Sunil Gangopadhyay or Sunil Ganguly (September 7, 1934 – October 23, 2012) was an Indian poet, novelist, short story writer, and critic. He played a key role in modernizing Bengali poetry and co-founded the 1953 avant-grade poetry magazine '' Krittibas''. Widely regarded as one of the most prolific Bengali writers since

Rabindranath Tagore Rabindranath Thakur (; anglicised as Rabindranath Tagore ; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengalis, Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer, and painter of the Bengal Renai ...

, he has been called "the man who carried the modern consciousness of Bengal." His

debut novel A debut novel is the first novel a novelist publishes. Debut novels are often the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to pu ...

, '' Atmaprakash'' (1964), established him as a novelist and was followed by '' Aranyer Din Ratri.'' Both were fictionalized account of real-life events. ''Sei Somoy'', a work of

historical fiction Historical fiction is a literary genre in which a fictional plot takes place in the Setting (narrative), setting of particular real past events, historical events. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literatur ...

, marked a major departure from his earlier

semi-autobiographical An autobiography, sometimes informally called an autobio, is a self-written account of one's own life, providing a personal narrative that reflects on the author's experiences, memories, and insights. This genre allows individuals to share thei ...

style and was later followed by its sequel, '' Pratham Alo'' (1996). His

magnum opus A masterpiece, , or ; ; ) is a creation that has been given much critical praise, especially one that is considered the greatest work of a person's career or a work of outstanding creativity, skill, profundity, or workmanship. Historically, ...

, '' Purba Paschim,'' dealt with the partition of Bengal''.'' Among his other notable works are the travelogue '' Payer Tolay Sorshe,'' published in two volumes, and the poetry collections '' Eka ebong Koekjon'' (1958), '' Ami Ki Rokom Vabe Beche Achi'' (1966), and '' Hathat Nirar Janya''. The last title refers to his fictional lover, Nira. For children, he created Kakababu, writing 36 novels in the series. He also wrote extensively for '' Desh'' magazine and claimed to have written more prose for it than any other writer. Among others awards, he received the 1985 '' Sahitya Akademi Award'' for '' Those Days'' (''Sei Somoy''). Among the films adapted from Sunil's works are, '' Aranyer Din Ratri'' and '' Pratidwandi'' (both 1970), Sabuj Dwiper Raja (1979), Ek Tukro Chand (2001), Mishawr Rawhoshyo (2013), Yeti Obhijaan (2017), and Kakababur Protyaborton (2022). In 2008, he was elected president of

Sahitya Akademi The Sahitya Akademi, India's National Academy of Letters, is an organisation dedicated to the promotion of literature in the languages of India. Founded on 12 March 1954, it is supported by, though independent of the Indian government. Its off ...

, narrowly defeating the Malayalam writer M.T. Vasudevan Nair. His simple, clear and conversational approach to prose with dry humor has inspired writers in Bengal and beyond. Shankha Ghosh noted that Sunil’s use of contemporary language let readers see parts of themselves they may have not seen," or "perhaps did not want to see." By doing so, he transformed personal confessions into shared experiences. According to Sitanshu Yashaschandra, Sunil never abandoned the personal for the regional, nor did he forsake his "Bengaliness" to seek a broader identity. "He is a writer of international stature, simply because he is a writer, such a good writer," he wrote.

Early life

He was born in Madaripur in a

Bengali Hindu Bengali Hindus () are adherents of Hinduism who ethnically, linguistically and genealogically identify as Bengalis. They make up the majority in the Indian states of West Bengal, Tripura, Andaman and Nicobar Islands, and Assam's Barak Valley ...

family which is now in

Bangladesh Bangladesh, officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eighth-most populous country in the world and among the List of countries and dependencies by ...

. At an early age, he moved to

Kolkata Kolkata, also known as Calcutta ( its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River, west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary ...

from his ancestral town, which became part of

East Pakistan East Pakistan was the eastern province of Pakistan between 1955 and 1971, restructured and renamed from the province of East Bengal and covering the territory of the modern country of Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India and Burma, wit ...

after the 1947 Partition of India. He studied at the Surendranath College, Dum Dum Motijheel College, City College, Kolkata – all affiliated with the

University of Calcutta The University of Calcutta, informally known as Calcutta University (), is a Public university, public State university (India), state university located in Kolkata, Calcutta (Kolkata), West Bengal, India. It has 151 affiliated undergraduate c ...

. Thereafter, he obtained his master's degree in Bengali from the

in 1954. He married Swati Banerjee on 26 February 1967. Their only son, Souvik, who stays in Boston, was born on 20 November 1967.

