Michael Madhusudan Dutt Biography, Major Works & Facts

Michael Madhusudan Dutt Profile

Birth Date: January 25, 1824

Birth Place: Sagordari, a village in Keshabpur Upazila, Jessore District of Undivided Bengal

Died Date: June 29, 1873

Died Place: Calcutta General Hospital, Kolkata, India

Nickname: Timothy Penpoem

Cause of death: A soporific effect

Place of Burial: Lower Circular Road Cemetery, Kolkata, India

Parents: Rajnarayan Dutt, (Father), Jahnvi Devi (Mother)

Spouse: Rebecca Thompson McTavish (m. 1856–1856 estranged)

Girlfriend: Emelia Henrietta Sophie White

Number of Children: 4

1. Frederick Michael Milton (23 July 1861 - 11 June 1875)

2. Albert Napoleon (1869 - 22 August 1909)

3. Henrietta Elizabeth Sermista (1859 - 15 February 1879)

4. McTavish-Dutt

Michael Madhusudan Dutt Major Works

1. King Porus

2. The Captive Ladie (1849)

3. Ratul Potra

4. Sermista (1859) (Bengali and English)

5. Padmavati (1859)

6. Ekei Ki Boley Sabyota (1860)

7. Krishna Kumari (1860)

8. Buro Shaliker Ghare Ron (1860)

9. Tilottama Sambhava Kavya (1861)

10. Meghnad Badh Kavya (1861)

11. Brajagana Kavya (1861)

12. Veerangana Kavya (1861)

13. Ratnavali (English translation)

14. Nil Darpan (English translation)

15. Choturdoshpodi Kobitaboli

16. Rizia, the Sultana of Inde

17. Rosalo Sornolatika

18. Bongobani

19. Sonnets and other poems (1866)

20. Bongo bhumir prati

Michael Madhusudan Dutt Biography

The great poet Michael Madhusudan Dutt, popularly known as Madhusudan, was a celebrated the nineteenth-century Bengali poet, playwrights, dramatist and satirist. He was born into an aristocratic Kayastha dynasty in Sagordari on the bank of the Kopotaksho River, a village in Keshabpur Upazila under Jessore district of British India. He is considered to be one of the pioneers of Bengali renaissance literature.  He is also known as the first rebel poet of modern Bengali literature. Michael Madhusudan is the pioneer of the sonnet and blank verse rhymes in Bengali. From an early age, Dutt aspired to be an Englishman in form and manner. Though he was born in a sophisticated Hindu family, he converted to Christianity as a young man, much to the ire of his family, and adopted the first name, Michael.  In his childhood, he was recognized by his teachers as a precious child with a gift of literary talent. His early exposure to English education and European literature at home and his college inspired him to imitate the English in taste, manners and intellect. Since his adolescence, he started believing that he was born on the wrong side of the planet and that his society was unable to appreciate his talent. He also believed that the West would be more receptive to his creative genius. Michael Madhusudan was an irresistible fascination with Western literature, concentrated on writing in English.

Madhusudan was an ardent follower of the famous English poet Lord Byron. So after adopting Christianity, he went to Europe and started composing poems and plays in English. They showed a higher level of intellectual ability. However, he failed to gain the right appreciation. To his utter frustration, he found that he was not esteemed as a native writer of English literature. Out of his frustration, he composed a sonnet in Bangla "Kopotaksha Nad" which earned him a huge reputation in Bangla. Gradually he could realize that his true identity lay in Bengal and he was a sojourner in Europe. Afterwards, he regretted his fascination for England and the West. He came back to Bengal and devoted himself to Bangla literature from this period. He has written the first Bangla epic Meghnad Badh Kabya. In the second phase of his life, Madhusudan became attracted to his mother tongue. It was at this time that he started composing plays, satires and poetry in Bengal.

His greatest work is the epic poem Meghnadabadha Kavya based on the anecdote of Ramayana in blank verse. His other notable books are The Captive Lady, Sharmistha, Krishnakumari (Drama), Padmavati (Drama), Buro Shaliker Ghare Ro, Ekei Ki Bole Sabhyata, Tilottamasambhav Kavya, Birangana Kavya, Brajangana Kavya, Chaturdashpadi etc.  Michael's personal life was dramatic and painful. He died in Calcutta at the age of 49.

