Radhanath Ray ( or,
ରାଧାନାଥ ରାୟ) (28 September 1848 – 17 April 1908) was an
Odia writer of initial modernity era in
Odia poetry during the later part of nineteenth century. He was born in a
Zamindar
A zamindar ( Hindustani: Devanagari: , ; Persian: , ) in the Indian subcontinent was an autonomous or semiautonomous ruler of a province. The term itself came into use during the reign of Mughals and later the British had begun using it as ...
family in Baleshwar (Bengal Presidency), now in Odisha, and is honoured in
Odia literature
Odia literature is literature written in the Odia language, mostly from the Indian state of Odisha. The modern Odia language is mostly formed from Tadbhava words with significant Sanskrit (Tatsama) influences, along with loanwoards from Desaj ...
with the title ''Kabibara (')''.
In his early life, he composed in both
Odia and 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 ...
languages, but later he shifted his writings in Odia only. He was born on 28 September 1848, at Kedarpur village in
Baleswar district,
Odisha
Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of ...
. He has contributed verses and poetry for Odia literature in the nineteenth century.
Role in the Odia language
Though the medieval Odia literature was rich and distinct literary tradition and history, some of the Bengali educationalists wanted to abolish Odia language as the medium of teaching from schools. As Bengal was under by British rule much before Odisha, the Bengalis had the privilege to motivate the Anglicist scholars to prove Odia as a branch of Bengali language. However, John Beams, a British officer of
East India Company
The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and South ...
first tried to prove that Odia is more ancient language than Bengali, and it had a richer literature which Bengali had not. In the Odisha division, there were only seven Odia School teachers; Bengalis formed the majority of teachers, even in the remote areas. Consequently, Bengali text books were prescribed for Odia students. At that time, Radhanath was one of prime figure along with
Fakir Mohan Senapati, who fought against the expansionism of Bengali educationalist to eradicate
Odia language
Odia (, ISO: , ; formerly rendered Oriya ) is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in the Indian state of Odisha. It is the official language in Odisha (formerly rendered Orissa), where native speakers make up 82% of the population, and it is also ...
from
Odisha
Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of ...
. He was the Inspector of Odisha Schools Association and along with Fakir Mohan Senapati and
Madhusudan Rao
Madhusudan Rao (19 January 1853 – 28 December 1912) was an Odia poet and writer from India. He was known as ''Bhaktakabi''. His most well known work is the ''Chhabila Madhu Barnabodha''.
Life
He was born on 19 January 1853 in the district o ...
, he tried to promote text book writings. Radhanath Ray is a respectable person he wrote his Odia poetry very light and clean.
Major works
Radhanatha Ray's first major work was ''Kabitabali'', a collection of poems in Bengali written at the age of eighteen. It featured in most of the major newspapers and journals in Kolkatta during that time. His other Bengali poem was ''Lekhabali''. Later, he switched over to Odia language, and wrote famous Kavyas like ''Kedara Gauri'', ''Nandikeshwari'', ''Chilika'', ''Mahajatra – Jajatikeshari'', ''Tulasistabaka'', ''Urbashi'', ''Darabara'', ''Dasaratha Biyoga'', ''Savitri Charita'' and ''Mahendra Giri''. Additionally, he wrote more than fifteen essays. Apart from his original works, he is also known for his translations and adaptations from the Latin Literature. They include ''Usha'', ''Chandrabhaga'' and ''Parbati''.
Father of Odia Modernism
His writings were inspired by many
English Littérateurs like
Keats
John Keats (31 October 1795 – 23 February 1821) was an English poet of the second generation of Romantic poets, with Lord Byron and Percy Bysshe Shelley. His poems had been in publication for less than four years when he died of tuberculos ...
,
Scott and
Wordsworth
William Wordsworth (7 April 177023 April 1850) was an English Romantic poet who, with Samuel Taylor Coleridge, helped to launch the Romantic Age in English literature with their joint publication ''Lyrical Ballads'' (1798).
Wordsworth's '' ...
. He has contributed to Odia poetry by introducing new forms. He has penned blank-verses,
satire inspired by writings of
Dryden
''
John Dryden (; – ) was an English poet, literary critic, translator, and playwright who in 1668 was appointed England's first Poet Laureate.
He is seen as dominating the literary life of Restoration England to such a point that the per ...
and
Alexander Pope
Alexander Pope (21 May 1688 O.S. – 30 May 1744) was an English poet, translator, and satirist of the Enlightenment era who is considered one of the most prominent English poets of the early 18th century. An exponent of Augustan literature, ...
, denunciation of despots, tyrants and oppressors, concern with social problems, a spirit of protest against conventional morality, a disbelief in the power of gods and goddesses, and patriotic sentiments, which finally brought him trouble from his employers. He was viewed as a national poet of the first order in
Odisha
Odisha (English: , ), formerly Orissa ( the official name until 2011), is an Indian state located in Eastern India. It is the 8th largest state by area, and the 11th largest by population. The state has the third largest population of ...
.
Controversy
Though Radhanatha contributed a lot to Odia literature, however he was not accepted by the contemporary conservative readers of his time. Soon, he was dragged into a controversy. Sudhala Dev, the then king of
Bamanda awarded the poet the title 'Kabibara', and the gesture made some of the critics and poets jealous. Some critics wrote that Kabi Samrat
Upendra Bhanja
''Kabi Samrata'' Upendra Bhanja () was a 17th-century Odia poet-composer of classical Odissi music.Mansingha, Mayadhar: ''History of Oriya Literature'': Publisher, Sahitya Akademi, Delhi He is most known for his Odissi songs and kabyas written i ...
is more powerful than Radhanatha, and these arguments turned into a serious topic of controversy like modernity versus tradition. Two of the literary journals ''The Indradhanu'' and ''The Bijuli'' engaged in this controversy, and later all the intellectuals got entangled in this discussion. However, this literary controversy ended with a letter of Radhanath.
[History of Oriya Literature by Dr. Natabar Samanta Ray)]
See also
*
Odia literature
Odia literature is literature written in the Odia language, mostly from the Indian state of Odisha. The modern Odia language is mostly formed from Tadbhava words with significant Sanskrit (Tatsama) influences, along with loanwoards from Desaj ...
*
Odia language
Odia (, ISO: , ; formerly rendered Oriya ) is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in the Indian state of Odisha. It is the official language in Odisha (formerly rendered Orissa), where native speakers make up 82% of the population, and it is also ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ray, Radhanath
1848 births
1908 deaths
People from Balasore district
Poets from Odisha
Odia-language poets
19th-century Indian poets