Literary career

Krittibas

In 1953, he co-founded the influential avant-grade Bengali magazine ''Krittibas'' with Deepak Majumder and Ananda Bagchi. As its editor, he transformed the magazine into a platform for a new generation of poets who experimented with innovative themes, rhythms, and language.

Other works

Later, he started writing for various publications of the Ananda Bazar group, a major publishing house in

and has been continuing it for many years. He became a friend of the beat poet

Allen Ginsberg Irwin Allen Ginsberg (; June 3, 1926 – April 5, 1997) was an American poet and writer. As a student at Columbia University in the 1940s, he began friendships with Lucien Carr, William S. Burroughs and Jack Kerouac, forming the core of th ...

while he was travelling in India. Ginsberg mentioned Gangopadhyay most notedly in his poem " September on Jessore Road." Gangopadhyay in return mentioned Ginsberg in some of his prose work. After serving five years as the Vice President, he was elected the President of the

on 20 February 2008. Sunil, along with Tarun Sanyal, Jyotirmoy Datta and Satrajit Dutta had volunteered to be defence witnesses in the famous trial of Hungry generation movement poet

Malay Roy Choudhury Malay Roy Choudhury (29 October 1939 – 26 October 2023) was an Indian Bengali poet, playwright, short story writer, essayist and novelist who founded the Hungryalist movement in the 1960s. Early life and education Malay Roy Choudhury was ...

Works

Author of well over 200 books, Sunil was a prolific writer who has excelled in different genres but declares poetry to be his "first love". His ''Nikhilesh'' and ''Neera'' series of poems (some of which have been translated as ''For You, Neera'' and ''Murmur in the Woods'') have been extremely popular. As in poetry, Sunil was known for his unique style in prose. His first novel was '' "Atmaprakash"'' and it was also the first writing from a newcomer in literature published in the prestigious magazine – '' Desh'' (1965). It was critically acclaimed but some controversy arose for its aggressive and 'obscene' style. Sunil said that he was afraid of this novel and went away from

Calcutta Kolkata, also known as Calcutta (List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, its official name until 2001), is the capital and largest city of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal. It lies on the eastern ba ...

for a few days.. In an interview session with acclaimed film director Rituparno Ghosh, Sunil Gangopadhyay said that before his marriage, his brother in law after reading the novel 'Atmaprakash' was shocked and thought that Sunil Gangopadhyay was not a good match for his sister.

Satyajit Ray Satyajit Ray (; 2 May 1921 – 23 April 1992) was an Indian film director, screenwriter, author, lyricist, magazine editor, illustrator, calligraphy, calligrapher, and composer. He is widely considered to be one of the greatest and most influ ...

thought to make a film on it but it wasn't possible for reasons. The central character of ''Atmaprakash'' is a young man of core-calcutta'- Sunil, who leads a bohemian life-style. The novel had inspiration from "

On the road ''On the Road'' is a 1957 novel by American writer Jack Kerouac, based on the travels of Kerouac and his friends across the United States. It is considered a defining work of the postwar Beat and Counterculture generations, with its protagoni ...

" by

Jack Kerouac Jean-Louis Lebris de Kérouac (; March 12, 1922 – October 21, 1969), known as Jack Kerouac, was an American novelist and poet who, alongside William S. Burroughs and Allen Ginsberg, was a pioneer of the Beat Generation. Of French-Canadian ...

, the beat generation writer. His historical fiction '' Sei Somoy'' (translated into English by Aruna Chakravorty as '' Those Days'') received the Indian

award in 1985. ''Sei Somoy'' continues to be a best seller more than two decades after its first publication. The same is true for ''

Prothom Alo ''Prothom Alo'' () is a Bengali language, Bengali-language daily newspaper in Bangladesh, published from Dhaka. It is one of the largest circulated newspaper in Bangladesh. According to the National Media Survey of 2018, conducted by Kantar MRB ...

'' (also translated recently by Aruna Chakravorty as ''First Light''), another best selling historical fiction and ''Poorba-Pashchim'', a raw depiction of the partition and its aftermath seen through the eyes of three generations of Bengalis in West Bengal, Bangladesh and elsewhere. He is also the winner of the Bankim Puraskar (1982), and the

Ananda Puraskar The Ananda Puraskar () is an award for Bengali literature awarded annually by the ABP Group to writers using Bengali language, Bengali, usually from West Bengal, India. History The award can be traced to a comment by Annada Shankar Ray ruing the ...

