The Tagore family ( ) has been one of the leading families of Kolkata, West Bengal, India, and is regarded as one of the key influencers during the

Bengali Renaissance 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 ...

. The family has produced several people who have contributed substantially in the fields of business, social and religious reformation, literature, art, politics and music.Deb, Chitra, pp 64–65. The most prominent figures of this family include Dwarkanath Tagore, a pioneering industrialist; Rabindranath Tagore, Nobel laureate in literature; Abanindranath Tagore, a distinguished artist and more.

Family history

They were Bengali

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 ...

Pirali Brahmin ('Pirali' historically carried a stigmatized and pejorative connotation) and originally belonged to a village named Pithabhog in what is now

Khulna Khulna (, ) is the third-largest city in Bangladesh, after Dhaka and Chittagong. It is the administrative centre of the Khulna District and the Khulna Division. It is the divisional centre of 10 districts of the division. Khulna is also the seco ...

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 ...

. They were the descendants of Deen Kushari who was granted a village named Kush in

Bardhaman Bardhaman (, ), officially Bardhaman Sadar, is a city and municipality in the state of West Bengal, India. It is the headquarters of Purba Bardhaman district, having become a district capital during the period of British rule. Burdwan, an a ...

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 ...

Maharaja Maharaja (also spelled Maharajah or Maharaj; ; feminine: Maharani) is a royal title in Indian subcontinent, Indian subcontinent of Sanskrit origin. In modern India and Medieval India, medieval northern India, the title was equivalent to a pri ...

Kshitisura. Deen became its chief and came to be known as Kushari. The Tagores came to

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 ...

from

and started various business enterprises. The name 'Tagore' is an anglicized version of the Bengali name 'Thakur' which means 'Teacher' or 'God', and denotes respect since they were of a

Brahmin Brahmin (; ) is a ''Varna (Hinduism), varna'' (theoretical social classes) within Hindu society. The other three varnas are the ''Kshatriya'' (rulers and warriors), ''Vaishya'' (traders, merchants, and farmers), and ''Shudra'' (labourers). Th ...

caste. Mukhopadhyaya, Prabhatkumar, ''Rabindrajibani o Rabindra Sahitya Prabeshak'', 1985, Visva Bharati, p 3

Background

Tagores were Bengali Brahmins. However, Debendranath Tagore (father of Rabindranath Tagore) was one of the founding members of the Brahmo Samaj (Brahmo religion) along with Raja Rammohun Roy. Europeans started coming to Bengal in the 16th century, resulting in the founding of Ugulim ( Hooghly-Chinsura) by the Portuguese in 1579. The Bengal Renaissance of the 19th century was a remarkable period of societal transformation in which a whole range of creative activities – literary, cultural, social and economic – flourished. The Bengal Renaissance was the culmination of the process of emergence of the cultural characteristics of the Bengali people that had started in the age of Hussein Shah (1493–1519). This spread over, covering around three centuries, and had a tremendous impact on Bengali society. The Tagore family attained prominence during this period through its unusual social positioning between Indian and European influences.

The Pathuriaghata family

Among the family which settled in Pathuriaghata was that of Raja Gopi Mohan Tagore. He was a noted zamindar and philanthropist. His oldest son Hara Kumar Tagore was a

Sanskrit Sanskrit (; stem form ; nominal singular , ,) is a classical language belonging to the Indo-Aryan languages, Indo-Aryan branch of the Indo-European languages. It arose in northwest South Asia after its predecessor languages had Trans-cultural ...

scholar, writer and musician. Among Hara Kumar's children, Maharaja Sir Jatinodro Mohun Tagore and Sir Sourindro Mohun became famous.

The Jorasanko family

The business base

Dwarakanath Tagore (1794-1846) was the son of Nilmoni Tagore's second son, Rammani Tagore, but was adopted by the childless first son, Ramlochan Tagore. He inherited the Jorasanko property and Ramlochan's vast wealth. Dwarakanath was involved in multifarious activities ranging from being an agent of Mackintosh & Co. to being a serestadar, collector and

dewan ''Dewan'' (also known as ''diwan'', sometimes spelled ''devan'' or ''divan'') designated a powerful government official, minister, or ruler. A ''dewan'' was the head of a state institution of the same name (see Divan). Diwans belonged to the el ...

in the 24 Parganas collectorate. However, it was his business prowess that brought him both wealth and fame. In partnership with William Carr, he established Carr, Tagore and Company, the first equal partnership between European and Indian businessmen and the initiator of the managing agency system in India.

