Dwijendralal Ray (1863–1913), Indian poet, playwright, and lyricist, was born in Krishnanagar. Dwijendralal had a literary bent of mind and started writing poems while still in his teens. While still a student, he wrote Aryagatha (Part 1, 1882). During his stay in England, he wrote The Lyrics of Ind in 1886. Among his other books are collections of poems and songs: Aryagatha (Part 2, 1894), Hasir Gan (1900), Mandra (1902), Alekhya (1907), and Triveni (1912). His sketches and satires include Ekghare (1889), Samaj Bibhrat O Kalki Avatar (1895), Tryahasparsha (1900), Prayashchitta (1902), and Punarjanma (1911). He also wrote plays, many of which are included in university syllabi. Among his mythical plays are Pasani (1900), Sita (1908), and Visma (1914). His social plays include Parapare (1912) and Banganari (1916). He also wrote a number of historical plays: Tarabai (1903), Rana Pratapsingh (1905), Mebar Patan (1908), Nurjahan (1908), Sajahan (1909), and Chandragupta (1911). He is specially remembered for his historical plays. He was also a well-known composer of modern songs.
Jagadananda Roy (1869–1933), a scientific article writer, was born in a landed aristocratic family in Krishnanagar. He taught in a local missionary school for some time. His flair for writing on scientific matters in a simple and lucid style brought him into contact with Rabindranath who was then the editor of Sadhana. Rabindranath found these writings very attractive and when he found that Jagadananda was in dire straits, he offered him a job on his estate. Knowing that this work was not appropriate for someone like Jagadananda, he also asked him to teach his children. When the Brahmacharyasrama was founded, he brought Jagadananda over to Santiniketan as a teacher. He was the first Sarvadhyaksha of the school. A dedicated teacher, he taught continuously until his retirement in 1932, after which he continued to take Mathematics classes voluntarily. He wrote a number of books on popular science, his mission being to propagate scientific truth in simple Bengali in the manner of Ramendrasundar Trivedi. Graha-Nakshatra, Prakritiki, Vaijnaniki, Jagadishchandrer Avishkar, and Banglar Pakhi were some of his books.
Sudhir Chakravarti (1934–2020) was a Bengali educationist and essayist. He made a vast contribution in Bengal’s folk culture development and research. Chakravarti had completely changed the style of colonial prose with his new narrative style. He,successfully had replaced the prevailing idea of essay based writing being something of heavy scholarly matter, with his graceful and humorous prose language.
Professor Chakrabarty, author of about 100 books, has been honoured with the Sahitya Akademi Award and many other distinguisded Literary Awards.
Soumitra Chattopadhyay (1935–2020)is an Indian film and stage actor and poet. He is best known for his collaborations with film director Satyajit Ray, with whom he worked in fourteen films, and his constant comparison with the Bengali cinema screen idol Uttam Kumar, his contemporary leading man of the 1960s and 1970s.
Soumitra was the recipient of multiple honours and awards. Soumitra was the first Indian film personality who was conferred with France’s highest award for artists ‘Commandeur’ of, Ordre des Arts et des Lettres (1999). He was also awarded the Padma Bhushan (2004) and France’s highest civilian award Commandeur de la Légion d’ Honneur (Commander of Legion of Honour) (2017). He received two National Film Awards as an actor and the Sangeet Natak Akademi Award for his work in theatre. In 2012, he received the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, India’s highest award in cinema given by the government of India for lifetime achievement. In 2013, IBN Live named him as one of “The men who changed the face of the Indian Cinema”.
Kazi Nazrul Islam, the poet stayed at Grace Cottage, Krishnanagar between 1926 and 1928. Nazrul wrote number of his famous poems, including Daridro, Phani Manasa, Samyabadi, Puber Hawa and the novel Mrityu Khudha while staying in Krishnanagar.
Nazrul Islam’s writings explored themes such as freedom, humanity, love, and revolution. He opposed all forms of bigotry and fundamentalism, including religious, caste-based and gender-based. Nazrul wrote short stories, novels, and essays but is best known for his songs and poems. He introduced the ghazal songs in the Bengali language and is also known for his extensive use of Arabic and Persian influenced Bengali words in his works.
