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Hindi Poet
Hindi Poet
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Thousands of people have attended the funeral procession in Bombay of Harivansh
Rai Bachchan, one of the greatest poets of the Hindi language who died on
January 18, 2003. His eldest son, the film star Amitabh Bachchan, performed the
last rites.
The 96-year-old poet was suffering from respiratory problems for some time and
his condition had deteriorated in recent days. Mourners included many Bollywood
stars, top industrialists and politicians. Police stationed outside the Bachchan
family residence in Bombay, had to use batons to beat back surging crowds. The
poet was cremated in Ruia Park in the west of the city. Prime Minister Atal
Behari Vajpayee - a noted Hindi poet himself - also sent his condolences and
said Hindi lovers would always remember the great poet.
Harivansh Rai Bachchan was born in 1907 in Allahabad in the northern state of
Uttar Pradesh. He went to school in Allahabad and had his university education
in Benares. Allahabad was the unofficial headquarter of the Indian National
Congress, a party fighting against British rule under the leadership of Mahatma
Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru. The Congress movement and its concern for social
unity against the British Raj influenced the young poet. And that social unity
was the running theme of his greatest poetry collection, 'Madhushala' (Tavern).
Published in 1935, Madhushala brought instant fame. It whipped up a literary
frenzy when he recited it to huge audiences. Madhushala is one of the most
enduring works of Hindi literature. It has been translated into English and many
regional Indian languages such as Bengali, Marathi and Malayalam. It has been
choreographed, and performed on stage. It was one the first pieces of Hindi
poetry that was set to music, with its best selling cassettes and CDs having
appeal across generations.
From 1941 to 1952 Bachchan taught English at Allahabad University and then moved
to Cambridge to do his doctorate on 'W B Yeats and Occultism'. There he became
the first Indian to become a doctor of philosophy in English. He also translated
some of the Shakespeare's plays into Hindi.
After returning from Cambridge, Bachchan served in India's foreign ministry,
advising the government on the greater use of the Hindi language in official
business. There he came into close contact with the family of Prime Minister
Jawaharlal Nehru. Friendships continued between the succeeding generations of
the both families.
During the 1970s Bachchan began working on his four-volume autobiography, which
was later abridged as 'In the Afternoon of Time', by Dr. Rupert Snell of London
University. Again it was a milestone in Hindi literature, admired for its
transparent honesty.
Harivansh Rai Bachchan is survived by his wife Teji Bachchan and sons, Amitabh
and Ajitabh.
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