Creative outpourings

Debendranath's third son,

Hemendranath Tagore Hemendranath Tagore (1844–1884), Debendranath Tagore's third son, is notable for being the first Brahmo as the first child born in 1844 to any of the original 21 Brahmos who swore the First Brahmo Covenant on 21 December 1843 at Calcutta ...

was a strict disciplinarian who was entrusted with the responsibility of looking after the education of his younger brothers as well as administering the large family estates. Like most of Debendranath's children, he had varied interests in different fields. On one hand, he composed a number of "Bromhosangeets" and on the other, wrote articles on physical science which he planned to compile and edit into a textbook for school students. He was known for his physical strength and wrestling skills. Exceptionally for the times, he insisted on formal education for his daughters. He not only put them through school but trained them in music, arts and European languages such as French and German. It was another mark of his forward thinking that he actively sought out eligible grooms from different provinces of India for his daughters and married them off in places as far away as Uttar Pradesh and Assam.Utsa Ray
''Culinary Culture in Colonial India''
(Cambridge University Press 2015): 63.

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 ...

(1861–1941) was Debendranath's penultimate son. He was the first Asian to win a Nobel Prize. He also wrote what became the national anthems of India and

and coined the title '' Mahatma'' for Indian nationalist leader

Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (2October 186930January 1948) was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalism, anti-colonial nationalist, and political ethics, political ethicist who employed nonviolent resistance to lead the successful Indian ...

. The youngest son of Debendranath Tagore was Budhendranath, who died at a very young age.

The artists

The younger generation

Rabindranath Tagore's son, Rathindranath (1888–1961), was a multi-talented person. Besides being an agriculturist educated in the US, a talented architect, designer, master-carpenter, painter and writer, he was also the first 'upacharya' of Visva-Bharati University. Rathindranath Tagore's wife, Pratima Devi (1893–1969), was an artist associated with Shilpa Sadan, Visva Bharati and also with dance and dance-drama.

Sharmila Tagore Sharmila Tagore (; born 8 December 1944) also known by her married name Begum Ayesha Sultana, is an Indian actress primarily known for her work in Hindi cinema, Hindi and Cinema of West Bengal, Bengali films. Widely recognized as one of the gre ...

, a well-known Mumbai actress who is connected with Rabindranath Tagore, said that her mother's mother, Latika Tagore, was the granddaughter of Rabindranath Tagore's brother, Dwijendranath. Pragnasundari Debi, granddaughter of Maharshi Debendranath Tagore, married a famous Assam author, Laxminath Bezbarua. She was a literary phenomenon in her own right: her cookbook ''Aamish O Niramish Ahar'' (1900, reprinted 1995) was a standard given to every Bengali bride with her trousseau, and earned her the appellation "India's Mrs Beeton". Nandita, daughter of Mira Devi, the youngest daughter of Rabindranath Tagore, married Krishna Kripalani, a freedom fighter, author and parliamentarian.

The family environment

The environment at Jorasanko was filled with literature, music, painting, and theatre. They had their own education system. In the earlier days, the women educated at home. Swarnakumari Debi has recalled how in her early days the governess would write something on a slate which the girls then had to copy. When Debedranath discovered this, he at once stopped such a mindless and mechanical method and brought in a better teacher, Ajodhyanath Pakrashi – a male outsider in the women's quarters. Some of the sons like Ganendra, Gunendra and Jyoitrindra set up their own private theatre. To start with men played in the role of women, but over a period of time the women participated. The family environment played a major role in the development of its members. Even Rabindranath Tagore, who went to win the Nobel Prize in literature, had very little formal education.Utsa Ray
''Culinary Culture in Colonial India''
(Cambridge University Press 2015): 63.

Family tree

Detailed information on the Tagore Family trees have been presented in the book 'Women of the Tagore Household' by Chitra Deb, translated by Smita Choudhry and Sona Roy from page 514 to page 619. The family tree below while detailed, is incomplete. * Jaganath Kushari, m. Sundari Devi ** Balaram Kushari *** Harihar Kushari **** Ramananda Kushari ***** Moheswar Kushari ****** Sukdev Kushari ****** Panchanan Kushari ******* Joyram Tagore, m. Ganga Tagore ******** Nilmoni Tagore, m. Lalita Debee Ghosal (''Jorasanko family branch'') ********* Rammoni Tagore, m. Menaka Tagore (first wife), Durga Tagore (Second wife) and Alokasundori Tagore (third wife) ********** Radhanath Tagore, m. Parvati Devi Tagore ********** Rama Nath Tagore, m. Kumudini Tagore ********** Dwarkanath Tagore, m. Digambari Devi Tagore *********** Girindranath Tagore, m. Suhasini Devi Tagore ************ Ganendranath Tagore, m. Swarnakumari Devi Tagore ************ Gunendranath Tagore, m. Saudamini Devi *************

Gaganendranath Tagore Gaganendranath Tagore (17 September 1867 – 14 February 1938) was an Indian painter and cartoonist of the Bengal school. Along with his brother Abanindranath Tagore, he was counted as one of the earliest modern artists in India. Life and ca ...

