Mahasweta Devi | Brief Biography

Mahasweta Devi | Brief Biography

Mahasweta Devi | Brief Biography

Mahasweta Devi (14 January 1926 – 28 July 2016) was a Bengali author and social activist who was born in Decca, British India (present-day Dhaka, Bangladesh). She was a leading voice for the marginalized and oppressed communities in India, particularly the tribal people and Dalits, and used her writing to raise awareness about their struggles and injustices.

Devi was the daughter of poet and novelist Narendra Nath Datta, who later took on the pen name of Bankim Chandra Chatterjee and Dharitri Devi. She grew up in a family with a rich literary and cultural background, and this influenced her own writing and activism.

Devi received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Scottish Church College in Kolkata and went on to pursue a Master of Arts in English literature from the University of Calcutta. After completing her education, she worked as a teacher and a journalist before dedicating her life fully to activism and writing.

Her writing career spanned over six decades and she wrote over 100 novels, short stories, and plays in Bengali. She is best known for her works that focus on the lives of the tribal people and Dalits in India, and her stories often highlight the struggles and injustices faced by these communities. Her writing style is characterized by a deep empathy for the oppressed, and she often gave voice to their experiences in her work.

Some of her most famous works include the novel “Hajar Churashir Maa” (Mother of 1084), which is based on the Naxalite movement in West Bengal, and the play “Draupadi”, which deals with the issue of tribal rights and land rights.

In addition to her writing, Devi was also an activist and a member of various organizations working for the rights of marginalized communities in India. She was a member of the Indian People’s Theatre Association (IPTA) and the All India Democratic Women’s Association (AIDWA), and was associated with various movements, including the Naxalite movement and the anti-dam movement.

Mahasweta Devi was awarded several accolades for her contribution to literature and activism, including the Jnanpith Award in 1996, which is the highest literary award in India, and the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1979 for her novel “Aranyer Adhikar”. She was also honored with the Padma Vibhushan, one of India’s highest civilian awards, in 2006. 0 0 0.

Sources:

“Mahasweta Devi: A Study in Activism and Literature” by Dipendra K. Sengupta
“Mahasweta Devi: The Storyteller of Subaltern India” by Tapati Mukhopadhyay
“Mahasweta Devi: Writing Subaltern History” by Sudipta Kaviraj
“The Life and Works of Mahasweta Devi” by Urmila Bhadra
“Mahasweta Devi: A Critical Study of Her Works” by Smriti Srivastava
“The Women Who Write India” edited by Chiki Sarkar. ***

N.B. This article originally belongs to the book entitled ‘Brief Biographies of Prominent Bengali Writers‘ by Menonim Menonimus.

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