Jnanadanandini Tagore (''
née
A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth re ...
'' Mukhopadhyay; 26 July 1850 – 1 October 1941;''Gyanodanondinee Debi'') was a social reformer who pioneered various cultural innovations and influenced the earliest phase of
women's empowerment
Women's empowerment (or female empowerment) may be defined in several ways, including accepting women's viewpoints, making an effort to seek them and raising the status of women through education, awareness, literacy, and training.Kabeer, Naila ...
in
19th century
The 19th (nineteenth) century began on 1 January 1801 ( MDCCCI), and ended on 31 December 1900 ( MCM). The 19th century was the ninth century of the 2nd millennium.
The 19th century was characterized by vast social upheaval. Slavery was abolis ...
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 ...
. She was married to Satyendranath Tagore,
Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...
's elder brother. The Tagores are a scion of the
Jorasanko Tagore Family. She got her drapes from the Parsi and Gujrati style and made it herself, which came to be popularly known as
Bhramika sari in Bengal.
Early life
Jnanadanandini was born to parents Abhaycharan Mukhopadhyay and Nistarini Devi of Narendrapur village in
Jessore
Jessore ( bn, যশোর, jôshor, ), officially Jashore, is a city of Jessore District situated in Khulna Division. It is situated in the south-western part of Bangladesh. It is the administrative centre (headquarter) of the eponymous district ...
,
Bengal Presidency
The Bengal Presidency, officially the Presidency of Fort William and later Bengal Province, was a subdivision of the British Empire in India. At the height of its territorial jurisdiction, it covered large parts of what is now South Asia and ...
. Abhaycharan, a
Kulin Brahmin
Kulin Brahmins are the Bengali Brahmins belonging to Hindu religion. They trace their ancestry to five families of Kannauj who migrated to Bengal.
History
In the 11th century AD, after the decline of the Pala dynasty, a Hindu king, Adi Sura broug ...
, became an out-caste by marrying into a ''Pirali'' family and was disinherited by his father. In accordance to the prevalent custom, Jnanadanandini was married at the young age of seven or eight to
Debendranath Tagore's second son, Satyendranath in 1857. In contrast to her idyllic life in
Jessore
Jessore ( bn, যশোর, jôshor, ), officially Jashore, is a city of Jessore District situated in Khulna Division. It is situated in the south-western part of Bangladesh. It is the administrative centre (headquarter) of the eponymous district ...
, she found herself confined behind the strict ''
purdah'' of the
Tagore household at
Jorasanko. In 1862, while pursuing his probationary training for the
Indian Civil Service (ICS), Satyendranath asked for Jnanadanandini to join him in England, however his father did not consent. Around this time, Jnanadanandini's brother-in-law
Hemendranath Tagore took charge of her education. She was also tutored briefly by the famous
Brahmo educationis
Ayodhyanath Pakrashi Upon Satyendranath's return from England in 1864 as the first Indian member of the
Civil Service
The civil service is a collective term for a sector of government composed mainly of career civil servants hired on professional merit rather than appointed or elected, whose institutional tenure typically survives transitions of political leaders ...
, Jnanadanandini went to live with her husband in
Bombay
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
.
Bombay
While in
Bombay
Mumbai (, ; also known as Bombay — the official name until 1995) is the capital city of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the ''de facto'' financial centre of India. According to the United Nations, as of 2018, Mumbai is the second- ...
, Jnanadanandini socialized in the European circles and partly adapted to
English customs. This shift in social role required her to dress appropriately, for which the traditional Bengali style of wearing the
sari
A sari (sometimes also saree or shari)The name of the garment in various regional languages include:
* as, শাৰী, xārī, translit-std=ISO
* bn, শাড়ি, śāṛi, translit-std=ISO
* gu, સાડી, sāḍī, translit-std= ...
became too unwieldy. During a tour of
Gujarat
Gujarat (, ) is a state along the western coast of India. Its coastline of about is the longest in the country, most of which lies on the Kathiawar peninsula. Gujarat is the fifth-largest Indian state by area, covering some ; and the ninth ...
with her husband, Jnanadanandini improvised upon the sari worn by
Parsi women. She created her own style of draping the ''aanchal''/''pallu'' over the left shoulder – as opposed to the
Parsi style – so that the right hand remained free for courtesies. She even advertised in the monthly magazine
Bamabodhini Patrika' offering to train other women to wear the sari in her novel style. One of her first pupils in
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 ...
was Mrs. Soudamini Gupta, the wife of
Behari Lal Gupta, ICS. The style soon became popular among the
Brahmo women of Calcutta developing the eponym Brahmika Sari.
