Mulk Raj Anand
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Mulk Raj Anand (12 December 1905 – 28 September 2004) was an Indian writer in English, recognised for his depiction of the lives of the poorer
castes Caste is a form of social stratification characterised by endogamy, hereditary transmission of a style of life which often includes an occupation, ritual status in a hierarchy, and customary social interaction and exclusion based on cultura ...
in traditional Indian society. One of the pioneers of Indo-Anglian fiction, he, together with
R. K. Narayan Rasipuram Krishnaswami Iyer Narayanaswami (10 October 1906 – 13 May 2001) was an Indian writer known for his work set in the fictional South Indian town of Malgudi. He was a leading author of early Indian literature in English along with Mul ...
,
Ahmad Ali Ahmed Ali (1 July 1910 in Delhi – 14 January 1994 in Karachi) ( ur, احمد علی ) was a Pakistani novelist, poet, critic, translator, diplomat and scholar. A pioneer of the modern Urdu short story, his works include the short story c ...
and
Raja Rao Raja Rao (8 November 1908 – 8 July 2006) was an Indian-American writer of English-language novels and short stories, whose works are deeply rooted in metaphysics. '' The Serpent and the Rope'' (1960), a semi-autobiographical novel recounting ...
, was one of the first India-based writers in English to gain an International readership. Anand is admired for his novels and short stories, which have acquired the status of classics of modern Indian English literature; they are noted for their perceptive insight into the lives of the oppressed and for their analysis of impoverishment, exploitation and misfortune. He became known for his protest novel '' Untouchable'' (1935), followed by other works on the Indian poor such as ''
Coolie A coolie (also spelled koelie, kuli, khuli, khulie, cooli, cooly, or quli) is a term for a low-wage labourer, typically of South Asian or East Asian descent. The word ''coolie'' was first popularized in the 16th century by European traders acros ...
'' (1936) and ''
Two Leaves and a Bud ''Two Leaves and a Bud'' is a novel by Mulk Raj Anand first published in 1937. Like his other novels, this one also deals with the topic of oppression of the poor, and is about a peasant who tries to protect his daughter from a British soldier. T ...
'' (1937). He is also noted for being among the first writers to incorporate Punjabi and Hindustani idioms into English,"Mulk Raj Anand Profile"
iloveindia.com.
and was a recipient of the civilian honour of the
Padma Bhushan The Padma Bhushan is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is given for "distinguished service ...
.


Early life and education

Born in
Peshawar Peshawar (; ps, پېښور ; hnd, ; ; ur, ) is the sixth most populous city in Pakistan, with a population of over 2.3 million. It is situated in the north-west of the country, close to the International border with Afghanistan. It is ...
, Anand studied at
Khalsa College, Amritsar Khalsa College ( pa, ਖਾਲਸਾ ਕਾਲਜ ''khālsā kālaj'') is a historic educational institution in the northern Indian city of Amritsar in the state of Punjab, India. Founded in 1892, the sprawling campus is located about eight ...
, graduating with honours in 1924 before moving to England. While working in a restaurant to support himself, he attended
University College London , mottoeng = Let all come who by merit deserve the most reward , established = , type = Public research university , endowment = £143 million (2020) , budget = ...
as an undergraduate and later studied at
Cambridge University , mottoeng = Literal: From here, light and sacred draughts. Non literal: From this place, we gain enlightenment and precious knowledge. , established = , other_name = The Chancellor, Masters and Schola ...
, earning a Ph.D in Philosophy in 1929 with a dissertation on
Bertrand Russell Bertrand Arthur William Russell, 3rd Earl Russell, (18 May 1872 – 2 February 1970) was a British mathematician, philosopher, logician, and public intellectual. He had a considerable influence on mathematics, logic, set theory, linguistics, ...
and the English empiricists. During this time he forged friendships with members of the
Bloomsbury Group The Bloomsbury Group—or Bloomsbury Set—was a group of associated English writers, intellectuals, philosophers and artists in the first half of the 20th century, including Virginia Woolf, John Maynard Keynes, E. M. Forster and Lytton Strac ...
. He also spent time in
Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...
, lecturing at the
League of Nations The League of Nations (french: link=no, Société des Nations ) was the first worldwide intergovernmental organisation whose principal mission was to maintain world peace. It was founded on 10 January 1920 by the Paris Peace Conference that ...
'
International Committee on Intellectual Cooperation The International Committee on Intellectual Cooperation, sometimes League of Nations Committee on Intellectual Cooperation, was an advisory organization for the League of Nations which aimed to promote international exchange between scientists, r ...
. Anand married English actress and communist Kathleen Van Gelder in 1938; they had a daughter, Susheela, before divorcing in 1948.


