Nihar Ranjan Gupta ( bn, নীহাররঞ্জন গুপ্ত, pen name: ''Banbhatta'' (বানভট্ট); 6 June 1911 – 20 February 1986) was an Indian dermatologist and a popular

Bengali Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to: *something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia * Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region * Bengali language, the language they speak ** Bengali alphabet, the w ...

novelist. He is the creator of the fictional detective character Kiriti Roy. Some of his writings were made into films of

Bengal Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...

and

Bollywood Hindi cinema, popularly known as Bollywood and formerly as Bombay cinema, refers to the film industry based in Mumbai, engaged in production of motion pictures in Hindi language. The popular term Bollywood, is a portmanteau of "Bombay" (fo ...

Early life

Gupta came from a Kabiraj family of Itna village under Lohagara police station, in the district of Jessore, presently in the

Narail district Narail ( bn, নড়াইল, pron: ''nɔɽail'') is a district in south-western Bangladesh. It is a part of Khulna Division. History Narail town was named after a feudal lord (a zamindar). The zamindars established a market at Roopgonj, als ...

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...

. He was born to Satya Ranjan Gupta and Labangalata Devi on 6 June 1911, in

where his father used to work. He spent his childhood in

Narail Narail ( bn, নড়াইল, pron: ''nɔɽail'') is a district in south-western Bangladesh. It is a part of Khulna Division. History Narail town was named after a feudal lord (a zamindar). The zamindars established a market at Roopgonj, als ...

Due to his father's transferable job, he had to attend several schools, including Gaibandha High School. In 1930 he passed Matriculation from

Konnagar Konnagar is a town and a municipality of Hooghly district in the state of West Bengal in India. Konnagar has a railway station that connect with Howrah. It is under Uttarpara police station in Serampore subdivision. It is a part of the area c ...

High School. After completing his I.Sc. from Krishnagar Government College,

Krishnanagar Krishna Nagar or Krishnanagar may refer to: Places India * Krishna Nagar, Delhi ** Krishna Nagar metro station (Delhi) ** Krishna Nagar (Delhi Assembly constituency) * Krishna Nagar, Hyderabad * Krishna Nagar, Lucknow ** Krishna Nagar metro s ...

, he took admission to Carmichael Medical College. While a student at the college, his elder sister died of scorpion sting. Young Gupta vowed to earn higher degree in the medical sciences to serve the ill.

Career

During the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

Gupta served as an army doctor and was posted to various places, including Chittagong,

Burma Myanmar, ; UK pronunciations: US pronunciations incl. . Note: Wikipedia's IPA conventions require indicating /r/ even in British English although only some British English speakers pronounce r at the end of syllables. As John Wells explai ...

and Egypt. After the war he completed post-graduate studies in the United Kingdom, specialising in dermatology. On his return he joined the

Calcutta Medical College Calcutta Medical College, officially Medical College and Hospital, Kolkata, is a public medical school and hospital in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. It is the oldest existing hospital in Asia. The institute was established on 28 January 1835 ...

. In his career as a physician he was associated with several hospitals in India. After the Partition, his family permanently migrated to

Kolkata Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...

in 1947. As a child Gupta always dreamed of becoming a writer. He once went to Shantiniketan to seek the blessings of

Rabindranath Tagore Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...

and took his autograph. At the age of eighteen he composed his first novel, ''Rajkumar''. After schooling, Gupta took admission in the

, then affiliated with the

University of Calcutta The University of Calcutta (informally known as Calcutta University; CU) is a public collegiate state university in India, located in Kolkata, West Bengal, India. Considered one of best state research university all over India every year, ...

. During his stay in England he developed a keen interest in detective stories and met Agatha Christie. After coming back to India, he wrote his first detective novel, '' Kalo Bhramar'' (meaning ''The Black Hornet''), which launched his detective character Kiriti Roy ��িরীটী রায় In his literary career Gupta has composed over two hundred novels, plays, short stories and essays. The most popular among them are '' Ulka'', ''Badshah'', ''Lalubhulu'', ''Uttarphalguni'', ''Asti Bhagirathi Tire'', ''Mayur Mahal'', ''Devyani'', ''Neeltara'', ''Mayamriga'', ''Komalgandhar'' and ''Nishipadma''. Forty five of his novels have been made into

and

Hindi Hindi ( Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been ...

feature films in Tollywood and Bollywood respectively. He was also the editor of a children's magazine named ''Sabuj Sahitya''.

