Anil Gharai (alt., Anil Ghařāi, Anil Gharai () was a

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 ...

writer from the state of

West Bengal West Bengal (; Bengali language, Bengali: , , abbr. WB) is a States and union territories of India, state in the East India, eastern portion of India. It is situated along the Bay of Bengal, along with a population of over 91 million inhabi ...

India India, officially the Republic of India, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, seventh-largest country by area; the List of countries by population (United Nations), most populous country since ...

. He was born on 1 November 1957 in Rukminipur village near

Egra Egra is a town in Purba Medinipur, East Medinipur district in the state of West Bengal, India. It is the headquarters of the Egra subdivision. The ancient name of Egra was "Agrapattan". Geography Location Egra is located at . It has an ave ...

in what is now

Purba Medinipur East Medinipur (Alternative spelling ''Midnapore'') district is an administrative unit in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is the southernmost district of Medinipur division – one of the five administrative divisions of West Bengal. The ...

district. His first short story was published in 1990 in '' Desh patrika''. He was an author of 74 books.

Early life

Anil Ghorai was born on 1 November 1957 in Rukminipur village of

Egra subdivision Egra subdivision is a subdivision of the Purba Medinipur district in the state of West Bengal, India. Subdivisions Purba Medinipur district is divided into the following administrative subdivisions: Administrative units Egra subdivision has ...

in a

Mahishya Mahishya (IAST: Māhiṣya) is a Bengali Hindu traditionally agrarian caste, and formed the largest caste in undivided Bengal. Mahisyas were, and still are, an extremely diverse caste consisting of all possible classes in terms of material con ...

family to Abhimanyu Ghorai and Tilottoma Debi. He migrated to Nagarukhra in

Nadia Nadia is a female name. Variations include Nadja, Nadya, Nadine, Nadiya, and Nadiia. Most variations of the name are derived from Arabic, Slavic languages, or both. In many Slavic languages, names similar to ''Nadia'' mean "hope": Ukrainia ...

in 1962 at only 5 years of age for better education. He graduated from Bipradas Pal Chowdhury Institute of Technology in 1980. He was admitted to

Jadavpur University Jadavpur University ( abbr. JU) is a public state funded research university with its main campus located at Jadavpur, Kolkata, West Bengal, India. It was established on 25 July in 1906 as ''Bengal Technical Institute'' and was converted into ...

to study

Industrial engineering Industrial engineering (IE) is concerned with the design, improvement and installation of integrated systems of people, materials, information, equipment and energy. It draws upon specialized knowledge and skill in the mathematical, physical, an ...

Nature of his works

He was a valuable contributor to the massive change that began in Bengali novels and stories in the 1970s. He left a deep impression in his writings one after another. His writings focused on the lower rungs of society. Anil's first novel, 'Nunbari' (1989), was a story of the recovery of a neglected girl from the Noonmara community, which is intertwined with the life of Malangi society. ‘Durbogarar Upakhyan’ (1997) is a story about the tribal people of Bihar. During the winter season, the local tribal people go to the Durbogara river to search for gold which is their livelihood. ‘Nil dukhyer chobi’ (2001) is the first Bengali novel written about the life of the Kakmara community. They make a living by selling their produce. They raise pigs. Their main livelihood is begging. Anil Gharai's most notable work, and a memorable achievement in Bengali novels, is 'Ananta Draghima' (2009). In this large-scale novel, the picture of a marginalized public life has come to life in a wide-ranging narrative.

List of major works

Novels

* ''Nunbari'' * ''Megh Jiboner Trishna (1996)'' * ''Banabashi (1990)'' * ''Mukuler Gondho (1993)'' * ''Boba Juddho (1993)'' * ''Tarango Lata (1993)'' * ''Kanone Kusum Koli (1993)'' * ''Brokrorekha (1994)'' * ''Plaban (1994)'' * ''Dhormer Kol (1995)'' * ''Koler Putul (1996)'' * ''Dourbogorar Upakhayan (1997)'' * ''Khelaghor (1998)'' * ''Janma Daag (1999)'' * ''Biparid Juddheyr Mohora (2001)'' * ''Pata Orar Din (2002)'' * ''Samne Sagar (2003)'' * ''Ananta Draghimaa (2009)''

''Story Books''

* ''Kak (1982)'' * ''Parijan (1985)'' * ''Aagun (1987)'' * ''Gyan Brikher Fol (1988)'' * ''Kotash (1990)'' * ''Jol Chiruni (1991)'' * ''Jermaner Maa (1991)'' * ''Bharatborsho (1992)'' * ''Garbha Dao (1993)'' * ''Anil Gharai er Choto Golpo (1995)'' * ''Kaamkuthiya (1996)'' * ''Akash Maatir Khela (1997)'' * ''Loo (1997)'' * ''Swapner Khora Pakhi (1998)'' * ''Swet Paddyo (1998)'' * ''Godana (1998)'' * ''Akhhormala (1998)'' * ''Neel Aakasher Tara (1999)'' * ''Parijaan O Anyanno Golpo (2000)'' * ''Saadh Bhokkhon (2000)'' * ''Nodi Maa (2000)'' * ''Hriday Pete Aachi (2002)'' * ''Lodha Grame Shuryaday (2003)'' * ''Shreshtha Golpo (Bookfair 2008)''

''Children's Story Books''

* ''Laali Duli (1992)'' * ''Foring Singh er Bahaduri (1998)'' * ''Sheru (1999)'' * ''Arfaan Chachar Ghora (2000)''

''English Story Books''

* ''Stories of the Downtroden (2003)'' * ''Noonbari (2005)''

''Hindi Story Books''

* ''Tikli (1999)'' * ''Dankk (1999)'' * ''Fulpari (2001)'' * ''Chawkidaar (2002)''

''Poetry Books''

* ''Batasher Swarolipi (2003)'' * ''Jaadu Orna (2004)'' * ''Roudro Songshkaar (2005)'' * ''Aaguner Padabali (2009)'' * ''Ghaam Ashru O Aagun (2009)'' * ''Pata Shorir (2010)'' * ''Bhatful Bahtgondho (2011)'' * ''Bonshai Bishaad (2012)'' A book named "Shwetpadma"(collection of few short stories) is also available in the market.

Awards and honors

*Sanskriti Award (1991) by President of India *Michael Madusudhan Award (1994) * Tarashankar Award (2001) *

Bankim Puraskar Bankim Puraskar (, Bankim Memorial Award) is the highest award given by the Government of West Bengal for contribution to Bengali fiction. The award was instituted in 1975 in memory of Bankim Chandra Chattopadhyay, a famous Bengali novelist of the ...

(2010) * Dalit Sahitya Academy Purashkar

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Ghorai, Anil Bengali male poets People from Purba Medinipur district 1957 births Writers from Kolkata Indian male novelists Poets from West Bengal Indian children's writers Bengali-language writers 20th-century Indian poets Living people Indian male poets 20th-century Indian novelists Novelists from West Bengal 20th-century Indian male writers Jadavpur University alumni