Balkrishna Shamsher Jang Bahadur Rana or Bala Krishna Sama (; 8 February 1903 – 20 June 1981) was a Nepalese

dramatist A playwright or dramatist is a person who writes plays, which are a form of drama that primarily consists of dialogue between characters and is intended for theatrical performance rather than just reading. Ben Jonson coined the term "playwri ...

. For his great contributions to

Nepali literature Nepali literature () refers to literature written in the Nepali language. The Nepali language has been the national language of Nepal since 1958.Himalayan Voices: An Introduction to Modern Nepali Literature' (Voices from Asia), edited and tran ...

, he was awarded the title ''Natya Siromani'' (Crest-jewel of playwright). He is considered as one of the trimurti (trinity) of Nepali literature alongside

Laxmi Prasad Devkota Laxmi Prasad Devkota () (1909-1959) was a Nepalis, Nepalese poet, playwright, novelist, and politician. Honored with the title of Mahakabi () in Nepali literature, he was known as a poet with a golden heart, and is considered one of the most fam ...

and Lekhnath Paudyal. He is often called the

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 23 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

Nepal Nepal, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal, is a landlocked country in South Asia. It is mainly situated in the Himalayas, but also includes parts of the Indo-Gangetic Plain. It borders the Tibet Autonomous Region of China Ch ...

Personal life

He was born on February 8, 1903, to General Samar Shumsher Jung Bahadur Rana and Kirtirajyalaksmi Rana in Gyaneshwar,

Kathmandu Kathmandu () is the capital and largest city of Nepal, situated in the central part of the country within the Kathmandu Valley. As per the 2021 Nepal census, it has a population of 845,767 residing in 105,649 households, with approximately 4 mi ...

. He married Mandakini in 1921. Sama was awarded the Tribhuwan Puraskar from Nepal Rajakiya Pragya Prathistan in 1972. The same year he received the Bishesh Upadhi from

Tribhuvan University Tribhuvan University (TU; ) is a public university located in Kirtipur, Kathmandu Valley, Kathmandu, Nepal. Established in 1959, TU is the oldest and the largest university in Nepal. It offers 1,000 undergraduate and 500 postgraduate programs a ...

and in 1978, the Prithvi Pragya Puraskar from Pragya Pratisthan. He died in 1981.

Education

Sama graduated from

Durbar High School Durbar High School () or Bhanu Higher Secondary School, opened in 1854 is the oldest English education school which publicly established English education system in the country. in Nepal located near Rani Pokhari, Kathmandu whereas the first schoo ...

Ranipokhari Rani Pokhari (; lit. queen's pond), originally known as Nhu Pukhu (; lit. new pond), is a historic artificial pond located in the heart of Kathmandu, Nepal. The square-shaped tank dates from the 17th century, and was built on the eastern side ...

and studied science in

Tri-Chandra College Tri-Chandra Multiple Campus () is a constituent campus of Tribhuvan University located in Ghantaghar, Kathmandu. Founded in 1918 by Chandra Shamsher Jang Bahadur Rana, Chandra Shumsher, it is the oldest institute of higher learning in Nepal. E ...

. During his second academic year, he was sent to Dehradoon for

army An army, ground force or land force is an armed force that fights primarily on land. In the broadest sense, it is the land-based military branch, service branch or armed service of a nation or country. It may also include aviation assets by ...

training as a

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader or highest rank officer of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police depa ...

. After that, he became a lieutenant colonel under the premiership of Chandra Shumsher Rana, who was the

Prime Minister of Nepal The prime minister of Nepal (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the head of government of Nepal. The prime minister leads the Council of Ministers of Nepal, Council of Ministers and holds the chief executive authority in the country. They must maintain ...

at the time.

Writing career

A majority of his time, Sama was alone at home finding peace in solitude, gradually spending more time in art and literary activities. He started publishing his writings in reputed magazines such as ''Sarada'', ''Udhyog'', and ''Shahitya Shrot''. Afterwards, he shortened his surname "Shumsher Jung Bahadur Rana" to "Sama" because he no longer wished to be associated with a ruling

regime In politics, a regime (also spelled régime) is a system of government that determines access to public office, and the extent of power held by officials. The two broad categories of regimes are democratic and autocratic. A key similarity acros ...

that had once governed Nepal with

autocracy Autocracy is a form of government in which absolute power is held by the head of state and Head of government, government, known as an autocrat. It includes some forms of monarchy and all forms of dictatorship, while it is contrasted with demo ...

. His

drama Drama is the specific Mode (literature), mode of fiction Mimesis, represented in performance: a Play (theatre), play, opera, mime, ballet, etc., performed in a theatre, or on Radio drama, radio or television.Elam (1980, 98). Considered as a g ...

''Bhater'', published in Pragati in 1953, reflects his feelings on

human rights Human rights are universally recognized Morality, moral principles or Social norm, norms that establish standards of human behavior and are often protected by both Municipal law, national and international laws. These rights are considered ...

