''Bir Charitra'' () is a Nepali fantasy novel written by Girish Ballabh Joshi. The first part of the novel was written in (1956 BS) and was published in 1903 by Pashupat Press but soon the Rana government restricted the publication of other volumes. The complete all four parts of the novel was published only in 1965 (2022 BS) by Jagadamba Press. It is considered to be the first novel of

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 ...

Background

Girish Ballav Joshi worked as a

Kabiraj Kabiraj is an occupational title found in persons of eastern Indian subcontinent. In older days, people traditionally practising Ayurveda were generally called ''kabi'' in the eastern Indian Subcontinent. Many of them were attached to royal cou ...

(Ayurvedic practitioner) in Rana palace. He was hugely influenced by the Hindi writer

Devaki Nandan Khatri Devaki Nandan Khatri (18 June 1861– 1 August 1913) was an Indian writer who lived in Varanasi and wrote the historic fiction fantasy novel '' Chandrakanta''. Biography He was born on 18 June 1861 in a Punjabi family in Pusa village of Sa ...

. Joshi even named his son ad Devaki Nath after Khatri. Khatri was one of the earliest Hindi novelist and was widely popular for his fantasy novel ''Chandrakanta''. Joshi being influenced by Khatri wrote the novel of the similar genre. Even though only the first part of the novel was published in 1903, the novel became highly popular. The first part of the novel was published by Nara Dev Moti-krishna Pashupati Press. It became popular among the women of the Rana courts and came under the notice of Rana officials. The Rana regime unofficially banned the publication of the other parts of the novel. Pashupat press refused to print the further part of the novel. Joshi was also stopped from writing the fifth part of the novel. However, the manuscript of the novel was passed among the readers. Many copies of the manuscript was produced.

Synopsis

The novel is a satirical work on the Rana regime and is set in the western region of Nepal. The novel starts from the

Baglung district Baglung District ( ), a part of Gandaki Province, is one of the seventy-seven districts of Nepal. The district, with Baglung as its district headquarters, covers an area of and has a population (2011) of 268,613. Introduction Baglung is surrou ...

of Nepal. It is an adventure of three princes in search of Agni Dutta, the son of a Brahmin named Ganesh Dutta. When Agni Dutta is kidnapped by a couple, Ganesh Dutta pleads the princes for their help. The novel contains various mythological creatures such as ''

Rakshasa Rākshasa (, , ; ; "preservers") are a race of usually malevolent beings prominently featured in Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism and Folk Islam. They reside on Earth but possess supernatural powers, which they usually use for evil acts such as ...

'', demons, '' Nagas'', etc. and fantasy elements alongside science fictions elements.

References

{{Nepali literature 1965 Nepalese novels 1899 fantasy novels 1965 fantasy novels Nepali-language novels 20th-century Nepalese novels Nepalese novels Nepalese fantasy novels

Background

Synopsis

See also

References