While in Calcutta, Jnanadanandini, breaking the customs of the upper-caste household, accompanied her husband to a Christmas party thrown by the
Viceroy
A viceroy () is an official who reigns over a polity in the name of and as the representative of the monarch of the territory. The term derives from the Latin prefix ''vice-'', meaning "in the place of" and the French word ''roy'', meaning "k ...
,
Lord Lawrence in 1866.
Prasanna Coomar Tagore Prasanna may refer to:
People
As sole name
* Prasanna (actor) (Prasanna Venkatesan, active from 2001), Indian film actor
* Prasanna (theatre director) (born 1951), Indian theatre director and playwright
* V. V. Prasanna, a Tamil playback singer ...
of
Pathuriaghata, who was also among the invitees was deeply outraged by Jnanadanandini's boldness and left the
viceregal palace in shock. Her father-in-law,
Debendranath Tagore did not take kindly to her independent spirit either. It is speculated that this caused much discord in the
Tagore household. Jnanadanandini left
Jorasanko in 1868 to live by herself in a mansion on
Park Street, adjacent to
Debendranath's residence. In spite of this proximity, the two of them never interacted. However, around this time she developed a fondness for her younger brother-in-law,
Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...
, who became a frequent visitor in her Park Street house. Jnanadanandini returned to Bombay with her husband in 1869. The same year she lost her first child within a few days of birth. Her son, Surendranath was born in 1872 while the couple was living in
Poona
Pune (; ; also known as Poona, (List of renamed Indian cities and states#Maharashtra, the official name from 1818 until 1978) is one of the most important industrial and educational hubs of India, with an estimated population of 7.4 million ...
and the following year, her daughter Indira Devi was born in
Bijapur
Bijapur, officially known as Vijayapura, is the district headquarters of Bijapur district of the Karnataka state of India. It is also the headquarters for Bijapur Taluk. Bijapur city is well known for its historical monuments of architectural ...
. In yet another undaunted act of courage, Jnanadanandini appointed a Muslim woman as
wet nurse for her children. In those days it was common for affluent Hindu families to leave their newborns to the care of a wet nurse or governess—always of a hindu caste. However, Jnanadanandini resented leaving her children in the custody of servants—often against the wishes of her own husband—making evident the emotional contours of a nuclear family that were already beginning to evolve in her mind. Her third son Kabindranath was born in 1876(?) during the family's brief sojourn in
Hyderabad
Hyderabad ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Telangana and the ''de jure'' capital of Andhra Pradesh. It occupies on the Deccan Plateau along the banks of the Musi River (India), Musi River, in the northern part ...
,
Sindh
Sindh (; ; ur, , ; historically romanized as Sind) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in the southeastern region of the country, Sindh is the third-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the second-largest province ...
.
England
In 1877 Jnanadanandini Devi set sail for
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...
. At a time when an Indian woman crossing the seas was unheard of—let alone heavily pregnant, with three children and unaccompanied by her husband—her fortitude created a social sensation. She was received in London by her husband's uncle
Gnanendramohan Tagore who, in spite of being the first Asian
barrister
A barrister is a type of lawyer in common law jurisdictions. Barristers mostly specialise in courtroom advocacy and litigation. Their tasks include taking cases in superior courts and tribunals, drafting legal pleadings, researching law and ...
and a Christian convert, shared in the shock. After briefly residing at
Gnanendramohan Tagore's house in
Kensington Gardens
Kensington Gardens, once the private gardens of Kensington Palace, are among the Royal Parks of London. The gardens are shared by the City of Westminster and the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea and sit immediately to the west of Hyde P ...
, Jnanadanandini moved into a house on Medina Villas in the seaside town of
Brighton
Brighton () is a seaside resort and one of the two main areas of the City of Brighton and Hove in the county of East Sussex, England. It is located south of London.
Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze A ...
,
Sussex
Sussex (), from the Old English (), is a historic county in South East England that was formerly an independent medieval Anglo-Saxon kingdom. It is bounded to the west by Hampshire, north by Surrey, northeast by Kent, south by the English ...
.
Satyendranath joined her in England with the onset of his
furlough
A furlough (; from nl, verlof, "leave of absence") is a temporary leave of employees due to special needs of a company or employer, which may be due to economic conditions of a specific employer or in society as a whole. These furloughs may be s ...
in October 1878, along with his younger brother
Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...