Legacy

In 1988, S.M. Sultan founded the Shishuswarga-2 at the ancestral house of Gupta in Itna. It was officially inaugurated on 24 November 1993, by the Mohammad Ali Hossain, the then District Magistrate of Narail. However, the activities of the children's organisation ceased after the death of S.M.Sultan. In 2003, the archaeological department of Bangladesh notified the acquisition of Gupta's ancestral house, but has not made any repairs till date. At present the ancestral house of Nihar Ranjan Gupta lies in a dilapidated condition, infested by bats and illegal betting syndicates.

Adapted works

* ''Maya Mriga'' (1960) * '' Thayi Karulu'' (1962) emade as ''Thayin Karunai''(Tamil) '' Ulka'' * '' Annai'' (1962) emake of the 1960 Bengali film Maya Mriga* '' Meri Surat Teri Ankhen'' (1963) – ''Ulka'' * '' Uttar Falguni'' (1963) ( Remade as '' Mamta'' , '' Kaaviya Thalaivi'' and ''

Pushpanjali Pushpanjali (Sanskrit:पुष्पाञ्जलि, literally ''folded hands full of flowers'') is an offering of flowers to Hindu deities. Pushpanjali is the first dance in a Bharatnatyam performance. It is the salutation to the lord of d ...

'') * ''Badsha'' (1963) * ''Tapashi'' (Bengali -1965) * '' Laadla'' (1966) (Remake of 1960 Bengali film Maya Mriga) * '' Mere Lal'' (1966) (Remake of Bengali film Badsha) * ''Nai Roshni'' (1967) ( Remade as ''

Poovum Pottum ''Poovum Pottum'' () is 1968 Indian Tamil-language romantic drama film directed by Dada Mirasi and produced by Vasu Menon. The film stars S. V. Ranga Rao, A. V. M. Rajan, Muthuraman and Bhanumathi. It is a remake of the 1967 Hindi film '' Nai ...

'' and '' Punyavathi'') * '' Deiva Magan'' (1969) Remade as ''Thaayi Mamathe''(Kannada) and ''Raktha Sambandham''(Telugu)- ''Ulka'' * ''

Devara Kannu ''Devara Kannu'' () is a 1975 Indian Kannada-language film, directed by Y. R. Swamy. The film stars Lokesh, Aarathi, Anant Nag and Ambarish, who were relative newcomers, in supporting roles. The film has musical score by T. G. Lingappa. The fil ...

'' (1975) Remade_as_''Annan_Oru_Koyil''_,_''Ellaam_Ninakku_Vendi.html" ;"title="Annan_Oru_Koyil.html" ;"title="Remade as ''Annan Oru Koyil">Remade as ''Annan Oru Koyil'' , ''Ellaam Ninakku Vendi">Annan_Oru_Koyil.html" ;"title="Remade as ''Annan Oru Koyil">Remade as ''Annan Oru Koyil'' , ''Ellaam Ninakku Vendi'' and ''Bangaru Chellelu''(Telugu)] * ''Do Anjaane'' (1976) ( Remade as ''Maavari Manchitanam'' and ''Aaseya Bale'')– ''Ratrir Yatri'' * ''Kalankini Kankabati'' (1981) * ''Lalu Bhulu'' (1983) * ''Kiriti O Kalo Bhromor'' (2016)http://ebela.in/entertainment/kiriti-o-kalo-bhromor-trailer-released-dgtl-1.457785 * '' Kiriti Roy (2016 film), Kiriti Roy'' (2016) * '' Ebong Kiriti'' (2017) * '' Nilacholey Kiriti'' (2018)

References

External links