Career

Mulk Raj Anand's literary career was launched by a family tragedy arising from the rigidity of India's
caste system Caste is a form of social stratification characterised by endogamy, hereditary transmission of a style of life which often includes an occupation, ritual status in a hierarchy, and customary social interaction and exclusion based on cultura ...
. His first prose essay was a response to the suicide of an aunt excommunicated by her family for sharing a meal with a Muslim woman. His first novel, '' Untouchable'', published in 1935, is a chilling exposé of the lives of India's untouchable caste which were neglected at that time. The novel follows a single day in the life of Bakha, a toilet-cleaner, who accidentally bumps into a member of a higher caste, triggering a series of humiliations. Bakha searches for salve to the tragedy of the destiny into which he was born, talking with a Christian
missionary A missionary is a member of a Religious denomination, religious group which is sent into an area in order to promote its faith or provide services to people, such as education, literacy, social justice, health care, and economic development.Tho ...
, listening to a speech about untouchability by
Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...
and a subsequent conversation between two educated Indians, but by the end of the book Anand suggests that it is technology, in the form of the newly introduced flush toilet, that may be his savior by eliminating the need for a caste of toilet cleaners. '' Untouchable'', which captures the vernacular inventiveness of the Punjabi and
Hindi Hindi (Devanāgarī: or , ), or more precisely Modern Standard Hindi (Devanagari: ), is an Indo-Aryan language spoken chiefly in the Hindi Belt region encompassing parts of northern, central, eastern, and western India. Hindi has been de ...
idiom in English was widely acclaimed, and won Anand his reputation as India's
Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English writer and social critic. He created some of the world's best-known fictional characters and is regarded by many as the greatest novelist of the Victorian e ...
. The novel's introduction was written by his friend
E. M. Forster Edward Morgan Forster (1 January 1879 – 7 June 1970) was an English author, best known for his novels, particularly ''A Room with a View'' (1908), ''Howards End'' (1910), and ''A Passage to India'' (1924). He also wrote numerous short stori ...
, whom he met while working on T. S. Eliot's magazine '' Criterion''. Forster writes: "Avoiding rhetoric and circumlocution, it has gone straight to the heart of its subject and purified it." Dividing his time between London and India during the 1930s and 40s, Anand was active in the
Indian independence movement The Indian independence movement was a series of historic events with the ultimate aim of ending British Raj, British rule in India. It lasted from 1857 to 1947. The first nationalistic revolutionary movement for Indian independence emerged ...
. While in London, he wrote propaganda on behalf of the Indian cause alongside India's future Defence Minister
V. K. Krishna Menon Vengalil Krishnan Krishna Menon (3 May 1896 – 6 October 1974) was an Indian academic, politician, and non-career diplomat. He was described by some as the second most powerful man in India, after the first Prime Minister of India, Jawa ...
, while trying to make a living as a novelist and journalist. At the same time, he supported Left causes elsewhere around the globe, traveling to Spain to volunteer in the
Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War ( es, Guerra Civil Española)) or The Revolution ( es, La Revolución, link=no) among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War ( es, Cuarta Guerra Carlista, link=no) among Carlists, and The Rebellion ( es, La Rebelión, lin ...
, although his role in the conflict was more journalistic than military. He spent
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...
working as a scriptwriter for the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
in London, where he became a friend of
George Orwell Eric Arthur Blair (25 June 1903 – 21 January 1950), better known by his pen name George Orwell, was an English novelist, essayist, journalist, and critic. His work is characterised by lucid prose, social criticism, opposition to totalitar ...
. Orwell's review of Anand's 1942 novel ''
The Sword and the Sickle ''The Sword and the Sickle'' is a novel by Mulk Raj Anand first published in 1942. Like his other novels, this one also deals with the topic of social and political structures, specifically, the rise of Communism. The title for the book was given ...
'' hints at the significance of its publication: "Although Mr. Anand's novel would still be interesting on its own merits if it had been written by an Englishman, it is impossible to read it without remembering every few pages that it is also a cultural curiosity. The growth of an English-language Indian literature is a strange phenomenon, and it will have its effect on the post-war world". He was also a friend of
