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A versatile writer with his versatile characters, Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay's world of literature was perfectly unique and too amusing to dive into. Even years later, his famous Byomkesh Bakshi seems to never go out of fashion.
Passed away on 22nd September 1970
There were three top-notch characters which this writer penned down that got spectacularly famous among the readers. Not one of those three will make anyone any less interested in knowing what they do ahead, that is all one has to know when they talk about his creative writing style. Saradindu Bandyopadhyay's own life story started on 30th March 1899 in the Purnea city of Bihar although his familial home was back in Baranagar, Kolkata. He completed his early studies in Munger and later joined Vidyasagar College in Kolkata. Bandyopadhyay didn't originally start as a writer, he was instead pursuing law in Patna after graduating from Vidyasagar College.
Bandyopadhyay started writing when he was 30 and then a while after, was invited by Himangshu Roy to come to write screenplays in Bombay. He thus wrote screenplays till 1952 after which he then devoted full of his time solely to writing.
The dynamicity in Bandyopadhyay's work remains unparalleled to date. Through his versatile tales and themes, he would successfully touch upon multiple genre styles. Take for example his famous creation of the prototypical Byomkesh Bakshi (one out of the three famous characters), who has been a favourite among many because of his intelligent detective skills and wide adaptation that surpasses the audience of Bengal. To top it off, every story of his has a brilliant literary history behind the plot that is carved out of different periods of Indian history. When reading Bandyopadhyay, you'll come across a wholesome mixture of adventure, plot twists, romance, and unique vocabulary that fits into the past.
‘Among contemporary writers of Bengali – nobody could write a historical fiction quite like him. Who can create that atmosphere, who else has the wit and humour…his prose had a different taste altogether – I am rather fond of it....’— Sunil Gangopadhyay
Although he has a multitude amount of novels, plays, short stories and screenplays under his name, Bandyopadhyay seemed to have developed a specific liking towards short stories and novels. Some of his best novels contain works like Kaler Mandira, GourMollar (originally Mouri Nodir Teere), Tumi Sandhyar Megh, Tungabhadrar Teere etc. They are considered to be a great set of historical adaptations and can be genuinely enjoyed while reading.
‘My stories are not fictionalized history, they are historical fiction.’— Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay
When it comes to short stories, Jatismar, Chuya-Chandan, Bish Konya, Sada Prithibi, Emon Dine are some examples of notable works. Coming to his best characters, apart from Byomkesh Bakshi, there's Sadashib and Barada. The former is a child protagonist who is thriving his life full of adventures with his heroic ways. Despite being a child, he has made a lot of fans even among the adults. His stories have a personal touch from Bandyopapdhyay's own past life experiences and his strong plus brave personality is borrowed from Chattrapati Shivaji.
Barada is from one of Byomkesh Bakshi stories itself. He is a ghost chaser who is too crazy about the afterlife. With Barada, Bandyopadhyay introduces the element of supernaturalism and horror along with thrilling experiences which made many of his series of short stories become exciting page-turners.
Bandyopadhyay released his first Byomkesh Bakshi story in 1932.
When it came to his screenplays, his stories would be filled with wit, humour, satires and a lot of twists. These would all be tied down to the main them which was romance. Considering all his works are a masterpiece in their own selves, Bandyopadhyay was a perfectionist when he would write.
Despite all the immortal works he gave us, Sharadindu Bandyopadhyay passed away on 22nd September 1970. A sad death as it was, Bandyopadhyay's stories have lived on to make people happy with the interesting versatility they contain in them. Thanks to this Bengali legend we still get interesting shows based on his lively creations.
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