Notable works

Several of his plays have been inspired by

's works. His dramas such as ''Prem Pinda'', ''Swasni Manchhe'', ''Buhartan'', ''Tapobhumi'', ''Atyadhunikta'', and ''Bhater'' present the social context of the

Rana Rana may refer to: Astronomy * Rana (crater), a crater on Mars * Delta Eridani or Rana, a star Films * Rana (2012 film), an Indian Kannada-language action drama * Rana, a 1998 Telugu-language action film directed by A. Kodandarami Reddy * R ...

era; ''Mukunda Indira'', ''Ma'' and ''Mutuko Byatha'' show the emotional and romantic sides of Sama's personality. ''Amit Basana'', ''Boksi'', ''Talamathi'', and ''Andhabeg'' are based on the topic of human

psychology Psychology is the scientific study of mind and behavior. Its subject matter includes the behavior of humans and nonhumans, both consciousness, conscious and Unconscious mind, unconscious phenomena, and mental processes such as thoughts, feel ...

. His dramas on historical personalities, ''Amar Singh'', ''

Bhimsen Ko Antya ''Bhimsen Ko Antya'' () is a Nepali play by Balkrishna Sama. It was published in 1972 by Sajha Prakashan. Sama is considered as one of the most foremost Nepalese playwright. He was awarded with the title ''Natya Siromani'' (Crest jewel of playw ...

'', and ''Bhakta Bhanubhakta''. ''Birami Ra Kuruwa'' is another drama dealing with philosophy, while ''Prahlad'' and ''Dhruba'' are based on

religious Religion is a range of social- cultural systems, including designated behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics, or organizations, that generally relate humanity to supernatural ...

figures. During his time, Bal Krishna Sama became known as one of Nepal's greatest playwrights. Sama also wrote stories,

poems Poetry (from the Greek language, Greek word ''poiesis'', "making") is a form of literature, literary art that uses aesthetics, aesthetic and often rhythmic qualities of language to evoke meaning (linguistics), meanings in addition to, or in ...

essay An essay ( ) is, generally, a piece of writing that gives the author's own argument, but the definition is vague, overlapping with those of a Letter (message), letter, a term paper, paper, an article (publishing), article, a pamphlet, and a s ...

s, compositions, and

biographies A biography, or simply bio, is a detailed description of a person's life. It involves more than just basic facts like education, work, relationships, and death; it portrays a person's experience of these life events. Unlike a profile or curri ...

. His contemporaries

and

Lekhnath Poudyal Lekhnath Paudyal (; 1885–1966) is regarded as the founding father of modern Nepali poetry literature (Kabi Shiromani) in the twentieth-century. His most important contribution is believed to be to the enrichment and refinement of the language ...

were involved in writing poetry. ''Aago Ra Paani'' and ''Chiso Chulho'' are his popular epics. He wrote an essay ''Nepal Lalit Kala'' on Nepalese art, as well as the biography ''Hamra Rastriya Bhibhutiharu'' and the two-part autobiography ''Mero Kabita Ko Aradhana''. His best-known short story, ''Kaikai'', was published in 1938. His short story collection book, ''Taltal'', was published

posthumously Posthumous may refer to: * Posthumous award, an award, prize or medal granted after the recipient's death * Posthumous publication, publishing of creative work after the author's death * Posthumous (album), ''Posthumous'' (album), by Warne Marsh, 1 ...

in 1990.

Later work

He worked as a

lecturer Lecturer is an academic rank within many universities, though the meaning of the term varies somewhat from country to country. It generally denotes an academic expert who is hired to teach on a full- or part-time basis. They may also conduct re ...

teaching

Nepali language Nepali (; , ), or ''Gorkhali'' is an Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan language native to the Himalayas region of South Asia. It is the official and most widely spoken Languages of Nepal, language of Nepal, where it also serves as a ''lingua fr ...

and

literature Literature is any collection of Writing, written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially novels, Play (theatre), plays, and poetry, poems. It includes both print and Electroni ...

Tri Chandra College Tri-Chandra Multiple Campus () is a constituent campus of Tribhuvan University located in Ghantaghar, Kathmandu. Founded in 1918 by Chandra Shumsher, it is the oldest institute of higher learning in Nepal. Etymology The current name ''Tri-Ch ...

. In 1955, he became director of Nepal Radio and chief editor of the newspaper ''

Gorkhapatra ''Gorkhapatra'' () is the oldest Nepali language state-owned national daily newspaper of Nepal. It was started as a weekly newspaper in May 1901 and became a daily newspaper in 1961. It is managed by the Gorkhapatra Sansthan. ''The Rising Nepal ...

''. In 1967, he became a member of the Royal Nepal Academy when it was established, and later as the

vice chancellor A vice-chancellor (commonly called a VC) serves as the chief executive of a university in the United Kingdom, New Zealand, Australia, Nepal, India, Bangladesh, Malaysia, Nigeria, Pakistan, Sri Lanka, South Africa, Kenya, other Commonwealth countr ...

. Following his retirement in 1971, Sama continued writing, publishing many of his poems in nationally reputed

magazine A magazine is a periodical literature, periodical publication, print or digital, produced on a regular schedule, that contains any of a variety of subject-oriented textual and visual content (media), content forms. Magazines are generally fin ...

s like ''Madhuparka'' and ''Ramjham''. Many of his works remain unpublished or incomplete, many of which he read out during literary programmes. His unpublished dramas include ''Gangalal'', ''Aja'', ''Milinad'', ''Prem'', ''Chinta'', and ''Prandaan''.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rana, Balkrishna Nepalese dramatists and playwrights Artist authors 1903 births 1981 deaths State funerals in Nepal Durbar High School alumni Tri-Chandra College alumni Sajha Puraskar winners 20th-century Nepalese male writers 20th-century Nepalese poets Writers from Kathmandu Nepali-language poets 20th-century Nepalese nobility