Picasso Pablo Ruiz Picasso (25 October 1881 – 8 April 1973) was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and Scenic design, theatre designer who spent most of his adult life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th ce ...
and had paintings by Picasso in his personal art collection. Anand returned to India in 1947 and continued his prodigious literary output there. His work includes poetry and essays on a wide range of subjects, as well as autobiographies, novels and short stories. Prominent among his novels are '' The Village'' (1939), '' Across the Black Waters'' (1939), ''
The Sword and the Sickle ''The Sword and the Sickle'' is a novel by Mulk Raj Anand first published in 1942. Like his other novels, this one also deals with the topic of social and political structures, specifically, the rise of Communism. The title for the book was given ...
'' (1942), all written in England; ''
Coolie A coolie (also spelled koelie, kuli, khuli, khulie, cooli, cooly, or quli) is a term for a low-wage labourer, typically of South Asian or East Asian descent. The word ''coolie'' was first popularized in the 16th century by European traders acros ...
'' (1936) and ''
The Private Life of an Indian Prince ''The Private Life of an Indian Prince'' is a novel by Mulk Raj Anand Mulk Raj Anand (12 December 1905 – 28 September 2004) was an Indian writer in English, recognised for his depiction of the lives of the poorer castes in traditional I ...
'' (1953) are perhaps the most important of his works written in India. He also founded a literary magazine, '' Marg'', and taught in various universities. During the 1970s, he worked with the International Progress Organization (IPO) on the issue of cultural self-awareness among nations. His contribution to the conference of the IPO in
Innsbruck Innsbruck (; bar, Innschbruck, label=Bavarian language, Austro-Bavarian ) is the capital of Tyrol (state), Tyrol and the List of cities and towns in Austria, fifth-largest city in Austria. On the Inn (river), River Inn, at its junction with the ...
(
Austria Austria, , bar, Östareich officially the Republic of Austria, is a country in the southern part of Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine states, one of which is the capital, Vienna, the most populous ...
) in 1974 had a special influence on debates that later became known under the heading of the "
Dialogue among Civilizations Former Iranian president Mohammad Khatami introduced the idea of Dialogue Among Civilizations as a response to Samuel P. Huntington's theory of a Clash of Civilizations. The term was initially used by Austrian philosopher Hans Köchler who in 1972 ...
". Anand also delivered a series of lectures on eminent Indians, including
Mahatma Gandhi Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi (; ; 2 October 1869 – 30 January 1948), popularly known as Mahatma Gandhi, was an Indian lawyer, anti-colonial nationalist Quote: "... marks Gandhi as a hybrid cosmopolitan figure who transformed ... anti- ...
,
Jawaharlal Nehru Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru (; ; ; 14 November 1889 – 27 May 1964) was an Indian anti-colonial nationalist, secular humanist, social democrat— * * * * and author who was a central figure in India during the middle of the 20t ...
and
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 ...
, commemorating their achievements and significance and paying special attention to their distinct brands of
humanism Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "humani ...
. His 1953 novel ''The Private Life of an Indian Prince'' is autobiographical in the manner of the rest of his subsequent oeuvre. In 1950 Anand embarked on a project to write a seven-part autobiography titled "seven ages of man", of which he was only able to complete four parts beginning in 1951 with ''Seven Summers'', followed by ''Morning Face'', "Confession of a Lover" and "Bubble". Like much of his later work, it contains elements of his spiritual journey as he struggles to attain a higher degree of self-awareness. Anand was associated with the
BBC #REDIRECT BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...
...
's ''Eastern Service'' radio station in the 1940s where he broadcast literary programs including book reviews, author biographies, and interviews with authors like
Inez Holden Beatrice Inez Lisette (Paget) Holden (21 November 1903 – 30 May 1974) was a British writer and Bohemian social figure and journalist, also known for her association with George Orwell. Born at Wellesbourne, Warwickshire to Wilfred Millington ...
. In a multi-part broadcast program that he hosted, he discussed poetry and literary criticism, often calling for working class narratives in fiction.