Michael Madhusudan Dutt's Early Life

Madhusudan Dutt was born on 25 January 1824 in Sagardari village of Jessore district (now Keshabpur Upazila of Jessore district in the state of Bangladesh) to an aristocratic Hindu Kayastha family. He was the only child of Rajnarayan Dutt and his first wife Jahnavi Devi. Rajnarayan Dutt was a renowned lawyer in the Sadar Civil Court of Calcutta. When Madhusudan was thirteen years old, he had to live in Calcutta. He built a huge building in the area of ​​Khidirpur Circular Garden Rich Road (now Karl Marx Street).

Michael Madhusudan Dutt's Education

Madhusudan's early education began with his mother Jahnavi Devi. Jahnavi Devi made him well acquainted with Ramayana, Mahabharata, Purana etc.  His early education began with Mufti Lutful Haque, the Imam of the Sheikhpura Mosque in a village near Sagardari.  He studied Bengali, Persian and Arabic learned by Imam.  Madhusudan spent his childhood in Sagardari. Madhusudan came to Calcutta at the age of thirteen. After attending a local school he was admitted to the then Hindu College (now Presidency University). Madhusudan was a meritorious student. Soon Madhusudan became a favourite student of the principal of the college, Captain D.  L. Richardson. Richardson instilled a love of poetry in Madhusudan. Derozio, a former professor at the Hindu College, was also inspired by the memory of his patriotism. Besides, his classmates in the college were Bhudev Mukherjee, Rajnarayan Bose, Gourdas Basak, Paricharan Sarkar and other eminent personalities of the nineteenth century. At the age of eighteen, his ambition to become a great poet and to go abroad became ingrained in his mind.

In 1843, Madhusudan expressed his desire to convert to Christianity to the Reverend Krishnamohan Banerjee. Later the same year, on 13 February, he converted to Christianity at the Old Mission Church, an Anglican church in Mission Row. He was baptized by Pastor Daltry.  Daltry named him "Michael". Madhusudan became known as "Michael Madhusudan Dutt".  His conversion caused a great stir in society.  Rajanarayana Dutt declared his infidel son of renunciation. After converting to Christianity, Madhusudan continued his studies at Bishop's College, Shibpur. Here he learned Greek, Latin, Sanskrit and other languages. Although Rajnarayan Dutt abandoned him, Bishop was paying for his college education fees. Four years later he stopped sending money. Madhusudan befriended some Madras students at Bishops College. After finishing his studies at Bishop's College, Madhusudan failed in his attempt to get a job in Calcutta. Then Madhusudan went to Madras (now Chennai) with his Madras friends in search of fortune. It is said that he went to Madras with that money by selling his textbooks without the knowledge of his relatives.

Michael Madhusudan Dutt's Career

Madhusudan could not get special benefits in Madras either. With the help of local Christians and Englishmen, he got a job as an English teacher in a school. However, his salary did not cover his expenses. It was during this time that he began writing in English newspapers. His poems began to be published in the Madras Chronicle under pseudonyms. He also edited a magazine called Hindu Chronicle. But in a short time, the magazine had to be shut down financially.  At the age of twenty-five, he wrote his first poem“The Captive Lady”. His reputation as a poet and skilled English writer spread.

Michael Madhusudan Dutt's Marriage

Shortly after arriving in Madras, Madhusudan married an English girl named Rebecca McTVis.  The couple's marriage lasted eight years.  Madhusudan had two sons and two daughters in Rebekah's womb. Shortly after his divorce from Rebecca in the latter part of his Madras life, Madhusudan married Emilia Henrietta Sophia, a young French woman. Henrietta was Madhusudan's lifelong companion. Meanwhile, Michael sends a copy of The Captive Lady to his friend Gourdas Basak, who sends it as a gift to JED Bethune. Overwhelmed by the book, Bethune wrote a letter to Michael advising him to return to the country and compose poetry in Bengali. In 1856 Madhusudan returned to Calcutta.  He did not bring his wife with him at that time. The poet went to England to study law but did not stay long in England because of the weather and racism. Then he moved to Versailles, France in 1860. But his financial situation was very bad. Only he was able to come to India after finishing his law studies for Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar. But he never used his education in Calcutta, moreover, he died of poverty.

