Suryakant Tripathi

Summary

Suryakant Tripathi "Nirala" (21 February 1899 – 15 October 1961) was an Indian poet, novelist, essayist and story-writer who wrote in Hindi. He was also an artist, who drew many contemporary sketches.

Suryakant Tripathi
Suryakant Tripathi
Tripathi on a 1976 stamp of India
Born(1899-02-21)21 February 1899
Midnapore, Bengal Presidency, British India
Died15 October 1961(1961-10-15) (aged 64)
Allahabad, Uttar Pradesh, India
Pen nameNirala
Occupation
  • Writer
  • poet
  • essayist
  • novelist
NationalityIndian
PeriodChhayavaad
Notable worksSaroj Smriti, Raam Ki Shaktipuja
SpouseManohara Devi

 Literature portal

Biography edit

Tripathi was born on 21 February 1899 at Mahishadal in Midnapore in Bengal Presidency[1][2] into a Kanyakubja Brahmin family.[3] Nirala's father, Pandit Ramsahaya Tripathi, was a government servant and was a tyrannical person. His mother died when he was very young. Nirala was educated in the Bengali medium at Mahishadal Raj High School at Mahishadal, a princely state in Purba Medinipur.[3][4] Subsequently, he shifted to Lucknow and thence to village Gadhakola of Unnao district, to which his father originally belonged.[5] Growing up, he gained inspiration from personalities like Ramakrishna Paramhansa, Swami Vivekananda, and Rabindranath Tagore.[5]

After his marriage at the age of 20, Nirala learned Hindi at the insistence of his wife, Manohara Devi. Soon, he started writing poems in Hindi, instead of Bengali. After a bad childhood, Nirala had a few good years with his wife. But this phase was short-lived as his wife died when he was 22, and later his daughter (who was a widow) also expired. Nirala lost half of his family, including his wife and daughter, in the 1918 Spanish flu influenza outbreak.[6][7]

Most of his life was somewhat in the bohemian tradition. He wrote strongly against social injustice and exploitation in society. Since he was more or less a rebel, both in form and content, acceptance did not come easily. What he got in plenty was ridicule and derision. All this may have played a role in making him a victim of schizophrenia in his later life and he was admitted to Central Institute of Psychiatry, Ranchi.[8]

Work edit

Many of Nirala's poems were translated by David Rubin, and are available in the collections, A Season on the Earth: Selected Poems of Nirala (Columbia University Press, 1977), The Return of Sarasvati: Four Hindi Poets (Oxford University Press, 1993), and Of Love and War: A Chayavad Anthology (Oxford University Press, 2005). Nirala : Aatmhanta Astha was a critical analysis of his works written by Doodhnath Singh.[9]

Legacy edit

Today, a park, Nirala Uddyan, an auditorium, Nirala Prekshagrah, and a degree college, Mahapran Nirala Degree College, in the Unnao District are named after him.[5]

In popular culture edit

The Films Division of India produced a short documentary film on his life, titled Suryakant Tripathi Nirala, directed by Rajiv Kumar. It covers his works and achievements.[10]

Reception edit

Works edit

Poetry edit

  • Ram Ki Shakti Puja (राम की शक्ति पूजा)
  • Dhwani (ध्वनि)
  • Apara (अपरा)
  • Saroj Smriti (सरोज स्मृति)
  • Parimal (परिमल)
  • Priyatam (प्रियतम)
  • Anaamika (अनामिका, 1938)
  • Geetika (गीतिका)
  • Kukurmutta (कुकुरमुत्ता, 1941)
  • Adima (अणिमा)
  • Bela (बेला)
  • Naye Patte (नये पत्ते)
  • Archana (अर्चना)
  • Geet Gunj (गीतगुंज)
  • Aradhana (आराधना)
  • Tulsidas (तुलसीदास, 1938)
  • Janmabhumi (जन्मभूमि)
  • Jago Phir Ek Bar (जागो फिर एक बार)
  • Bhikshuk (भिक्षुक)
  • Todti Patthar (तोड़ती पत्थर)