Political orientation

Anand was a lifelong socialist. His novels attack various aspects of India's social structure as well as the legacy of British rule in India; they are considered important social statements as well as literary artefacts. Anand himself was steadfast in his belief that politics and literature remained inextricable from one another. He was a founding member of the Progressive Writers’ Association and also he helped in drafting the ''manifesto'' of the association.


Later life

Anand married Shirin Vajifdar, a
Parsi Parsis () or Parsees are an ethnoreligious group of the Indian subcontinent adhering to Zoroastrianism. They are descended from Persians who migrated to Medieval India during and after the Arab conquest of Iran (part of the early Muslim conq ...
classical dancer from
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- ...
in 1950. He died of
pneumonia Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung primarily affecting the small air sacs known as alveoli. Symptoms typically include some combination of productive or dry cough, chest pain, fever, and difficulty breathing. The severity ...
in
Pune 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 ...
on 28 September 2004 at the age 98.


Works of Mulk Raj Anand


Novels

* '' Untouchable'' (1935) * '' Kali ka ladai'' (1939) * ''
Coolie A coolie (also spelled koelie, kuli, khuli, khulie, cooli, cooly, or quli) is a term for a low-wage labourer, typically of South Asian or East Asian descent. The word ''coolie'' was first popularized in the 16th century by European traders acros ...
'' (1936) * ''
Two Leaves and a Bud ''Two Leaves and a Bud'' is a novel by Mulk Raj Anand first published in 1937. Like his other novels, this one also deals with the topic of oppression of the poor, and is about a peasant who tries to protect his daughter from a British soldier. T ...
'' (1937) * '' The Village'' (1939) * '' Across the Black Waters'' (1939),
Orient Paperbacks The Orient is a term for the East in relation to Europe, traditionally comprising anything belonging to the Eastern world. It is the antonym of ''Occident'', the Western World. In English, it is largely a metonym for, and coterminous with, the c ...
, * ''
The Sword and the Sickle ''The Sword and the Sickle'' is a novel by Mulk Raj Anand first published in 1942. Like his other novels, this one also deals with the topic of social and political structures, specifically, the rise of Communism. The title for the book was given ...
'' (1942) * '' The Big Heart'' (1945) * ''The Lost Child'' (1934) * ''Seven Summers: A Memoir'' (1951) * ''
The Private Life of an Indian Prince ''The Private Life of an Indian Prince'' is a novel by Mulk Raj Anand Mulk Raj Anand (12 December 1905 – 28 September 2004) was an Indian writer in English, recognised for his depiction of the lives of the poorer castes in traditional I ...
'' (1953) * ''The Old Woman and the Cow'' (1960) * ''
The Road ''The Road'' is a 2006 post-apocalyptic novel by American writer Cormac McCarthy. The book details the grueling journey of a father and his young son over a period of several months across a landscape blasted by an unspecified cataclysm that ha ...
'' (1961) * ''The Death of a Hero'' (1964), based on the life of Maqbool Sherwani (adapted as ''Maqbool Ki Vaapsi'' on
DD Kashir DD Kashir is a regional subsidiary television station of Doordarshan in Jammu and Kashmir which is owned by Broadcasting Ministry of India centrally focusing on tradition of Kashmiri culture and heritage, telecasting from Doordarshan Kendra ...
)