Michael Madhusudan Dutt's Married life

Rather than establishing himself in Madras, the poet did a special job of marrying a white woman. While in Madras, he married Rebecca McTavish, an English woman. Orphan met his future wife, Rebecca, soon after he began teaching at an asylum school. This process of marriage, however, was not very easy.  He wrote to his friend Gauri Das, "It was very difficult to get Rebecca, you know all her (Rebecca) well-wishers were against this marriage" "Their marriage was performed on July 31, 1848.  Going abroad to get sick, getting a job and then marrying this foreigner all happened within six months of reaching Madras. But their marriage did not last long.  He thought he would be happy to have Rebecca with him after marriage. But Bidhata may not have written the thing of happiness on his forehead. There were many troubles and noises in the world. Michael's monogamy led to disagreements with his wife.  As a result, he left Rebecca within a few years.  Madhusudan had two sons and two daughters in Rebekah's womb. Shortly after his divorce from Rebecca in the latter part of his Madras life, Madhusudan married Henrietta Sophia, the daughter of a teacher at Madras Presidency College. Henrietta was also an all-round tasteful girl. Henrietta was Madhusudan's lifelong companion. They have a son named Napoleon and a daughter named Sharmistha. One of his descendants is the famous tennis player Leander Page.

Michael Madhusudan Dutt's Literary life

Madhusudan Dutt first entered the field of Bengali literature as a playwright. While translating the play 'Ratnabali' (written by Ramnarayan Tarkaratna) into English, he felt the lack of suitable plays in Bengali drama. He became interested in writing plays to fill this gap.  In 1859 he wrote the play 'Sharmistha'. This is the first original play written in Bengali. In 1860 AD, he wrote two satires namely: 'Akei Ki Bale Sabhyata' and 'Buro Shaliker Ghare Ro' and the complete play 'Padmavati'. He used the first blank verse rhyme in the play Padmavati.  In 1860 AD, he wrote the poem 'Tilottamasambhav' in blank verse.  Then one by one epic poem called 'Meghnad Badh Kavya' (181), 'Brajangana' Kavya (181), 'Krishnakumari' Natak (181), 'Birangana' Kavya (182), Chaturdashpadi Kavita (18) were written.

Michael Madhusudan Dutt's Literature inspiration

Madhusudan Dutt was greatly inspired in his literary life, especially by the literary works of the English poet Lord Byron and his life.  Although his great creation Meghnad Badh epic was published and it was not very easy to make it known, he still expressed himself in Bengali literature through the epic. As part of this, he introduced the first Homeric style of writing in poetry. He once said to himself: "I did not find myself as successful one morning, the success of this poem has been possible through many years of hard work."

Michael Madhusudan Dutt's Linguisticc skills

Michael Madhusudan Dutt was a linguist at the same time. As a child, he started learning the language from the village toll through his Persian language. In addition to English, he could speak Latin, Greek, Persian, Hebrew, Telugu, Tamil, etc. effortlessly. He could even write poetry in Persian and Italian. He knew twelve more languages ​​besides his mother tongue.

Michael Madhusudan Dutt's Drama

The emergence of Michael Madhusudan in Bengali drama is sudden. In 1852 Taracharan Sikder, J.  C. Gupta and Ramnarayan Tarkaratna started staging plays on the fancy stage in Bengal. The quality of the plays written at this time was not very good. In 1857, under the patronage of Ishwar Chandra Singh and Pratap Chandra Singh, zamindars of Paikpara, the play Ratnabali by Ramnarayan Tarkaratna was performed at the Belgachhia Natyamanche in Calcutta. Madhusudan's educated mind was disturbed to see the huge expenditure and enthusiasm of the zamindars for this simple play devoid of artistic quality. Then he became a novice in drama writing. Breaking the tradition of Sanskrit drama style of Ramnarayan Tarkaratna, he wrote the first modern Bengali drama following the western style. The number of plays written by Michael Madhusudan is limited. From 1859 to 1861 - these three years he practised drama. His plays written during this period are Sharmistha (1859), Akei Ki Bele Sabhyata (1860), Buro Shaliker Ghare Ro (1860), Padmavati (1860), Krishnakumari (1861).  There is also an unfinished play called Mayakanon (1874) before his death.