Novels edit

  • Apsara (अप्सरा)
  • Alka (अलका)
  • Prabhavati (प्रभावती)
  • Nirupama (निरुपमा)
  • Chameli (चमेली)
  • Choti ki Pakad (चोटी की पकड़)
  • Indulekha (इन्दुलेखा)
  • Kale Karname (काले कारनामे)

Collections of stories edit

  • Chhaturi Chamar (चतुरी चमार)
  • Sukul ki Biwi (सुकुल की बीवी, 1941)
  • Sakhi (साखी)
  • Lily (लिली)
  • Devi (देवी)

Essay-collections edit

  • Prabandha-Parichaya (प्रबंध परिचय)
  • Bangbhasha ka Uchcharan (बंगभाषा का उच्चारण)
  • Ravindra-Kavita-Kannan (रवीन्द्र-कविता-कानन)
  • Prabandh-Padya (प्रबंध पद्य)
  • Prabandh-Pratima (प्रबंध प्रतिमा)
  • Chabuk (चाबुक)
  • Chayan (चयन)
  • Sangraha (संग्रह)

Prose edit

  • Kullibhat (कुल्लीभाट)
  • Billesur Bakriha (बिल्लेसुर बकरिहा)

Translations edit

  • Anand Math (आनन्दमठ)
  • Vish-Vriksh (विष वृक्ष)
  • Krishnakant ka Vil (कृष्णकांत का विल)
  • Kapal Kundala (कपाल कुण्डला)
  • Durgesh Nandini (दुर्गेश नन्दिनी)
  • Raj Singh (राज सिंह)
  • Raj Rani (राज रानी)
  • Devi Chaudharani (देवी चौधरानी)
  • Yuglanguliya (युगलांगुलीय)
  • Chandrasekhar (चन्द्रशेखर)
  • Rajni (रजनी)
  • Sri Ramkrishna Vachnamrit (श्री रामकृष्ण वचनामृत)
  • Bharat mein Vivekanand (भारत में विवेकानंद)
  • Rajyog (राजयोग)

References edit

  1. ^ The Return of Sarasvati: Four Hindi Poets. Oxford University Press. 2002. p. 63. ISBN 978-0-19-566349-5. Sharma makes out a good case for 1899 as the year of Nirala's birth rather than 1896 or 1897, as most historians have it.
  2. ^ Bandopadhyay, Manohar (1994). Lives and Works of Great Hindi Poets. B.R. Publishing House. p. 102. ISBN 978-81-7018-786-8. He was born on February 21, 1899 at Mahishadal in Mednapur
  3. ^ a b Mehrotra, Arvind Krishna (12 December 2006). Last Bungalow: Writings on Allahabad. Penguin Books Limited. p. 197. ISBN 978-93-5214-094-7.
  4. ^ "Mahishadal Raj College". College Admission. Retrieved 9 April 2019.
  5. ^ a b c Famous Personalities Archived 16 October 2013 at the Wayback Machine Unnao district Official website.
  6. ^ Ghosh, Avijit (27 March 2020). "How literature has helped us make sense of pandemics". The Times of India. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
  7. ^ Chishti, Seema (12 April 2020). "References to death and disease in Hindi literature". The Indian Express. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
  8. ^ "निराला, नज़रुल, मजाज़ भी रहे हैं रांची पागलखाने में". BBC (in Hindi). 19 May 2017. Retrieved 19 February 2022.
  9. ^ "Nirala : Aatmhanta Astha". Rajkamal Prakashan. Retrieved 14 January 2018.
  10. ^ "SURYAKANT TRIPATHI NIRALA | Films Division". filmsdivision.org. Retrieved 12 June 2021.

External links edit

  • Nirala at Kavita Kosh – A large collection of Hindi Poetry