Short story collections

* ''The Lost Child and Other Stories'' (1934) * ''The Barber's Trade Union and Other Stories'' (1944) * ''The Tractor and the Corn Goddess and Other Stories'' (1947) * ''Reflections on the Golden Bed and Other Stories'' (1953) * ''The Power of Darkness and Other Stories'' (1959) * ''Lajwanti and Other Stories'' (1966) * ''Between Tears and Laughter'' (1973) * ''Indian Fairy Tales'' (1946) * ''More Indian Fairy Tales'' (1961)


Other notable works

* ''The Golden Breath: Studies in five poets of the new India'' (1933) * ''Introduction to Indian art'' (1956) (editor) * ''Kana Kala'' (1958) * ''Homage to Khajuraaho'' co-authored with Stella Kramrisch


Autobiographies

* ''Seven Summers'' (1951) * '' Morning Face'' (1971) - won the Sahitya Akademi Award (Best Literature award) in India. * '' Conversations in Bloomsbury'' (1981) * ''Pilpali Sahab'' (1985)


Notable awards

*
International Peace Prize The World Peace Council (WPC), a pro-Soviet non-governmental organization, has awarded a number of prizes, beginning in 1950. These have been awarded to individuals, organisations, peoples, and places. Typically, several winners would be voted at ...
- 1953 *
Padma Bhushan The Padma Bhushan is the third-highest civilian award in the Republic of India, preceded by the Bharat Ratna and the Padma Vibhushan and followed by the Padma Shri. Instituted on 2 January 1954, the award is given for "distinguished service ...
- 1967 * Sahithya Akademi Award - 1971


See also

*
List of Bloomberg Group people A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to: People * List (surname) Organizations * List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America * SC Germania List, German rugby unio ...


References


External links


Marg Publications
* Mulk Raj Anand
"The Search for National Identity in India"
in:
Hans Köchler Hans Köchler (born 18 October 1948) is a retired professor of philosophy at the University of Innsbruck, Austria, and president of the International Progress Organization, a non-governmental organization in consultative status with the United N ...
(ed.), ''Cultural Self-comprehension of Nations''. Tübingen (Germany): Erdmann, 1978, pp. 73–98. * Talat Ahmed
"Mulk Raj Anand: novelist and fighter"
in ''
International Socialism Proletarian internationalism, sometimes referred to as international socialism, is the perception of all communist revolutions as being part of a single global class struggle rather than separate localized events. It is based on the theory that ...
'', Issue 105, 9 January 2005.
Mulk Raj Anand: A Creator with Social Concern
''Frontline'', Volume 21, Issue 21, 9–22 October 2004. * Charlotte Nunes
"Scholar explores work and career of writer Mulk Raj Anand"
Cultural Compass. Harry Ransom Center, University of Texas at Austin. *
Yasmin Khan Yasmin Khan is a historian of British India and Associate Professor of History at Kellogg College, Oxford. Education and career Born in 1977 to Pakistani and Anglo-Irish parents in Kingston-upon-Thames, Khan completed her BA in history at S ...
, biography of Mulk Raj Anand's time in Britain in the 1930s and 1940s in
A Passage to Britain: Series 1:1 The Viceroy of India
' {{DEFAULTSORT:Anand, Mulk Raj 1905 births 2004 deaths Deaths from pneumonia in India Alumni of the University of Cambridge Alumni of University College London Indian socialists Indian male novelists English-language writers from India People of the Spanish Civil War Recipients of the Sahitya Akademi Award in English Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in literature & education Punjabi people People from Peshawar Indian magazine editors Fellows of the Lalit Kala Akademi 20th-century Indian novelists 20th-century Indian journalists Indian male journalists Progressive Writers' Movement