Jagari

Jagari or Jagori (Bengali: জাগরী, English: "The Vigil" or "Awake") is a Bengali novel written by Satinath Bhaduri. The novel is considered to be a master-piece of Indian literature and it was first published in 1945.[1] It is a semi-autobiographical novel and it is set the 1940s's during the Quit India Movement.[2][3][4]

Jagari
AuthorSatinath Bhaduri
Original titleজাগরী
TranslatorLila Ray
CountryIndia
LanguageBengali
GenreNovel
Published1945
Published in English
1963
(Asia Publishing House, Bombay)
Media typePrint
AwardsRabindra Puraskar (1950)

Plot

The novel is written in first-person narrative, but from four different people's point of view. During India's freedom movement Bilu, an Indian revolutionary is sentenced to death. The novel starts in the jail custody at the last night before the convict is to be hanged. The first chapter is written from that Bilu's perspective, where he narrates his own life and experiences. It also tells the inhuman trials and tortures he faced. The second, third and fourth chapter narrate the same story from his father, mother and brother's perspectives. All of them await the capital punishment while explaining their own thoughts, anxiety and experiences.

Theme

The novel is written in the background of the Quit India Movement (1942).[5] It narrates common Bengali people's involvement in India's freedom movement. Satinath Bhaduri had direct experience of contemporary Indian politics and the Quit India movement. He added many autobiographical elements in the plot.[1][6]

Publication

The novel was first published in 1945. It was author's debut novel.[7] Right after the publication it became popular among Bengali readers. Sisir Kumar Das, in his book History of Indian Literature: 1911-1956, struggle for freedom : triumph and tragedy wrote that this novel is "one of the finest political novel" written in Bengali.[8] In a 2014 Scroll.in article, the novel was included in one of the "five must-read books of Bengali literature".[2]

Awards

The book received the following awards:

  • Rabindra Purashkar award from the West Bengal government (1950)[9]

References
  1. Trust, National Book (1997). Masterpieces of Indian literature. National Book Trust. p. 124. ISBN 978-81-237-1978-8.
  2. Staff, Scroll. "The five must-read books of Bengali literature". Scroll.in. Retrieved 24 January 2016.
  3. Chaudhuri, Sukanta (1990). Calcutta, the Living City: The present and future. Oxford University Press.
  4. Indian & Pakistan Year Book & Who's who. Bennett, Coleman & Company. 1950. p. 54.
  5. Mācave, Prabhākara (1976). Four decades of Indian literature: a critical evaluation. Chetana Publications. p. 99.
  6. Socialist Perspective. Council for Political Studies. 1989. p. 117.
  7. Sharma, Satya Deo (1985). Thematic Dichotomy of Writings in Indian English, Indology, and Culture. Prakash Book Depot. p. 77.
  8. Das, Sisir Kumar (1991). History of Indian Literature: 1911-1956, struggle for freedom : triumph and tragedy. Sahitya Akademi. pp. 773–. ISBN 978-81-7201-798-9.
  9. Rāmakr̥ṣṇan, I. Vi (1 January 2005). Narrating India: The Novel in Search of the Nation. Sahitya Akademi Publications. ISBN 978-81-260-2072-0.
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