(twice, in 1972 and 1989). Sunil Gangopadhyay giving autographs to his fans in Kolkata Book Fair 2010 by Piyal Kundu

Sunil wrote in many other genres including travelogues, children's fiction, short stories, features, and essays. Among his pen-names are: Nil Lohit, Sanatan Pathak, and Nil Upadhyay. Though he wrote all types of children's fiction, one character created by him that stands out above the rest, was Kakababu, the crippled adventurist, accompanied by his

young adult In medicine and the social sciences, a young adult is generally a person in the years following adolescence, sometimes with some overlap. Definitions and opinions on what qualifies as a young adult vary, with works such as Erik Erikson's stages ...

nephew Santu, and his friend Jojo. Since 1974, Sunil Gangopadhyay wrote over 35 novels of this popular series, most of which appeared in Anandamela magazine.

Adaptations of his literary works

made two films '' Pratidwandi'' and '' Aranyer Din Ratri'' based on the works of Ganguly. * One of Sunil Gangopadhyay's cult poems, ''Smritir Shohor'' has been turned into a song for the film '' Iti Mrinalini'' (2011) directed by Aparna Sen. * Six of his ''Kakababu'' series novels have been adapted into big screen— ** '' Sabuj Dwiper Raja'' (1979) directed by Tapan Sinha ** '' Kakababu Here Gelen?'' (1996) directed by Pinaki Chaudhuri ** '' Ek Tukro Chand'' (2001) directed by Pinaki Chaudhuri ** '' Mishor Rahasya'' (2013) directed by Srijit Mukherji ** '' Yeti Obhijaan'' (2017) directed by Srijit Mukherji ** '' Kakababur Protyaborton'' (2021) directed by Srijit Mukherji * Shyamaprasad adapted his novel 'Hirek Deepti' as Malayalam feature '' Ore Kadal'' in 2007, and his novel 'Megh Brishti Alo' short story into the 2012 Malayalam film '' Arike'' *The movie Hotath Neerar Jonnyo (2004), is based on Sunil's short story ''Rani O Abinash''. *The movie '' Moner Manush'' (2010), directed by Goutam Ghose a film based on Sunil's novel by the same name which depicts the life of Lalon Fakir, a famous Bengali philosopher and a Baul saint. *The movie '' Aparajita Tumi'' (2012), directed by Aniruddha Roy Chowdhury, is based on Sunil's novel ''Dui Nari Hate Tarbari''. *'' Vara: A Blessing'' (2013), English film directed by Khyentse Norbu, is based on his short story ''Rakta Aar Kanna'' (Blood and Tears). *''Yugantar'', an Indian television series that aired on

DD National DD National (formerly DD1) is an Indian state-owned entertainment television channel, founded by the Government of India, owned by the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (India), Ministry of Information and Broadcasting. It is the flagshi ...

in the 80s was based on Gangopadhyay's novel '' Sei Somoy''.

Death

Sunil Gangopadhyay died at 2:05 a.m. on 23 October 2012 at his South Kolkata residence, following a major

cardiac arrest Cardiac arrest (also known as sudden cardiac arrest CA is when the heart suddenly and unexpectedly stops beating. When the heart stops beating, blood cannot properly Circulatory system, circulate around the body and the blood flow to the ...

. He was suffering from prostate cancer for some time and went to Mumbai for treatment. He returned to Kolkata on the day of ''Mahalaya''. Although he was a communist and an atheist. Controversially, Gangopadhyay's body was cremated following Hindu custom on 25 October at Keoratola crematorium with several dignitaries and numerous fans paying their last tributes. Ganguly was not a Hindu or Muslim but a committed atheist.

Pranab Mukherjee Pranab Kumar Mukherjee ( ; born, 11 December 1935 – 31 August 2020) was an Indian statesman who served as the president of India from 2012 until 2017. He was the first person from West Bengal to hold the post of President of India. In a pol ...

, the then-

President of India The president of India (ISO 15919, ISO: ) is the head of state of the Republic of India. The president is the nominal head of the executive, the first citizen of the country, and the commander-in-chief, supreme commander of the Indian Armed ...

, condoled the death of Gangopadhyay saying:

Gangopadhyay had enriched Bengali literature through his unique style. He was one of the best intellectuals among his contemporaries. The vacuum created by his death cannot be filled.

