Ajit Kumar Dutta, known as Ajit Dutta, (23 September 1907 – 30 December 1979) was a prominent

Bengal Bengal ( ; bn, বাংলা/বঙ্গ, translit=Bānglā/Bôngô, ) is a geopolitical, cultural and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the eastern part of the Indian subcontinent at the apex of the Bay of Bengal, predom ...

i poet, writer, essayist and professor.

Early life

Ajit Dutta passed the entrance examination from Kishorilal Jubilee School in Dhaka in 1924 and was admitted to the

Jagannath College Jagannath University (JnU) ( bn, জগন্নাথ বিশ্ববিদ্যালয় ''Jagannātha biśbabidyālaẏa'', University Acrostic : জবি or JnU) is a state-funded public university at 9–10, Chittaranjan Avenue in Sa ...

( present day Jagannath University ). After passing the Higher Secondary, he moved to

Calcutta Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , List of renamed places in India#West Bengal, the official name until 2001) is the Capital city, capital of the Indian States and union territories of India, state of West Bengal, on the eastern ba ...

in 1926 and was admitted to

Vidyasagar College Vidyasagar College (Bengali: বিদ্যাসাগর কলেজ) is a state government-aided public college, affiliated to the University of Calcutta, located in North Kolkata, West Bengal, India. The college offers both post-gradu ...

with Honors in English. But within a few days, after the death of his elder brother, he returned to

Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; bn, ঢাকা, Ḍhākā, ), formerly known as Dacca, is the capital and largest city of Bangladesh, as well as the world's largest Bengali-speaking city. It is the eighth largest and sixth most densely populated city ...

and was admitted in the Bangla and Sanskrit department of

Dhaka University The University of Dhaka (also known as Dhaka University, or DU) is a public research university located in Dhaka, Bangladesh. It is the oldest university in Bangladesh. The university opened its doors to students on July 1st 1921. Currently i ...

. Ajit Dutt placed first in first class in BA in 1926 and MA in 1930 from Dhaka University.

Career

Ajit Dutt started his career by joining

on a temporary basis. Shortly afterwards, he started teaching at Ripon School in Calcutta. He left school in 1934 and joined Ripon College . He also taught in Presidency College and joined the Indian Tea Market Expansion Board as an Assistant Publicity Officer, where he served for 10 years. He was publicity officer of Calcutta National Bank. After serving here for 10 years, he joined the teaching of Bangla Department of

Jadavpur University Jadavpur University is a public state university located in Jadavpur, Kolkata, West Bengal, India. It was established in 1905 as ''Bengal Technical Institute'' and was converted into Jadavpur University in 1955. In 2022, it was ranked fourth am ...

on 21 August 1956. He retired from the university on 12 February 1971 as the head of the department.

Literature contribution

Ajit Dutt's first book of poetry, ''Kusumer Mash'', was published in 1930. He was a colleague of Buddhadeb Bose. He co-edited a magazine called ''Pragati'' with

Buddhadev Bose Buddhadeva Bose (; 1908–1974), also spelt Buddhadeb Bosu, was an Indian Bengali writer of the 20th century. Frequently referred to as a poet, he was a versatile writer who wrote novels, short stories, plays and essays in addition to poetry. H ...

. Later he joined ''

Kallol ''Kallol'' ( bn, কল্লোল) refers to one of the most influential literary movements in Bengali literature, which can be placed approximately between 1923 and 1935. The name ''Kallol'' of the ''Kallol group'' derives from a magazine of t ...

'' literary group. Ajit Dutt used to write regularly in ''Kallol'', a popular Bengali literary magazine in the 1930s. In 1946, the year after the publication of his poem ''Nosto Chand'', his essay "Mon Paboner Nou" continuously published in Desh Patrika under the pen-name of Raibat Chhand. Ajit Dutt wrote 50 essays on contemporary Bengali poetry, rhyming thought, thoughts on Rabindra, evaluation of works of various poets and writers, thoughts on art literature and children's literature. Ajit Dutt also played a significant role in the founding of the popular literary magazine ''

Kavita Kavita (Hindi: कविता) is a feminine given name. Notable people named Kavita * Kavita K. Barjatya (born 1977), Indian producer * Kavita Channe (born 1980), American sports announcer * Kavita Daswani (born 1971), American-Indian write ...

'', edited by

. He was one of the leading authors of this magazine. He started a publishing house called 'Diganta'.

Literary works

Books published by Ajit Dutta

Poetry books * ''Kusumer Mash'' (1930) * ''Patal Kanya'' (1938) * ''Nasto Chand'' (1945) * ''Purnanaba'' (1946) * ''Charar boi'' (1950) * ''Chayar Alpona'' (1951) * ''Jalna'' (1959) * ''Kabita-Sangraho'' (1959) * ''Sada Mekh Kalo Pahar'' (1971) Essays * "Janantika" (1949) * "Mon Paboner Noi" (1950) * "Saras Prabandha" (1968) * "Bangla Sahitye Hasros" (1960) * "KathaBharati" (translate) * "Durga Pujar Golpo" (translate)

Death

He died on December 30, 1989, at his own residence in

Kolkata Kolkata (, or , ; also known as Calcutta , the official name until 2001) is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal, on the eastern bank of the Hooghly River west of the border with Bangladesh. It is the primary business, comme ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Dutta, Ajit 1907 births 1979 deaths Writers from Kolkata Poets from West Bengal Bengali-language writers Bengali poets 20th-century Indian writers 20th-century Indian male writers Indian male writers Academic staff of Jadavpur University Vidyasagar College alumni Jagannath University alumni

Alumni Alumni (singular: alumnus (masculine) or alumna (feminine)) are former students of a school, college, or university who have either attended or graduated in some fashion from the institution. The feminine plural alumnae is sometimes used for grou ...

Bengali Hindus 20th-century Bengalis 20th-century Bengali poets Indian essayists Indian male essayists 20th-century Indian essayists 20th-century essayists 20th-century Indian poets Indian male poets