Narayan Sanyal (26 April 1923 – 7 February 2005) was an Indian writer of modern Bengali literature as well as a civil engineer. He was born in Krishnagar to Chittasukh Sanyal and Basantalata Devi. His name was initially Narayandas Sanyal in school life.
Narayan Sanyal wrote numerous books that dealt with various topics, such as children, science, art and architecture, travels, psychiatry, technology, refugee problems, history, biographical pieces, encyclopedia of animals, social novel and Devadasi-related.
This author also preferred writing books on deep shadow of many world-famous works. One of the most popular sci-fiction books, Nakshatraloker Debatatma [নক্ষত্রলোকের দেবতাত্মা], is based on the transformation of human race from primitive creature to civilised intelligent species controlling the whole earth. Then it deals with Jupiter exploration and a super intelligent computer HAL. The three-part book is an inspiration of 2001: A Space Odyssey by Arthur C. Clarke. In his book, Sanyal named HAL as Jantra-Na, in his mother tongue Bengali, it ambiguously means ‘not a machine’ as well as ‘pain’.
Haripada Chattopadhyay (1897 – 11 November 1967) was an Indian politician, Member of Parliament, Lok Sabha and Bengali revolutionary. He was born at Krishnanagar, Nadia. He was the maternal cousin of Bengali revolutionary Bagha Jatin. His father Basanta Kumar Chattopadhyay was a reputed advocate and attached with Tagore family of Shilaidah and Kolkata. Haripada Chattopadhyay entered in University of Calcutta, passed M.Sc. in chemistry with first class under the guidance of Dr. Prafulla Chandra Ray. In student life he was befriended with Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.
Haripada Chattopadhyay attracted to Indian national movement and took the membership of Indian National Congress in Nadia district. He first imprisoned in Dhaka jail in 1921 after joining the Non-cooperation movement led by Mahatma Gandhi. He also joined with Quit India Movement in 1942 and arrested several times. He was one of the founder of nationalist Abhay Ashram at Comilla and Agro industrial firm at Sahebnagar, Nadia district. He became an active member of Congress party in West Bengal Legislative Assembly (the then Bangio Byabosthapok Sabha) since 1937 to 1951. He contested in Karimpur (Vidhan Sabha constituency) in 1951 and won the seat in the banner of Kisan Mazdoor Praja Party.Haripada Chattopadhyay elected as independent candidate from the Nabadwip (Lok Sabha constituency) and Krishnanagar (Lok Sabha constituency) respectively in 1962 and 1967. He was popular as good orator and parliamentarian in Indian politics.
Dilip Kumar Roy (22 January 1897 – 6 January 1980), also spelt Dilipkumar Roy, was an Indian musician, singer, musicologist, novelist, poet, essayist and yogi. He was the son of Dwijendralal Ray (or Roy). In 1965, the Sangeet Natak Akademi, India’s National Academy for Music, Dance and Drama, awarded him its highest honour for lifetime achievement, the Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship.
Since his childhood, Roy had a fascination for Sanskrit, English, chemistry and mathematics. His passion for music stopped him from securing the highest marks in the Matriculation examination: he stood the twenty-first and, with a scholarship, joined the Presidency College of Kolkata. Here he came close to Subhas Chandra Bose. With a first class honours in mathematics, he went to Cambridge in 1919 for a tripos. Shortly before this three-year trip to Europe, in his teens he had come under the personal spell of the musicologist Bhatkhande.
Subhash Mukhopadhyay (12 February 1919 – 8 July 2003) was born in 1919 in Krishnanagar, a town in Nadia district in the province of West Bengal. An excellent student, he studied philosophy at the Scottish Church College in Calcutta, graduating with honours in 1941.
He was one of the foremost Indian Bengali poets of the 20th century. He is also known as the “podatik kobi” (“foot-soldier poet”) in the field of Bengali literature. A book of thirty of Subhash’s best known poems in English translation, titled ‘ As Day is Breaking’, was published in 2014 by Anjan Basu, a Bangalore-based writer/critic. The book includes a rather detailed introduction to the poet’s work as well. He was honoured with Jnanpith Award in 1991.
