Bijaya Malla () (23 June 1925 – 24 July 1999) was a Nepalese poet, novelist and playwright. Malla wrote multiple novels, plays and poems in his lifetime. He is best known for his novels like ''Anuradha'' and plays like ''Koi Kina Barbaad Hos'', ''Baula Kaji ko Sapana'' and ''Dobhan''.

Early life and education

Malla was born on 23 June 1925 (10

Ashadh Asharh ( bn, আষাঢ় ''āshāḍh'', or, ଆଷାଢ଼ ''āsāḍha'') is the third month of the Bengali and Odia calendars and the Nepali system of the Hindu calendar. It is the first of the two months that comprise the wet season, loca ...

1982 BS) in Om Bahal,

Kathmandu , pushpin_map = Nepal Bagmati Province#Nepal#Asia , coordinates = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = , subdivision_type1 = Province , subdivision_name1 = Bagmati Prov ...

as the third son to father,

Riddhi Bahadur Malla Subba Riddhi Bahadur Malla (; 1898–1968) was a Nepali writer. Malla was born on 8 December 1898 in Benaras, British India. His sons, Govinda Bahadur Malla and Bijaya Malla are also renowned writers. He founded '' Sharada'', a Nepali-language ...

and mother Ananda Maya. Malla's father was the editor and founder of a Nepali literary magazine called Sharada. Both he and his elder brother Govinda Bahadur Malla 'Gothale' were influenced by their literary family. He received his school level education from

Durbar High School Durbar High School () or Bhanu Higher Secondary School, opened in 1854 is the oldest modern school in Nepal located near Rani Pokhari, Kathmandu. The school was originally built to teach sons of Ranas exclusively but was opened to public citizens i ...

. He grew up reading the works of

Shakespeare William Shakespeare ( 26 April 1564 – 23 April 1616) was an English playwright, poet and actor. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. He is often called England's natio ...

, Chekov and Ibsen. He received his high schooling education from

Banaras Hindu University Banaras Hindu University (BHU) IAST: kāśī hindū viśvavidyālaya IPA: /kaːʃiː hɪnd̪uː ʋɪʃwəʋid̪jaːləj/), is a collegiate, central, and research university located in Varanasi, Uttar Pradesh, India, and founded in 1916 ...

and enrolled for an ISc. (Intermediate of Science) education in

Tri-Chandra College Tri-Chandra Multiple Campus, more colloquially known as Tri-Chandra College, is a constituent campus of Tribhuvan University located in Ghantaghar, Kathmandu. Found in 1918 by Chandra Shumsher, it is the oldest institute of higher learning in Ne ...

but could not complete his degree due to the political situation in the country.

Literary and political career

His first poem ''Marnu Parcha Hai Dai'' was published in Sharada magazine (1997 BS, Shrawan, Year 6, Vol. 4) in 1940. His works are widely influenced by Freudian philosophy. He even served as the secretary of

Nepal Academy The Nepal Academy ( ne, नेपाल प्रज्ञा–प्रतिष्ठान), formerly known as Royal Nepal Academy ( ne, नेपाल राजकीय प्रज्ञा–प्रतिष्ठान), is an autonomo ...

. He was attracted towards politics after the killing of four martyrs by the Rana government in 1941. He began to participate in the

Nepal Praja Parishad The Nepal Praja Parishad ( Nepali: नेपाल प्रजा परिषद) was the first attempt to form an organization to lead the revolution against the Rana dynasty in Nepal. Led by Tanka Prasad Acharya, the group was founded in 19 ...

in 1948 for which he was imprisoned for two years by the government 1948 to 1950. After 1950, Nepal Praja Parishad became

Nepali Congress The Nepali Congress ( ne, नेपाली कांग्रेस ; abbr. NC) is the largest social democratic political party in Nepal. As per the results of recent local election, ''Nepali Congress'' stands as the single largest party of ...

and Malla became the member of it. After

Matrika Prasad Koirala Matrika Prasad Koirala ( ne, मातृका प्रसाद कोइराला ; 1 January 1912 – 11 September 1997) was the Prime Minister of Nepal for two terms from 16 November 1951 to 14 August 1952 and again from 15 June 1953 to ...

split with Nepali congress and formed Praja Parishad, he left Nepali Congress and joined Praja Parishad.

Notable works

Novels

* ''Anuradha'' (1961) * ''Kumari Shobha'' (1982) * ''Shrimati Sharada'' (1999)

Plays

* ''Patthar ko Katha'' (Story of a stone, 1971) * ''Saat Ekanki'' (Seven one-act plays, 1971) * ''Dobhaan'' (Confluence) * ''Bhitte Ghadi'' (Clock) * ''Sristi ko Parkhal Bhitra'' (Inside The Wall of Creation) * ''Bhulaibhul ko Yetharta'' (Reality of Blunders) * ''Koi Kina Barbaad Hos'' (Why Should One Be Devastated, 1969) * ''Jiudo Laas'' (Live Corpse) * ''Baula Kaji ko Sapana'' (Dream of A Lunatic)

Short-story collections

* ''Ek Bato Aneh Mod'' (One Road, Many Turnings, 1969) * ''Pareva ra Kaidi'' (The Prisoner and the Dove, 1977) * ''Manchhe ko Naach ra Anya Katha'' (A Man's Dance and Other Stories, 1995)

Poems

* ''Bijaya Mallaka Kavita'' (Poems of Bijaya Malla, 1959)

Awards

He was awarded with

Sajha Puraskar Sajha Puraskar () is a literary award given by Sajha Publications. It is presented annually to the best book published by Sajha Publication. History It was established in 1967 and the first award was given to Bhupi Sherchan for his book ' ...

for his anthology of short stories, ''Ek Bato Aneh Mod'' in 1970''.'' He has also been felicitated with other honors such as Ganki Bashundhara Puraskar (), Bhupal Man Singh Karki Puraskar () and Ved Nidhi Puraskar () for his contribution to Nepali literature.

Personal life and death

He married Shyama Pradhan in 1999 BS () in Kathmandu. They had nine daughters (Nalini, Reeta, Neena Sheela, Uma, Rama, Srijana, Archana, Bandana) among whom Sheela died during childhood. He died on 24 July 1999 (8 '' Shrawan'' 2056 BS).

References

{{Authority control, state=collapsed Nepalese dramatists and playwrights 20th-century Nepalese writers Nepalese male novelists Nepali-language poets 20th-century Nepalese poets Nepalese male writers Nepalese writers Nepali-language writers from Nepal 1999 deaths 1925 births Sajha Puraskar winners Durbar High School alumni