. Her initial year in England was marked by grief with the birth of a stillborn child, and the demise of her youngest son Kabindranath. She arranged for Kabindranath to be buried beside
Dwarakanath Tagore's grave at
Kensal Green Cemetery in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
. However, she and her children soon developed an intimate friendship with
Rabindranath Ravindranath or Rabindranath is an Indian name and may refer to the following:
* Rabindranath Tagore (1861–1941), Bengali poet
* Rabindranath Bhattacharjee, Indian politician
* Rabindranath Maharaj (born 1955), Trinidad-born Canadian author
* Rab ...
. Her daughter Indira would eventually become Rabindranath's lifelong confidante. Upon the completion of
Satyendranath's furlough, he took up a post in
Surat
Surat is a city in the western Indian state of Gujarat. The word Surat literally means ''face'' in Gujarati and Hindi. Located on the banks of the river Tapti near its confluence with the Arabian Sea, it used to be a large seaport. It is now ...
while Jnanadanandini returned 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 ...
with her children.
Calcutta
In
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 ...
, Jnanadanandini took up residence in a bungalow on
Lower Circular Road
Lower may refer to:
*Lower (surname)
*Lower Township, New Jersey
*Lower Receiver (firearms)
*Lower Wick
Lower Wick is a small hamlet located in the county of Gloucestershire, England. It is situated about five miles south west of Dursley, eig ...
. Yet, from the memoirs of her daughter Indira and niece
Sarala, we learn that Jnanadanandini never relinquished her attachment with the Tagore's
Jorasanko house. She took an active role in
Rabindranath's marriage and even mentored the young bride, Mrinalini. With time, her relationship with
Rabindranath Ravindranath or Rabindranath is an Indian name and may refer to the following:
* Rabindranath Tagore (1861–1941), Bengali poet
* Rabindranath Bhattacharjee, Indian politician
* Rabindranath Maharaj (born 1955), Trinidad-born Canadian author
* Rab ...
permeated into the domain of his creativity. Jnanadanandini started assisting him with the performance of his plays, often encouraging other women of the household to participate. Thus came: ''
Valmiki-Pratibha
''Vālmīki-Praṭibhā'' ( bn, বাল্মীকি-প্রতিভা, ''Balmiki Protibha'', lit. ''The Genius of Vālmīki'') is an opera by Rabindranath Tagore. The Bengali libretto was written by Tagore himself based on the legend of ...
'', ''Kaalmrigaya'', ''Raja O Rani'', ''Mayar Khela'' and ''Bisarjan''. From Indira Devi's recollection we also learn that in spite of her high standing, Jnanadanandini did not socialize with the
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 ...
glitterati of her time. That Calcutta society was not favourably disposed towards Jnanadanandini either is evident from an article in the October 1889 issue of the popular Bengali journal ''Bangabasi'', which slandered her for acting in the play ''Raja O Rani''. Ironically, the Tagore house at ''Birjitalao'' where the performance took place is today occupied by a ritzy gentlemen's
club.
In 1890, Jnanadanandini moved in with
Jyotirindranath Tagore who had lost his wife
Kadambari Devi in 1884. In 1891, Jnanadanandini Devi introduced her nephew
Abanindranath Tagore to
E.B. Havell
Ernest Binfield Havell (16 September 1861 – 31 December 1934), who published under the name E.B. Havell, was an influential English arts administrator, art historian and author of numerous books about Indian art and architecture. He was a mem ...
who at the time was the principal of
Government College of Art. The collaboration between these two artists would eventually lead to the development of the
Bengal School of Art
The Bengal School of Art, commonly referred as Bengal School, was an art movement and a style of Indian painting that originated in Bengal, primarily Kolkata and Shantiniketan, and flourished throughout the Indian subcontinent, during the Britis ...
.
Jnanadanandini's position in the
Tagore family is difficult to situate. On the one hand, she is among the few women who presided over the
Maghotsav celebrations at the
Brahmo Samaj, while on the other she is known to have advocated marriage with the non-Brahmin
Cooch-Behar royal family which brought her at loggerheads, yet again, with
Debendranath Tagore. A woman who once went to England just by herself did not allow her son Surendranath to go to England for higher studies. Her maternal anxieties notwithstanding, she never objected to Surendranath's many radical misadventures. While she single-handedly nursed
Rabindranath's daughter Meera Devi through her difficult pregnancy in 1911, she also fell out with him over the issue of withdrawing her grandson Subirendranath from
Santiniketan ashram in 1921. Yet, her relationship with
Rabindranath Ravindranath or Rabindranath is an Indian name and may refer to the following:
* Rabindranath Tagore (1861–1941), Bengali poet
* Rabindranath Bhattacharjee, Indian politician
* Rabindranath Maharaj (born 1955), Trinidad-born Canadian author
* Rab ...
remained untarnished all her life. In the words of her daughter Indira Devi, "my mother had ... a quality of centrality, that is the power of attracting people around her, owing to her hospitable and hearty nature".
