Bishnu Dey

Bishnu Dey (18 July, 1909—3 December, 1982) (Bangla: বিষ্ণু দে) was a prominent Bengali poet, prose writer, movie critique in the era of modernism, post-modernism. He won the highest literary award of India, Jnanpith Award, in 1971 for his collection of poems "Smriti Sattya Bhabisyyat". [ [http://www.calcuttaweb.com/lit.shtml Caltuttaweb - Bengali literature] ] . [ [http://www.webindia123.com/government/award/jnanpith.htm webindia123.com-government of india-award-jnanpith award ] ]

Education and professional life

Bishnu Dey studied at Mitra Institute and Sanskrit Collegiate School in Kolkata. After matriculating in 1927, he went on to do his IA from Bangabashi College. He completed his BA (Hons) in English from St Paul's College and MA in English from Calcutta University. In 1935, he joined Ripon College, Kolkata. He subsequently taught at Presidency college (1944-1947), Maulana Azad College (1947-1969) and Krishnanagar College.

Writings and accolades

Some of his memorable books are - "Urvashi O Artemis" (1932), "Chora Bali" (1938), "Purba Lekh" (1940), "Sandiper Char" (1947), "Annishta" (1950), "Naam Rekhechi Komal Gandhar" (1950) etc. Some regard his poems as intricate and incomprehensible to a great extent, most likely due to wide use of references and imageries from literary works and cultural instances of foreign origin. [ [http://oldpoetry.com/oauthor/show/Bishnu+Dey Bishnu Dey at Old Poetry ] ] He was inspired by Marxist philosophy and by the ideas and style of T. S. Eliot. He wrote an autobiography "Chhadano Ei Jiban" (This Scattered Life). Bishnu De's friendship with the artist Jamini Roy led to his writing several books on art: "Art of Jamini Roy" (1988), "The Paintings of Rabindranath Tagore" (1958), "India and Modern Art" (1959), etc. He was also associated with Calcutta Group Centre, Soviet Friendship Association, Pragati Lekhak Shilpi Sangha, Indian People's Theatre Association (IPTA), etc.

For his contribution to literature, Bishnu De was awarded the Sahitya Akademi Award (1966), the Nehru Smriti Award (1967), and the Rastriya Jnanpith Award (1971). He also got the Soviet Land Award for "Rushti Panchashati".

References

Persondata
NAME=Dey, Bishnu
ALTERNATIVE NAMES=
SHORT DESCRIPTION=Bengali poet
DATE OF BIRTH=18 July, 1909
PLACE OF BIRTH=India
DATE OF DEATH=3 December, 1982
PLACE OF DEATH=India