Nil Darpan; Or, the Indigo Planting Mirror

Dinabandhu Mitra, Michael Madhusudan Dutt

Description

Nil Darpan; Or, the Indigo Planting Mirror: A Drama is a Bengali play depicting the plight of the farmers in Bengal during the Indigo Revolt of 1859.

Written by Dinabandhu Mitra in real-time and published a year later, the drama reflects the realities of Bengali peasantry under the rule of the East India Trading Company. It recounts how the farmers were manipulated into a violent cycle of economic dependence by the indigo planters, the exploitation the people and the land, and the subsequent revolt. They were forced to plant indigo due to the demand for textiles, despite it degrading the soil.

The drama was a critical text that shone a light on the horrific treatment many in Bengal experienced. It was translated into English by Reverend John Long in 1861, who also added an introduction and dispatched 500 copies in Official Government envelopes. This caused an uproar amongst many indigo planters and subsequently led to Long's arrest and short imprisonment.

This edition by Read & Co. Classics features Bengali poet and playwright, Michael Madhusudan Dutt's translation and introduction, as well as a preface by the author himself. Also including a biographical sketch by Bankimchandra Chattopadhaya. It continues to be an interesting read for anyone interested in the cultural history of Bengal, especially whilst under the Company’s rule.

Informations

• Publié par: Read Books Ltd.
• Date de parution: 05 avril 2022
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781528797436
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 1 Mo

Extrait

NIL DARPAN
OR, THE INDIGO PLANTING MIRROR
A DRAMA
By
DINABANDHU MITRA

First published in 1861



Copyright © 2021 Read & Co. Classics
This edition is published by Read & Co. Classics, an imprint of Read & Co.
This book is copyright and may not be reproduced or copied in any way without the express permission of the publisher in writing.
British Library Cataloguing-in-Publication Data A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
Read & Co. is part of Read Books Ltd. For more information visit www.readandcobooks.co.uk


Contents
A BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF DINABANDHU MITRA
By Bankimchandra Chattopadhaya
INTRODUCTION
THE AUTHOR’S PREFACE
PERSONS OF THE DRAMA
FIRST ACT—FIRST SCENE
SVAROPUR— GOLUK CHUNDER’S GOLA OR STORE-HOUSE
FIRST ACT—SECOND SCENE
THE HOUSE OF SADHU CHURN
FIRST ACT—THIRD SCENE
THE FACTORY OF BEGUNBARI. THE VERANDA OF THE LARGE BUNGALOW
FIRST ACT—FOURTH SCENE
GOLUK CHUNDER BASU’S HALL
SECOND ACT—FIRST SCENE
THE GODOWN OF BEGUNBARI FACTORY
SECOND ACT—SECOND SCENE
THE BED-ROOM OF BINDU MADHAR
SECOND ACT—THIRD SCENE
A ROAD POINTING THREE WAYS
THIRD ACT—FIRST SCENE
BEFORE THE FACTORY IN BEGUNBARI
THIRD ACT—SECOND SCENE
THE BED-ROOM OF NOBIN MADHAB
THIRD ACT—THIRD SCENE
MR. ROSE’S CHAMBER
THIRD ACT—FOURTH SCENE
THE HALL IN THE HOUSE OF GOLUK BOSE
FOURTH ACT—FIRST SCENE
THE CRIMINAL COURT OF INDRABAD
FOURTH ACT—SECOND SCENE
INDRABAD, THE DWELLING OF BINDU MADHAB
FOURTH ACT—THIRD SCENE
THE PRISON-HOUSE OF INDRABAD
FIFTH ACT—FIRST SCENE
BEFORE THE OFFICE OF THE BAGHUNBARI FACTORY
FIFTH ACT—SECOND SCENE
THE BEDROOM OF NOBIN BOSE
FIFTH ACT—THIRD SCENE
THE ROOM OF SADHU CHURN
FIFTH ACT—FOURTH SCENE
THE HALL IN THE HOUSE OF GOLUK CHUNDER BASU


A BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH OF DINABANDHU MITRA
By Bankimchandra Chattopadhaya
A few miles north-east of Kanchrapara, a station on the East Bengal Railways, there is a village of the name of Chauberia. A small river of the name of Jamuna flows encircling this small village, and hence is the name of the village, Chauberia. This village belongs to the district of Nadia, and is the birthplace of Dinabandhu. The district of Nadia enjoys a position of special honour for her literature, philosophy and the scriptures. Dinabandhu is one of those sons of hers of whom she may of justly be proud.
Dinabandhu was born in the year 1238 B.S. (1832 A.D.- Tr. ) and was the son of Kalachand Mitra. There is not much to be said about his boyhood. Dinabandhu came down to Calcutta, when quite young, and began studying English in Hare School. While studying in that school he set his hand to Bengali literary composition.
During that period he got introduced to Iswarchandra Gupta, Editor of 'Prabhakar'. Bengali literature was then in a very poor state, and 'Prabhakar' was its best journal. Iswar Gupta was then reigning supreme over Bengali literature. Enamoured of his poetry boys would eagerly seek his acquaintance. Iswar Gupta, too, was equally eager to give encouragement to the young writers of the day. Rightly had the 'Hindu Patriot' commented that a good many of the modern writers were once the disciples of Iswar Gupta. It is however difficult to say how lasting or even desirable have been the results of what Iswar Gupta taught them. Like Dinabandhu and such other writers of distinction the humble writer of this article, too, owes a debt to Iswar Gupta. Hence I do not wish to prove myself ungrateful by writing disparagingly about his literary work. Nor can I altogether deny that judging by modern standard the taste of Iswar Gupta would appear to have been neither very elegant nor very high. A large number of his disciples have now taken to new paths, forgetting what Iswar Gupta taught them.
Finishing school, Dinabandhu joined the Hindu College where he studied for a few years, securing a scholarship. He enjoyed the reputation of being one of the best students of his college.
I do not know much about Dinabandhu's student life, for I was not known to him then.
Probably in the year 1855 Dinabandhu left college, and accepted the post of Postmaster, Patna Post Office, on a monthly salary of Rs 150/. During his tenure of office there for a period of six months Dinabandhu worked with reputation. A year and a half after, he was given a lift. He was made the Inspecting Postmaster of the division of Orissa, but though there was a rise in his position there was no rise in his salary. It came later.
Today it seems how better it would have been, had Dinabandhu stayed on as a lifelong Postmaster on a salary of Rs 150/- a month. His promotion to the post of Inspecting Postmaster had not been surely a blessing. Formerly the rules of service required Inspecting Postmasters to tour about ceaselessly in different areas and supervise the work of different Post Offices. Nowadays they may, if they should so desire, stay at the Headquarters for a period of six months. Formerly, however, rules were different, and they had to be on the move all the twelve months of the year, halting at some place for a day, at another for two days, and still another for three days at the most. Years of ceaseless labour break down even an iron physique much as constant running wears out an iron wheel. Dinabandhu failed to bear the strain of his work. His appointment to the post of Inspecting Postmaster had been a great misfortune to Bengal!
This however was not an unmitigated evil. A writer of satirical literature needs a special type of training, which training is provided only by a study of different types of human character. During his tours in many places Dinabandhu came in touch with such varied types of human character! It was by virtue of this training he thus received that he was able to create a variety of humorous characters—a variety rarely to be met with in Bengali literature.
From Orissa division Dinabandhu was first sent out to Nadia division, and thence to Dacca division. Troubles centring round Indigo had already started at that time. By travelling in various places Dinabandhu acquired an intimate knowledge of the tyranny of the Indigo planters, and then came out with his NIL DARPAN, and laid Bengal under an obligation.
Dinabandhu was perfectly aware that great harm would come to him if his authorship of Nil Darpan came to light, for, those Englishmen whom he served were great friends of Indigo planters. Further, in course of one's work at the Post office one had to come in constant touch with Indigo planters and other Englishmen. Their hostility might cause a man constant care and anxiety, if not injure his interests vitally. Dinabandhu knew all this, and yet he did not refrain from giving publicity to his Nil Darpan. True the book did not bear the name of the author, but Dinabandhu too was never anxious about keeping his authorship a secret. Immediately upon the publication of the book the people of Bengal—all of them—came to know by some means or other that the author of Nil Darpan was Dinabandhu Mitra.
Dinabandhu used to be deeply touched by the sufferings of others, and Nil Darpan was the product of this virtue of his character. It was because he could realize with full sympathy the suffering of the ryots of Bengal that Nil Darpan could have been written and published. Dinabandhu was the foremost of those who sorrowed in the sorrows of others. It was an uncommon virtue of his character that Dinabandhu used to feel more deeply the sufferings of a person then the sufferer himself. I myself had been once an eye-witness of a rare instance in this regard. Once he was staying with me in my house in Jessore. One night a friend of his developed the first symptoms of a serious illness. The person who did so woke up Dinabandhu and told him about his fears. Dinabandhu fell into a swoon at once. The person who woke up Dinabandhu for help was now engaged in nursing Dinabandhu himself. This I saw with my own eyes, and that day I came to realize that nobody, how great might be his virtues, would be as much moved as Dinabandhu would by the sufferings of others. Nil Darpan was but the product of this virtue of his character.
Nil Darpan was translated into English and was sent to England. For giving publicity to this book, Rev. Long was sent to gaol by the judgement of the Supreme Court, and Mr. Seton-Karr was put to humiliation. All this is known to us.
Whether because Rev. Long courted imprisonment for the sake of this book or because the book had a special quality of its own, Nil Darpan was translated into many of the European languages and came to be widely read.
No other work of Bengali literature could achieve this rare distinction. Yet howsoever great might be the distinction, all those who were connected with this work had to face some danger or other. It was by giving publicity to this book that Rev. Long courted imprisonment, and Seton-Karr faced insult. It was by translating this book that Michael Madhushudan Dutt was privately reprimanded and humiliated, and had to, it is learnt, give up his means of livelihood—his job in the Supreme Court. The author of the book, however, faced the greatest danger, even though he was neither imprisoned nor dismissed from his job. One night Dinabandhu was crossing the river Meghna by boat, engaged in writing the manuscript of Nil Darpan. When he had gone only a few miles away from the shore, the boat started sinking. The oarsmen, the boatmen—all started swimming, but Dinabandhu did not know how to swim. He sat quietly in the sinking boat with the manuscript of Nil Darpan in hand. Suddenly then one of the swimmers touched ground and called out to the rest: "Oh! there's no more fear now. Water is shallow here. There must be a c