, m. Promod Kumari Tagore ************** Nabendranath Tagore ************** Gahendranath Tagore, m. Mrinalini Tagore ************** Kanakendranath Tagore, m. Suramasundari Tagore (first wife) and Latika Tagore (second wife) *************** Gitindranath Tagore, m. Ira Tagore ****************

(Rinku), m.

Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi Nawab Mohammad Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi (also known as Mansur Ali Khan or M. A. K. Pataudi; 5 January 1941 – 22 September 2011; nicknamed Tiger Pataudi) was an Indian cricketer and a former captain of the Indian cricket team. Pataudi was ap ...

*****************

Saif Ali Khan Saif Ali Khan (; born Sajid Ali Khan Pataudi; 16 August 1970) is an Indian actor and film producer who primarily works in Hindi cinema, Hindi films. The titular head of the Pataudi family since 2011, he is the son of actress Sharmila Tagore a ...

, m. Amrita Singh (divorced), m. Kareena Kapoor ****************** Sara Ali Khan ****************** Ibrahim Ali Khan Pataudi ****************** Taimur Ali Khan Pataudi ****************** Jehangir Ali Khan Pataudi ***************** Saba Ali Khan ***************** Soha Ali Khan, m. Kunal Khemu ****************** Inaaya Naumi Khemu **************** Oindrila Tagore Kundu (Tinku), m. Dilip Kundu ***************** Mickey Kundu **************** Romila Sen, m. Nikhil Sen *************

Abanindranath Tagore Abanindranath Tagore (Bengali language, Bengali: অবনীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 August 1871 – 5 December 1951) was an Indian painter who was the principal artist and creator of the Indian Society of Oriental Art in ...

, m. Suhasini Devi ************** Alokendra Tagore ************** Amitendranath Tagore, m. Arundhuti Tagore *************** Ayanendranath Tagore ************* Samarendranath Tagore *************

Sunayani Devi Sunayani Devi (18 June 1875 – 23 February 1962) was an Indian painter born into the aristocratic Tagore family in Kolkata, Calcutta, West Bengal. She was a self taught artist, with no academic training in art. Inspired by her brothers, Abanind ...

, m. Rajanimohan Chattopadhyay ************* Binayani Devi, m. Seshendra Bhushan Chattopadhyay ************** Pratima Devi, m. Nilanath Mukhopadhyay *********** Debendranath Tagore, m. Sarada Devi Tagore ************

, m. Mrinalini Devi Tagore *************

Rathindranath Tagore Rathindranath Thakur (anglicised as Rathindranath Tagore, 27 November 1888 – 3 June 1961) was an Indian educationist, Agronomy, agronomist, painter, in leathercraft, and a woodworker. He served as the first vice-chancellor of Visva-Bharati Un ...

, m. Pratima Devi ************** Nandini Devi (adopted), m. Giridhari Lala *************** Sunandan Lala ************** Tulika Tagore *************** Shomik Bose *************** Sohini Bose ************* Shamindranath Tagore (died at the age of 11) ************* Renuka Devi (died at the age of 12) ************* Meera Devi, m. Nagendranath Ganguly Ganguli ************** Nitindranath Ganguli (died at the age of 20) ************** Nandita Kriplani, m. Krishna Kripalani (died childless) ************* Madhurilata Devi (Bela), m. Saratchandra Chak Chakravarti (Bela died childless at the age of 32 due to

tuberculosis Tuberculosis (TB), also known colloquially as the "white death", or historically as consumption, is a contagious disease usually caused by ''Mycobacterium tuberculosis'' (MTB) bacteria. Tuberculosis generally affects the lungs, but it can al ...

