~ 27 March 2014 itty “ae Sahitya Akademi meet the author Manindra GuptaBe in the association of nature in 1926, Manindra Gupta spent his childhood days in his ancestral village in East Bengal, where channels criss-cross the localities and boats are the main source of transportation. The Kirtankhola river was the main river inthe neighbourhood. In those days forests and jungles were everywhere in the surroundings. Trees, plants and waterways were his best mates inthatspan of his early boyhood. English translation of two stanzas of a poem from Lal Schoolbari is given below to illustrate the connection of Manindra Gupta with waterways The Boat The boat moved through the red schoolbuilding— Gradually, the water smells. of danger ... Ocean! Ocean! Water breaks at the horizon, Underneath, virgin corals display blooded agitation Notwater, but the cay buming on steal-deck. ‘On some strange water, boatman slogging anintini forten hours... Translated by Rajlukshmi Debee From the very childhood Manindra Gupta faced a lot of hardships— both emotionally as well as physically. But his perception of the surroundings never blurred— he looked into depths of minds and expressed them in appropriate wards as well. Just have a look into a description of his grandmother after his grandfather's death from his autobiography and you will realize : ‘Thakuma kintu ekebare onno manush hoye gelen. Jeno tini matmate laal par sari aar mota mota sankhar jorei etodin hankdank korten, sonsar shasan korten — ekhon sankha bhenge, than porar pore ekebare nirbak haye gechhen. Ekhon je ja korte bolche tai korchen, baki somoy kaday bheja onath beralchanar mate ghorer ondhokar kontite bose thaken, ar nishut ratre nistobdho. swore chomok bhenge bolen, “Oi, Oi, Oi dekh, dorjer phank dia bura amake dake !" Dadur mrityur choddo diner modhye thakuma mara gelen.” His attachments with his family members tend to decrease, as he repeatedly said in his autobiography, and the attyaction of the world enveloped his mind. He was only eight when his guardians - his grandparents died. He was then brought to Silchar of Assam in the care of his maternal grandparents. Silchar was a small tea-planters’ town in the valley of river Barak. While writing in the later phase of his life, childhood came back to him again and again. The ending lines of the complete edition of his autobiography Akshay Mulberry ran thus : Hoyte atiter ekta samaye kichu kichu manuser chelebelata ektu beshi samprasarita chilo, By 1941 his school days were over and he left Silchar, as well as Barisal, for ever and came to KolkataIn 1943, he joined Indian Army's Engineering Division. And afler completion of his course in Engineering he got his posting at Lahore Cantonment to receive combatant training. Living with fellow soldiers in a barrack or tent was really an experience for him! After demob, his army-life ended in 1946. He was employed in the Dept. of Industries, Govt. of West Bengal. His service-life came to an end in 1984 when he retired from his job, But a little earlier in 1981 he wrote the first volume of his autobiography Akshay Mulberry. Even before that he initiated the publication of his literary magazine Parama as an editor in 1969. His first collection of poems Nil Patharer Akash appeared in the same year also, though it was first published in book-form with two other poets in 1948. In his novel entitled Prem, Mrityu Ki Nakshatra, Gupta transformed an apparently simple plot into a magical tale of relationship and destiny. In his Gadya Samgraha, Gupta expressed an unfathomable love for the aboriginals and the endangered species living in this planet. He holds that the ultimate significance of man’s existence lies in his ability to remain as a part of the everlasting flow of trees, animals and water. Though Gupta authored some fictional works, his contribution to the field of contemporary Bengali poetry placed him among the greats. What is poetry to him ? Let's have a look at his own words: ‘A poern is not merely a collection of beauty, and it's certainly not the embodiment of the paragon ‘Tilottama’ either. A poern, rather, has a unique structure and an organic whole. If we compare, it may appear as a bright female figure or the stature of a strong male person; it may also represent a blossomed creeper or even sometimes you may feel it as the giant of a quiet and calm ancient tree. Every poem has a separate and unique simile lying in the huge treasury of nature. A good poem is composed of many insignificants and some significants all of which remain attached to each other in an infallible association.’ ‘The most quiet practice being meditation at the corner of your Manindra Gupte with his wife Debarati MitraReceiving Sahitya Akademi Award in 2011 room, the most solitary game being cross-word puzzle, my poetry writing Is far cheaper, docile and solitary than those. A painter, a dancer, an actor or a player claims a lot of attention, service, price, and hope from the family and society. 1 don't ask for such things. While writing my poetry I don't ask for a single farthing from the family fund, or don't disturb and make someone deaf by rehearsing or practising for voice training. | don't light up the room till mid-night, don't return home untimely or late and don't arrange poetry sessions al my home. Let me confess, when | write poems on the back leaf of an used cash- memo or scribble it on the brown packets of dry tea or book- wrappers, it flows smoother. One of my friends, after his business was closed, gifted me a full book of delivery-challan, The size was demi- octavo, the pages were yellow, pink and white in turn. | wrote all my poems of Lal Schoolbari on those delivery-challans,” Through his whole life Manindra Gupta gathered a lot of experiences which are so varied in themselves. Collection Itstarted with postage stamps— Then matechboxes, coins, masks, butterflies, pebbles, Finally moon racks But these are fitformilk-fed children— Therelore, my gaze then shifted ta adult manly things, ‘And I cansay, inmy proud collection now there are About fifty chastity belts worn by European sati Pigtails and scalps complete with hair tufts Ripped from Red Indian braves while alive, Murderous choppers of Naga and Bornean headhunters, Strangler saris af Bengali suicides (including twe Balucharis), Tattooed skin from the backs and lower bellies of Maori beauties, Post-nuclear-war black, yellow and white human foetuses, at different stages. At present] am searching for The brain of a sadhu in contemplative trance, and Around rod that fits a square hole, as inasheath, Or vice versa. Samgraha, Translated by Ananda Lal Presently, Manindra Gupta lives in Kolkata with wile Debarati Mitra.Receiving Rabindra Puraskar in 2010 Select Bibliography Poetry Neel Patharer Akash, Kolkata, 1969 Moupokader Gram, Parama, 1974 Lal Schoolbari, Parama, 1978 Chhatrapalas Chaitye Dinashes, Parama, 1986 Sharatmegh © Kashfuler Bandhu, Parama, 1992 Kabita Samgraha, Parama, 1994 Nameru Mane Rudraksha, Chitrak, 2000 Tung Tang Shabda Nishabda, Kishalaya, 2005 Shrestha Kabita, Dey's Publishing 2005 Bone Agj Concherto, Austric, 2009 Kabita Samgraha (New Edition), Aadom, 2011 Barir Kapale Chand, Kabitirtha, 2014 Essays Chander O'pithhe, Ulukhar, 1991 Tahara Adbhut Loke, Kabi Birendra Chattopadhyay Smaran Committee, 1992 Parabasi, Kurani O Daruma-Sun, Uttaradhikar, 1998 danamanush Q Banamanush, Kishalaya, 2005 Gadya Samgraha, Ababhas, 2007 Ulto Katha, Katha Satya, 2011 Mernoirs Akshay Mulberry, Pratham Parba, Parama, 1981 Akshay Mulberry, Dwitiya Parba, Chitrak, 1998 Akshay Mulberry, Tritiya Parba, Chitrak, 2004 Akhanda Akashay Mulberry, (Complete in one volume), Ababhas, 2009 Criticism Drakshapunja, Shunri OQ Matal, Ababhas, 2010 Biography Rang Kankar Rarnkinkar, Ababhas, 2014 Novel Prem, Mrityu Ki Nakshatra, Ababhas, 2005Edited Ek Bachharer Sharestha Kabita 1972-1976, (5 volumes of yearly anthologies of contemporary Bengali verse, Fellow-Editor Ranjit Sinha, Pararna,......... Abahaman Bangla Kabita [in 3 volumes} Vol. 1 - Caryagiti to Iswar Gupta, Paa, 1989 Vol. Il - Madhusudan Datla to Nazrul Islam, Off-beat, 2000 Vol. Ill - Jibananda Das to Sunil Basu, Anapeksha, 2006 2 At his home at Garia AChronology ———— ne practicing his painting and 1926 Born at a village in Barisal drawing. Met Acharya (now in Bangladesh). Lived Nandalal Basu at in his village-home with Santiniketan. Got service in grandpa and grandma aGovt. Department 1933 Left Barisal for Silchar to 1956 Graduation from the live with maternal grand- University of Calcutta parents. Admitted ina high 1969 Edited Porama, a poetry school magazine 1941 School days over. Arrived 1984 Retired from service. in Kolkata 2005 Received Bishnu Dey 1943 Joined the Indian Smriti Puraskar Army's Engineering Corps 2010 Awarded Rabindra -LE. Puraskar by Govt. of West 1946 Backhomedemob Bengal 1948 A self taught Sunday 2011 Received Sahitya Akademi Painter, he worked hard Award Part of a page of Akshay Mulberry designed by Manindra Gupta ) = Come otf of schoo! “TRil 1S the Way We coma aut of school ina cold and Gusty reorning, rd rau round te mulberry bosh ARs ome voy ht ‘The mul aaatite mulberry bush acide tovnd the seal bush ainceftoatenn atts free atc atecw a feo of efi ae cen ort frosty mornin, = Pear fe ee a