In 1907, Jnanadanandini and
Satyendranath visited
Jyotirindranath Tagore in his house a
Morabadi Hillin
Ranchi
Ranchi (, ) is the capital of the Indian state of Jharkhand. Ranchi was the centre of the Jharkhand movement, which called for a separate state for the tribal regions of South Bihar, northern Odisha, western West Bengal and the eastern area ...
and started living there permanently from 1911. She died in 1941.
Literary accomplishments
Among the
Tagore family women, after
Swarnakumari Devi
Swarnakumari Devi (1855 or 1856 – 1932), also known as Swarnakumari Tagore, Swarnakumari Ghosal, Svarṇakumārī Debī and Srimati Svarna Kumari Devi, was an Indian Bengali writer, editor, essayist, poet, novelist, playwright, composer, and ...
, Jnanadanandini participated most actively in the rich literary ambiance of the family. Upon her return from England in 1880, Jnanadanandini began writing articles in the Bengali journal ''Bharati''. Her flair was soon noticed by the intelligentsia. In 1881 - four years before the establishment of the
Indian National Congress
The Indian National Congress (INC), colloquially the Congress Party but often simply the Congress, is a political party in India with widespread roots. Founded in 1885, it was the first modern nationalist movement to emerge in the British Em ...
- Jnanadanandini published an article titled ''Ingrajninda O Deshanurag'' (''Criticism of the British and Patriotism''), in which she called for the establishment of a nationwide organization which would have branches in the remote district towns. She argued "every benefit that the British have bestowed upon us is a blow to our mission of national liberation". In 1885, Jnanadanandini Devi established ''Balak'', the first children's literary magazine in
Bengali
Bengali or Bengalee, or Bengalese may refer to:
*something of, from, or related to Bengal, a large region in South Asia
* Bengalis, an ethnic and linguistic group of the region
* Bengali language, the language they speak
** Bengali alphabet, the w ...
.
Rabindranath Ravindranath or Rabindranath is an Indian name and may refer to the following:
* Rabindranath Tagore (1861–1941), Bengali poet
* Rabindranath Bhattacharjee, Indian politician
* Rabindranath Maharaj (born 1955), Trinidad-born Canadian author
* Rab ...
contributed a number of short stories, poems and plays to ''Balak''. She wrote two plays for children - ''Takdumadum'' and ''Saat Bhai Champa'' - both of which were highly appreciated in the literary circles. In spite of her many literary achievements, Jnanadanandini Devi did not write an autobiography. However, a couple of years before her death
Pulinbihari Sendid persuade her to write a set of memoirs that were later published as ''Smritikatha O Puratani''.
[Indira Devi Chaudhurani, p. 39]
References
Further reading
* Jnanadanandini Devi, ''Puratoni (Memoirs)'',
Ananda Publishers (2012)
* Indira Devi Chaudhurani & Anathnath Das (ed.), ''Smritisamput'',
Viswabharati (1997)
*
Sarala Devi Chaudhurani, ''Jeebaner Jharapata'', Dey's Publishing (2007)
*
Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...
, ''Yurope Prabasir Patra''
Viswabharati (1973)
*
Rabindranath Tagore
Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...
, ''Jeebansmriti'',
Viswabharati (1953)
* Prasanta Kumar Pal, ''Rabi-Jeebani''
Ananda Publishers (1990)
* Hiranmay Bandopadhyay, ''Thakurbarir Katha'', Sishu Sahitya Sansad (1995)
*
Chitra Deb, ''Thakurbarir Andarmahal'',
Ananda Publishers (2010)
* Samir Sengupta, ''Rabindranather Atmiyaswajan'', Sishu Sahitya Sansad (2005)
External links
* https://web.archive.org/web/20150724120830/http://www.bdlinks.net/biography/Jnanadanandini-Devi.php
* http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Devi,_Jnanadanandini
* http://www.southasiamail.com/news.php?id=74757
* http://www.dailypioneer.com/vivacity/tagore-woman-and-her-tales.html
* http://vintageindianclothing.tumblr.com/post/31690135816/the-brahmika-sari
* http://en.banglapedia.org/index.php?title=Bamabodhini_Patrika
{{DEFAULTSORT:Devi, Jnanadanandini
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