) ************ Saudamini Devi Gangopadhyay, m. Saradprasad Gangopadhyay ************* Indumati Devi Chattopadhyay, m. Nityaranjan Chattopadhyay ************** Leela Devi Chaudhuri, m Manmathanath Chaudhuri *************** Devika Rani, m. Himanshu Rai (first husband) and Svetoslav Roerich (second husband) *************** Nikhil Chaudhuri *************** Mahim Chaudhuri ************

Satyendranath Tagore Satyendranath Tagore (1 June 1842 – 9 January 1923) was an Indian civil servant, poet, composer, writer, social reformer and linguist from Calcutta, Bengal. He was the first Indian who became an Indian Civil Service officer in 1863. He was a ...

, m. Gyanodanandini Devi Tagore (first wife) and Jnanadanandini Devi Tagore (second wife) ************* Surendranath Tagore, m. Shonga Devi ************** Jaya Tagore, m. Kulprasad Sen (Motru) ************** Manjusri Tagore, m. K.P Chattopadhyay *************** Sunando Tagore, m. Pranati Tagore **************** Suprobho Tagore *************** Gautam Chattopadhyay, m. Jayasri Chattapadhyay **************** Dhiman Chattopadhyay ************* Kabindranath Tagore, m. Shalini Debi Tagore ************* Surendranath Tagore ************** Saumyendranath Tagore, m. Srimati Hutheesing ************* Indira Devi Chaudhurani, m. Pramatha Chaudhuri ************** Supriyo Tagore *************** Sudripto Tagore ************

************* Hitendranath Tagore ************** Hridindranath Tagore, m. Amiya Tagore ************** Shubhogendranath Tagore *************** Siddharth Tagore *************** Sundaram Tagore *************** Priyanka Tagore *************** Prarthana Tagore ************* Kshitindranath Tagore ************* Ritendranath Tagore ************* Pragyasundari Devi, m. Lakshminath Bezbaroa ************* Purnima Devi (Sudakshina), m. Sir Jwala Prasada ************** Kunwar Jyoti Prasad, m. Pamela Devi *************** Kunwar Jitendra Prasada, m. Kanta Prasada **************** Kunwar Jitin Prasada, m. Neha Seth ***************** Kunwar Janav Prasada ***************** Kunwari Jananya Prasada **************** Jahnavi Prasada ************* Pratibha Devi, m. Ashutosh Chaudhuri ************** Arya Chaudhuri ************* Abhi Devi ************* Manisha Devi, m. D.N. Chatterjee ************** Dipty Chaudhuri, m. Pandit Navin Chandra Ray ************* Shovana Devi, m. Nagendranath Mukhopadhyay ************* Sushama Devi, m. Darikanath Mukherjee ************** Lokendranath Mukherjee ************** Dr. Bharganath Mukherjee, m. Gauri Devi *************** Bharati Devi, m. Janak Prokash Gangooly ************** Bhaskarnath Mukherjee, m. Usha Devi ************* Sunrita Devi ************ Dwijendranath Tagore, m. Sarbasundari Tagore ************* Sudhindranath Tagore, m. Lata devi Tagore ************** Latika Tagore , m. Kanakendranath Tagore ************* Saroja Devi Chatterji ************** Saumyendranath Tagore, m. Srimati Hutheesingh ************* Dwipendranath Tagore, m. Hemlata Tagore (first wife) and Sushila Tagore (Second wife) ************** Dinendranath Tagore (Dinu Thakur), m. Binapani Devi (first wife) and Kamala Devi (second wife) ************** Nalini Chowdhury, m. Suhrit Nath Chowdhury *************** Purnima Chowdhury, m. Subir Tagore **************** Maitreya Tagore ************* Arunendranath Tagore ************** Himendranath Tagore *************** Himadri Tagore ************* Nitindranath Tagore ************** Archindranath Tagore *************** Arkendranath Tagore ************* Kritindranath Tagore ************ Birendranath Tagore ************* Balendranath Tagore ************ Jyotirindranath Tagore, m. Kadambari Devi ************ Somendranath Tagore, m. Suchita Devi Tagore ************ Swarnakumari Devi, m. Janakinath Ghosal ************* Jyotsnanath Ghosal, m. Sukriti Devi Ghosal ************* Sarala Devi Chaudhurani, m. Rambhuj Dutt Ghosal ************** Dipak Dutt, m. Radha Gandhi ************* Hiranmoyee Devi Ghosal ************ Saratkumari Devi, m. Jadugopal Mukherjee ************* Supravasundari Devi Haldar, m. Sukumar Haldar ************ Barnakumari Devi ************ Sukumari Devi Chaudhuri, m. Durgadas Chaudhuri ************* Ashutosh Chaudhuri, m. Pratibha Devi Chaudhuri ************ Punyendranath Tagore ************ Budhendranath Tagore ************* Rekha Menon Tagore, m. Dr. V. K. Narayana Menon *********** Nagendranath Tagore ********* Ramlochan Tagore (adopted son) ********* Rambullav Tagore ******** Darpanarayan Tagore (''Pathuriaghata family branch'') ********* Gopi Mohan Tagore, m. Rukmani Tagore (first wife) and Sarla Tagore (second wife) ********** Hara Kumar Tagore, m. Shibsundari Devi *********** Jatindramohan Tagore *********** Sourindra Mohun Tagore ************ Prodyot Coomar Tagore ********** Prasanna Coomar Tagore *********** Suhasini Devi, m.

