The 200th Birth Anniversary of Michael Madhusudan Dutt was Recognised at the Kolkata Literature Festival

Explore Michael Madhusudan Dutt's literary legacy at the Kolkata Literature Festival. Learn about his pioneering use of Amitrakshar Chanda in Bengali poetry.

on Jan 29, 2024

The 200th Birth Anniversary of Michael Madhusudan Dutt was Recognised at the Kolkata Literature Festival | Frontlist

Academic Sakti Sadan Mukhopadhyay, poet Agni Roy, and poet-literary critic Aveek Majumdar discussed Dutt's legacy in Bengali literature.

The 200th birth anniversary of Michael Madhusudan Dutt, the 19th-century poet who introduced amitrakshar chanda, also known as Blank Verse, to Bengali poetry, was commemorated at a session at the Kolkata Literature Festival, in collaboration with The Telegraph.

Dutt was also the first to replace deva mahima, or hymn to the deity, which was traditional in Bengali poetry, with humanism. In his famous work Meghbad Kabya, published in 1861, he deified Ravana, the demon god, rather than Ram.

Dutt's 200th birth anniversary, on January 25, was marked with a discourse titled Michael-er Amitrakshar: Bangla Padye Natun Swar. The discussion shed insight on the poet's relevancy and relatability even now.

Academic Sakti Sadan Mukhopadhyay, poet Agni Roy, and poet-literary critic Aveek Majumdar discussed Dutt's legacy in Bengali literature.
"It is just fitting that we are discussing Michael's amitrakshar chanda just one day after his 200th birth anniversary. He was a nineteenth-century poet and playwright who popularised the sonnet, or chaturdashpadi kabita, in Bengali literature. In 1860, he employed amitrakshar in his work Padmabati. "And then, of course, he wrote his epic Meghnad Badh Kabya in amitrakshar," Majumdar explained.

According to Mukhopadhyay, the history of Bengali poetry dates back 1,000 years.

"Mitrakshar, also known as payar chanda, controlled the form and rhythm of Bengali poetry for much of that period, requiring that each stanza have a definite rhythm and a complete meaning. Michael broke it. "He emphasised meaning over rhythm," the expert remarked.

Roy said that another Bengali poet, Satyendranath Dutta, praised Dutt's achievement of "leaping over payar's rhythm and creating a new way of writing poetry where meaning is the main force." He reminded us that without amitrakshar, prose poetry would not have been feasible.

Mukhopadhyay claimed that Bengali poetry has a 1,000-year tradition.

"Mitrakshar, also known as payar chanda, controlled the form and rhythm of Bengali poetry for much of that period, requiring every stanza to have a predetermined rhythm and a whole meaning. Michael shattered that. "He emphasised meaning over rhythm," the scholar stated.

Roy described how another Bengali poet, Satyendranath Dutta, praised Dutt's ability to "leap over payar's rhythm and create a new way of writing poetry where meaning is the main force." He reminded us that prose poetry would not have been feasible without amitrakshar.

Mukhopadhyay stated of payar: "Back then, it was reported that Chinese girls were forced to wear iron shoes to keep their feet small and lovely. Similarly, payar was like an iron shoe, requiring poets to obey certain rigid norms. Michael liberated Bengali poetry from the iron rule."

From Bharatchandra to Charjapad, 800 years of Bengali poetry were dominated by deva mahima, or divine adoration. Dutt, a 19th-century Bengal Renaissance poet, replaced it with humanism. For him, Ravana, not Ram, was the hero.