Forman Christian College (FCC) History Department and Ewing Literary Society on Monday hosted a tribute to Rabindhranath Tagore on the centenary of his Nobel Prize in Literature, when he became the first non-European and first South Asian to achieve this honour.
Tagore was born into the illustrious ‘Thakur’ (anglicised to Tagore) family. Rabindranath’s father Dwarkanath was an important landlord in Bengal who was a keen supporter of the social and religious reformer, Raja Ram Mohan Roy.
Rabi, as Rabindranath was also known, was one of thirteen children, most of whom were pioneers in their field; one brother was a poet and philosopher; another an accomplished musician, a third, the first Indian in the all-European Indian Civil Service, and a sister who was an accomplished novelist. Tagore himself was a true polymath: he wrote matchless poetry, novels, plays, operas, philosophical tracts and also painted. His collection of 157 poems, Gitangali made him famous globally, earning him the Nobel Prize in 1913.
He staunchly supported the Indian freedom struggle and even returned his knighthood in protest of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre of 1919. He wrote to the Viceroy Lord Chelmsford: ‘The time has come when badges of honour make our shame glaring in the incongruous context of humiliation, and I for my part, wish to stand, shorn, of all special distinctions, by the side of those of my countrymen who, for their so called insignificance, are liable to suffer degradation not fit for human beings.’
Tagore was also critical of the prevalent education system. In fact, he never completed any degree, the ones he received were honourary ones from different universities, including Oxford, awarded to him in 1940. In order to promote his educational ideas, Tagore established an experimental school of learning with a focus on what the students wanted to learn at Shantiniketan, which later developed into the VisvaBhartiUniversity.
He inspired generations of people including Nobel Laureate Aung San Suu Kyi, who said about him, ‘During my years of house arrest I have learnt my most precious lesson from a poem by Rabindranath Tagore, many of whose verses reach out to that innermost, elusive land of the spirit that we are not always capable of exploring ourselves.’ Suu Kyi was inspired by Tagore’s poem “Ekla Chalo Re” (go your own way, alone). He has mesmerised people all over the world by his immortal art.
The program ended with a recitation of “Amar Sonar Bangla”, Bangladesh’s national anthem. It was read in Bangali, English and Urdu as show of solidarity with the Bengalis, and as a celebration of this great poet who was once ironically banned in that region.
The program emphasizes that Tagore was a South Asian laureate, and must be remembered as such.
Forman Christian College (FC) is an old college which has a remarkable name in the history. This is an admiring act by the Department of History and I like how essay service assists or helps the students of today related to their work like assignments, journals, projects and research papers.
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