid-fifteenth century by Siddheswar Das (later known as Sarala Das), it owes its origins to the ‘Uttarakanda’ of Valmiki Ramayana. Its great departure and divergence from the master text shows that it has an agenda and politics of its own, demonstrated so powerfully that it makes the original invisible. Rich with folklore and legends and composed in…

Taslima Nasrin (born 25 August 1962) is a Bangladeshi-Swedish writer, physician, feminist, secular humanist, and activist. She is known for her writing on women’s oppression and criticism of religion. Some of her books are banned in Bangladesh. She has also been blacklisted and banished from the Bengal region. She gained global attention by the beginning of 1990s owing to her essays and novels with feminist views and criticism of what she characterizes as all “misogynistic” religions. Nasrin has been living in exile since 1994.After living more than a decade in Europe and the United States, she moved to India in…

Bansidhar Mohanty was born in 1924 passed his M.A. in the first class from the Utkal University. He took to teaching and in 1970 became the first Professor of Oriya in the Utkal University. Mohanty is well-known for his scholarship. Besides writing books on the literature of Orissa and her literary traditions he has retrieved many lost manuscripts and published them. Among his works are Orisare Boudha Dharma, Sri Jagannath, Sahitya o samskriti, Abhibhasana, Oria bhashatattwara bhumika, Oria bhashar utapati o kramabikasha, Oria sahityara itihasa (3 Vols.), Orisar adibashi samskriti, and Rasakallola parichaya. Those of his writings are marked by…

Kayakalp by Premchand is his second novel I have read so far. And, I must say that even if Premchand wrote nothing else than Nirmala and Kayakalp, these two novels are more than sufficient to establish him as one of the greatest Indian writers. He has singlehandedly won my praise and appreciation by his versatility and creativity and his ability to transform ordinary situations into extra ordinary circumstances. The present novel can easily be defined as a novel of transformation, a change in lives and nature of characters, wonderfully captured by the master writer. Simply speaking, Kayakalp is the story…

Dinakrushna Dasa (1650–1710) was an Odia poet, belonging to the Vaishnava tradition of Bhakti movement. He is known for his Odia poem titled “Rasakallola”, which is devoted to Lord Krishna. Among his many literary compositions, “Artatrana Chautisa” is a reputed one.Dinakrusna’s Rasakallola and his standalone compositions including “chaupadi”, “prabhati”, “janana”, “chautisa”, “bhajana”, and “malasri” are central to the repertoire of Odissi music, the traditional classical music of the state. Dinakrushna has about 15 poems to his credit, among which the most famous one is Rasakollola. Rasa Binoda, Guna Sagar, Bhaba Samudra, Amruta Sagar, Tattva Sagar, Bhuta Keli, Alankora Bali and…

Dayanand Saraswati also known as Maharshi Dayanand is an Indian philosopher, social leader and founder of the Arya Samaj, a reform movement of the Vedic dharma. His Magnus Opus is the book Satyarth Prakash which has remained a highly influential text on the Philosophy of the Vedas and clarifications of various ideas and duties of Human Beings. He was the first to give the call for Swaraj as “India for Indians” in 1876, a call later taken up by Lokmanya Tilak.Denouncing the idolatry and ritualistic worship, he worked towards reviving Vedic ideologies. Subsequently, the philosopher and President of India, S.…

Gandhi Katha is an important activity approved by the Na- tional Committee headed by the Hon’ble President of India and the Executive Committee headed by Hon’ble Prime Minister to celebrate the 150th Birth Anniversary of the Mahatma Gandhi programmes nationally & internationally. In most of the ancient civilizations, the entirety of knowledge has been passed down to generations by oral tradition. In India, it is called as the ‘Katha Parampara.’Katha is an Indian oral tradition and is very popular in religious storytelling way of telling stories, performances of which are a ritual event in Hinduism. It often involves professional storytellers…

One of the greatest figures of wisdom and knowledge in the Indian history is Chanakya. Chanakya is regarded as a great thinker and diplomat in India who is traditionally identified as Kautilya or Vishnu Gupta. Originally a professor of economics and political science at the ancient Takshashila University, Chanakya managed the first Maurya Emperor Chandragupta’s rise to power at a young age. Instead of acquiring the seat of kingdom for himself, he crowned Chandragupta Maurya as the emperor and served as his chief advisor.1 Chanakya Neeti is a treatise on the ideal way of life, and shows Chanakya’s deep study…

Utkala Bhramanam is the first original poem by one of the most popular writers of modern Orissa, Fakir Mohan Senapati. It first appeared in 1892. Literally, it means Tour of Orissa. In reality, though, it is not a travelogue but a commentary on the state of affairs in the Orissa of that time. It has two major components. Part of it is a satirical comment on the educated class of Orissa of that time who used to imitate the lifestyle of the British. The significant part, however, is the author’s tribute to eminent people of Orissa of that time such…

Fakir Mohan Senapati,often referred to as Utkala Byasa Kabi (Odisha’s Vyasa), was an Indian writer, poet, philosopher and social reformer. He played a leading role in establishing the distinct identity of Odia, a language mainly spoken in the Indian state of Odisha. Senapati is regarded as the father of Odia nationalism and modern Odia literature. A collection of twenty Odia Short Stories by Fakir Mohan Senapati (1843 – 1912), who is considered the father of modern Odia (Oriya) prose. Rebati, the first story in the collection, is acclaimed to be the first published short story in Odia language. His “Rebati”…