Charles Henry Stuart Gmelin (28 May 1872 – 12 October 1950) was a British athlete. He competed at the 1896 Summer Olympics in Athens.
He was born in Krishnanagar Nadia, in Bengal, India, where his father Frederick Gmelin was a Christian missionary.[3] Gmelin returned to England at an early age for schooling.
Pramod Ranjan Sengupta প্রমোদরঞ্জন সেনগুপ্ত (1907 – 1974) was a Marxist intellectual and Bengali revolutionary, attached with of Indian National Army led by Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose.
Sengupta was born in British India at Dumka, presently in the state of Jharkhand. His father Harshanath Sengupta was a reputed doctor of Dumka. In 1925 while studying in Krishnagar Government College, at Krishnanagar, Nadia he came in contact with Hemanta Kumar Sarkar, Anantahari Mitra, Mahadev Sarkar and gravitated towards revolutionary politics.
Khudiram Das (9 October 1916 – 28 April 2002) was an Indian scholar, educationist, critic, litterateur, an authority on Rabindra literature and linguistic expert.
He started his career as a School Inspector in 1941 and continued in that post for a few months. He taught at the Calcutta Women’s College and Scottish Church College from 1941 to 1944, Presidency College from 1945 to 1955, Cooch Behar Raj College in 1955, Krishnagar Government College from 1955 to 1959, Maulana Azad College (then Central Calcutta College) from 1959 to 1973, Hooghly Mohsin College in 1973, and as a Part Time Lecturer at Rabindra Bharati University from 1969 to 1973. He taught at the University of Calcutta as Ramtanu Lahiri Professor of Bengali & Head of the Department of Modern Indian Languages from 1973 to 1981. He retired from government service in the rank of West Bengal Government Senior Education Service.
Manmohun Ghose (Mônmohon Ghosh) (13 March 1844 – 16 October 1896) was the first practicing barrister of Indian origin. He is notable for his contributions towards the fields of women’s education, for arousing the patriotic feeling of his countrymen and for being one of the earliest persons in the country in organised national politics. At the same time his Anglicised habits often made him a target of ridicule in Calcutta.He was one of the co-founders of Indian National Congress.
As a child Ghose lived with his father in Krishnanagar and passed the Entrance Examination (school leaving or university entrance) in 1859 from Krishnagar Government College.
Lalmohan Ghosh (1849 – 18 October 1909) was the sixteenth President of the Indian National Congress and Bengali barrister and also Co-Founder of Indian National Congress.
He was born in Krishnagar, West Bengal in 1849, the second son of Ramolochan Ghose, gentleman. After passing the Entrance examination in the first division, Ghosh left for England in 1869 to qualify as a barrister. He was admitted to the Middle Temple on 19 November 1870 and was Called to the Bar on 7 June 1873, joining the Calcutta Bar in that same year. His elder brother Monomohun Ghose was also a barrister and well known political personality of India.
Jagannath Majumdar (1911–1999) was a Bengali revolutionary, freedom fighter in British India and a political leader after Indian Independence from Nadia, West Bengal. He was a part of the Indian National Congress and was a 3 term member of the West Bengal Legislative Assembly.
Jagannath’s journey in the independence movement began during his school days at Krishnagar Collegiate School, when he met and was influenced by revolutionaries like Anantahari Mitra and literary figures like Bijoy Lal Chattopadhyay. Anantahari Mitra affectionately referred to him as ‘damal kishore’, meaning ‘indomitable youth’.
Bina Das (24 August 1911–1986) was an Indian revolutionary and nationalist from West Bengal.
Bina Das was born in a Baidya Brahmin family to a teacher Beni Madhab Das and a social worker, Sarala Devi. Beni Madhab hailed from Chittagong and is known as one of the mentors of Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose. Bina’s elder sister Kalyani Das was also a freedom fighter.
Das was a student of St. John’s Diocesan Girls’ Higher Secondary School and Bethune College, Calcutta.
