Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay- Pioneer of literary renaissance of Bengal

The Bengali literary horizon, it was playfully said, was guarded by three celestial sentinels: Bankim Chandra (bent moon), Rabindranath Tagore (regal sun) and Sarat Chandra (autumn moon). It was Bankim Chandra the creator of classics in chaste Bankimi-Shadhu-bhasha that ignited the fervor of nationalism in the hearts of his countrymen. He gave a new impetus to Bengali fiction by refining its prose, coining sparkling- fresh phrases and aesthetic expressions of great beauty. He was also the first to popularize historical romances, as Walter Scott had earlier done in Scotland. Both tried to bring to life the remarkable heroism and patriotism of the inhabitants and their struggles against the oppressor.

Bankim Chandra was a super storyteller, and a master of romance. No other writer in India, in all its regions, has enjoyed such spontaneous and universal acceptance as Bankim Chandra Chatterjee. He shot into the limelight with Durgeshnandini, his first Bengali romance, published in 1865. He then went on to write other famous novels like Kapalkundala, Mrinalini, Vishbriksha, Chandrasekhar, Rajani, Rajsimha and Devi Chaudhurani. He brought out a monthly magazine called Bangadarshan in 1872. He raised Nationalism to the level of religion by identifying the Motherland with the Mother-Goddess. The tremendous impact and thrilling upsurge that Anandamath and Vandemataram had on the Indian National Movement is indeed legendary. Bankim Chandra’s immortal song Vande Mataram set to music by the young Rabindranath became India’s national song, and the voice of the Indian people fighting against colonial rule.

Bankim Chandra’s Sanyasins in Anandamath are fabulous characters rather like the heroes of Mahabharata. Aurobindo Ghosh and other revolutionaries acknowledged Bankim Chandra as their political Guru. They, following his ideal, regarded him as: the inspirer, a new spirit leading the nation towards resurgence and independence. Bankim Chandra tried to reinterpret ancient Indian ideals by cleansing them of the accumulated floss of myths and legends. In the process he produced: ‘Krishna Charitra’, ’Dharmatattva’ (Philosophy of Dharma), ‘Devatattva’ (Principle of Divinity) and a commentary on Bhagavad-Gita. Not many in world literature have excelled in both philosophy and art as Bankim Chandra has done.