*********** Gnanendramohan Tagore, m. Kamalmani Tagore ********** Kali kumar Tagore ********** Surji Kumar Tagore ********** Chandra Kumar Tagore ********** Nanda Kumar Tagore ********* Harimohan Tagore ********** Nandalal Tagore *********** Lalit Mohan Tagore *********** Upendra Mohan Tagore *********** Brasendra Mohan Tagore ********* Radha Mohan Tagore ********* Krishna Mohan Tagore ********* Pyare Mohan Tagore ********* Ladli Mohan Tagore ********** Harolal Tagore ********** Shamlal Tagore ********* Mohini Mohan Tagore ********** Kanailal Tagore ********** Gopal Lal Tagore *********** Kali Kishan Tagore ******** Anunderam Tagore (''Koilaghata family branch'') ******** Gobinderam Tagore (''Chorbagan family branch'')

Gallery

File:Dwarkanath Tagore.jpg, Dwarkanath Tagore File:Debendranath Tagore.jpg, Debendranath Tagore File:Gopeemohan Tagore.jpg, Gopi Mohan Tagore File:Dwijendranath Tagore.jpg, Dwijendranath Tagore File:JyotirindranathTagore.jpg, Jyotirindranath Tagore File:Rabindranath Tagore portrait (9).jpg,

File:Mrinalini Devi.jpg, Mrinalini Devi Tagore File:Swarnakumari Devi.jpg, Swarnakumari Devi File:Jatindramohan Tagore portrait.jpg, Jatindramohan Tagore File:Sarala Devi Chaudhurani.jpg, Sarala Devi Chaudhurani File:Satyendranath Tagore.JPG,

File:Gaganendranath Tagore.jpg,

File:Abanindranath Tagore photo.jpg,

File:Sunayani Devi 01.jpg,

File:Rathindranath Tagore.jpg,

File:PratimaDevi1921.jpg, Pratima Devi File:Devika Rani in Anjaan (1941).jpg, Devika Rani File:Artist Svetoslav Roerich.jpg, Svetoslav Roerich File:Pramatha chaudhury.jpg, Pramatha Chaudhuri File:Prajnasundari Bezbaroa.jpg, Pragyasundari Devi File:Lakhminath Bezbarua.jpg, Lakhminath Bezbarua File:Shovona Devi Tagore.jpg, Shobhanasundari Mukhopadhyay File:Sharmila T Lux-Award 2016.jpg,

File:Soha Ali Khan at Jaypore store launch in Bandra.jpg, Soha Ali Khan File:Kunal Khemu.jpg, Kunal Khemu File:Saif Ali Khan At The 5th Anniversary Celebration Of Chevrolet (cropped).jpg,

File:Amrita Singh & Sara Ali Khan at Shaadi By Marriott showcase (08) (cropped) 2.jpg, Amrita Singh File:Kareena Kapoor Khan in 2023 (1) (cropped).jpg, Kareena Kapoor Khan File:Sara Ali Khan graces Akash Ambani and Shloka Mehta’s engagement party (01) (cropped).jpg, Sara Ali Khan File:Jitin Prasada crop.jpg, Jitin Prasada

References

External links

Tagore family genealogy

Queensland University The University of Queensland is a public research university located primarily in Brisbane, the capital city of the Australian state of Queensland. Founded in 1909 by the Queensland parliament, UQ is one of the six sandstone universities, an i ...

Rabindra Bharati Museum, Kolkata – family chronology

Celebrating Tagore
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tagore Family Bengal Renaissance People from Kolkata

Family Family (from ) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). It forms the basis for social order. Ideally, families offer predictabili ...

Indian families Hindu families Bengali families Bengali Hindus