Sharmistha

Sharmistha is a mythical drama. Date of composition 1859. This is the first Bengali drama written in modern western style. The plot of the play is taken from the triangular love story of Raja Jayati, Sharmistha and Devyani narrated in the early period of Mahabharata. Although written in the Western style of drama, Michael did not completely abandon the Sanskrit style in this play. The use of poetic and rhetorical-long dialogues, narrative style of events, introverts, actresses, clowns, etc. in this play is similar to the Sanskrit style. The influence of the romantic style of English literature is also evident in this play. Although flawed as the first work, the play was well-received by English-educated readers of the time. The play was also successfully performed on the Belgachia Theater.

Akei Ki Bale Sabhyata' and 'Buro Shaliker Ghare Ro'

After Sharmistha, in 1860, Michael wrote two satires called Akei Ki Bale Sabhyata' and 'Buro Shaliker Ghare Ro'. These two satires are his two best plays.  The first was about the depravity of the English-educated neo-young community and the second was about the degeneration of the moral character of the orthodox socialists. In this play, Michael's powers of observation, sense of social reality and skill in composing stories, characters and dialogues are especially appreciated. But the content of the play offended both neo-conservative and traditionalist societies. So, although the play was supposed to be performed on Belgachia Theater, it did not happen in the end. Michael was very disappointed and later withdrew from the satire.

Padmavati

Madhusudan composed the play Padmavati in 1860. This is also a mythical drama. However, the basis of this play is not entirely Indian mythology. Madhusudan's story 'Apple of Discord' in Greek mythology serves as a twist in Indian mythology. Juno, Pallas and Venus in Greek mythology are Shachi, Murza and Rati in this play. Helen and Paris became Padmavati and Indranil. When Rati was chosen as the best beauty among the three goddesses, the other two goddesses became angry with Indranil and brought disaster to Indranil's life. In the end, Indranil was rescued by the efforts of Rati and Bhagwati and he was reunited with his estranged wife Padmavati. Although the original Greek anecdote is tragic, Michael has adapted the play into an English tragedy-comedy. The influence of Sanskrit drama style on this play is small.  Michael has become a staple here in plot-building, dramatic conflict presentation and character portrayal.

Mayakanon

After composing Krishnakumari plays, Michael concentrated on poetry. Lying on his death bed in his last life, at the request of Sharachandra Ghosh, the head of the Bengal Theater, he started composing the play Mayakanan. He could not finish the play. The play was finished by Bhuvanchandra Mukherjee.  The art value of this play is not special. No signature of Michael's creative genius is found in it.

Meghnadabadha Kavya

Madhusudan Dutt's greatest achievement is the epic Meghnadabadha Kavya based on the Ramayana anecdote in blank verse. Characters are Ravan, Indrajith, Sita, Sarma, Pramila etc. He has divided his poetry into more than eight cantos and according to Sanskrit rhetoric, it has also included cities, forests, forests, rocks, seas, mornings, evenings, wars, consultations etc. But he did not use new verses in the sermon, nor did he suggest the next verse in the sermon.  Meghnadabadha Kavya is the only creature in Bengali poetry in this respect.

Madhusudan has created epic poems with amazing construction skills. The significance of this poem is in the symbolism of Ravana's character.  Absolute arrogance was not manifested in the character of Ravana created by him.  The epic that he has written in the light of his humanity, the Ramayana, is, in fact, a romantic epic. For this reason, although 'Meghnadabadh Kavya' is epic in form, its soul is completely romantic and the triumph of life in this poem by Madhusudan is not of heroism, but compassion.

Birangana Patrakavya

Journalist poetry is first seen in Bengali literature in Birangana Kavya.  This book was written and published in 1862.  Shakuntala to Dushmanta, Tara to Som, Rukmini to Dwarkanath, Kaikayi to Dasaratha, Suparnakha to Lakshmana, Draupadi to Arjuna, Vanumati to Duryodhana, Dushala to Jayadratha, Jahnavi to Shantanu, Urvashi to Purubar.  Composed.  In his poetry, Madhusudan strikes at the root of the mythology of these women.  She expresses it in the light of human feelings in the narrative of the woman-heart.

Michael Madhusudan Dutt's Death

Madhusudan's last life was spent in extreme misery and poverty.  He did not have much success in the law business.  Moreover, he became indebted for his extravagant nature.  He died at Alipore General Hospital on June 29, 183 AD.