Buddhadeb Bhattacharjee, the former Chief Minister of West Bengal a

Controversies

* In 1970, Satyajit Ray's film '' Pratidwandi,'' based on the novel of same name by Gangopadhyay, depicted how a poor nurse used to entertain men for some ''moolah''. This arose controversy and nurses across the city of Kolkata protested against such depiction. * In 2006 novel ''Ardhek Jibon'', he expressed his carnal desire for

Hindu Hindus (; ; also known as Sanātanīs) are people who religiously adhere to Hinduism, also known by its endonym Sanātana Dharma. Jeffery D. Long (2007), A Vision for Hinduism, IB Tauris, , pp. 35–37 Historically, the term has also be ...

goddess

Saraswati Saraswati (, ), also spelled as Sarasvati, is one of the principal Devi, goddesses in Hinduism, revered as the goddess of knowledge, education, learning, arts, speech, poetry, music, purification, language and culture. Together with the godde ...

created some controversies. A retired IPS officer lodged a case against Gangopadhyay in the Calcutta High Court. Against this controversy Gangpadhyay felt– he had no freedom to express what he felt. Another Bengali writer

Buddhadeb Guha Buddhadeb Guha (29 June 1936 – 29 August 2021) was an Indian Bengali language fiction writer, singer and painter. Career Born in Calcutta, Guha studied at St. Xavier's College of the University of Calcutta. He spent his early years in vari ...

found this a cheap gimmick and he told– "I don't support such cheap gimmicks. An author should set an example for the younger generations. If an author thinks it's cool to say that he loves to booze and enjoys going to Sonagachhi, then this only speaks poorly of him." * In September 2012, Bangladeshi author Taslima Nasreen accused Sunil Gangopadhyay of sexually harassing her and other women. She also alleged that Gangopadhyay was involved in banning her novel '' Dwikhandito'' and her "banishment" from West Bengal. Sunil denied the allegation and joked to Subodh Sarkar on his last birthday, "Look, Sunil is ''dwikhandito'' (cut in two)." His wife, Swati, backed him as well.

List of major works

Poetry or Poems

* ''Hathat Nirar Janya'' * ''Bhorbelar Upohar'' * ''Sada Prishtha tomar sange'' * ''Sei Muhurte Nira'' * ''Kaydata Shikhe Nebe'' * ''Jodi Nirbason Dao'' *''Pagol Kota''

Novels

* ''Atmaprakash '' (1964) * ''Sonali Dukkho '' * ''Chaya Darshon '' * ''Anno Jiboner Shad'' * ''Shopno Somvob '' * ''Suniler Satdin'' * ''Rani O Obinash'' * ''Kothay Alo'' * ''Sudur Jhornar Jole'' * ''Jol Jongoler Kabbo'' * ''Ekti Rat Tinti Jibon'' * ''Jomoj Kahini '' * ''Madhu Kahini'' * ''Otyagsahan'' * ''Gonesh Diye Shuru'' * ''Unmochoner Muhurte'' * ''Adhar Raater Atithi'' * ''Aakash Paatal'' * ''Asroy'' * ''Alpona Aar Shikha'' * ''Achena Manush'' * ''Aamar Swapna'' * ''Nadir pare khela'' * ''Satyer Aral'' * ''Eka Ebong Koyekjon'' * '' Sei Somoy'' * ''Pratham Alo'' * ''Poorba-Pashchim'' * ''Hirok Deepthi'' * ''Nihsanga Samrat'' (2005) * ''Moner Manus'' (2008) * ''Bosudha o tar meye'' (2010) * ''Saraswati-r pa-er kacche'' (2012) * ''Radha Krishna'' (2015) * ''Jibon J Rokom'' * ''Payer Tolay Sorshe''

Autobiography

* '' Ardhek Jibon'' * ''Chabir Deshe, Kabitar Deshe''

Travelogue

* "Bijone Nijer Sathe" * "Amader Choto Nadee" * "Tin Samudro Satash Nadee"

"Kakababu" series

Translated books

* '' First Light'' * '' Those days'' * ''East-West'' Penguin Books India * ''The Lovers and other stories'' * ''Pratidwandi'' * ''Murmur in the Woods'' * ''The Youth'' * ''Ranu O Bhanu'' Translated by Sheila Sengupta * ''The Lonely Monarch'' Translated by Swapna Dutta, *''Blood'' Translated by Debali Mookerjea-Leonard

Awards and honours

Awards

* 1972:

in general category * 1979: "National poet" honour was given by ''Akashbani'' Kolkata * 1983: Bankim Puraskar for the book ''Sei Somoy'' * 1984: Sahitya Akademi Award for the book ''Sei Somoy'' * 1989:

for the book ''Poorba-Pashchim'' * 1989: ''Sahitya Setu puroskar'' * 1999: ''Annada-Snowcem puroska'' for the story ''Nil Lohiter Golpo'' * 2003: ''Annadashankar puroskar'' * 2004: Saraswati Samman for ''Prothom Alo'' * 2011: The Hindu Literary Prize, shortlist, ''The Fakir'' * 2012: Sera Bangali Lifetime Achievement Award by Star Ananda

Honors

* 2002: Sheriff of

. * Honorary D.Litt. from the University of Burdwan