Kumud Sahitya Mela in Pallikbi’s birthplace has became a melting pot of cultural activities in her original flavour
Original Bengali writeup by Parijat Mollah, Mangalkot
Translated by Suman Munshi
‘বাড়ী আমার ভাঙন ধরা অজয় নদের বাঁকে, জল যেখানে সোহাগ করে স্থল কে ঘিরে রাখে’।
‘My home is in the bend of the river Ajay, where the water flows and surrounds the land’.
Kumud Sahitya Mela Committee organizes Kumud Sahitya Mela every year on March 3 at Madhukar premises in Pallikbi Basat Bhit. This year was no exception. Pallikbi’s 141st birth anniversary was celebrated in a grand ceremony. The Executive Chairman of the Bar Council of West Bengal Shyamal Ghatak Mahashay inaugurated the Kumud Sahitya Mela last Friday at around ten o’clock in the morning.
State Minorities Commission Chairman Mumtaz Sanghamitra was the main speaker at the literary fair. Besides, Calcutta High Court AGP Ansar Mondal was the chief guest. Gautam Talukder, editor of Bidhan Shishu Udyan, and Baidurya Ghoshal, lawyer of Supreme Court and Calcutta High Court, were the presidents of the entire cultural programme. Poems, magazine – book release, recitals, musical performances were held throughout the day.
The Kumud Sahitya Mela Committee awarded the ‘Kumud Sahitya Ratna’ this year to crime thriller writer and lawyer Jayantanarayan Chattopadhyay. In memory of the late judge Molla Nurul Hoda, the ‘Nurul Hoda Ratna’ was awarded to Calcutta High Court lawyer Tishendu Sinharai K. Sudur is a poet from Jessore, Bangladesh. Kazi Noor was awarded ‘Hasan Azizul Haque Ratna’. Lawyers Mukul Biswas, Pallab Chattopadhyay, rhymer Tapan Kumar Bairagya, doctor Prannoy Ghosh, philanthropist Vishwanath Roy, journalist Jagannath Bhowmik, Pradeep Mukhopadhyay, Anwarul Azim and others were felicitated by Kumud Sahitya. For the fair committee.
The entire meeting was conducted by Molla Shafiqul Islam Dulal and Shyamlal Mokdampuri. Calcutta High Court lawyer Masud Karim, City Sessions Court lawyer Alok Kumar Das, Mangalkot police station IC Pintu Mukherjee, cinematographer and journalist Feroz Hossain, Raja Bandyopadhyay, Bachik artiste Antara Sinharai Devika were as distinguished guests. Banerjee et al. Like every time in this Sahitya Majlis, Pallikbi Kumudranjan Mallick’s granddaughter and writer Mahasweta Bandyopadhyay came this time. Rezaul Karim, nephew of rebel poet Kazi Nazrul Islam and sonali Kazi, poet’s granddaughter and poet’s daughter came. This time came Dr. Rajat Mohan Roy, descendant of Raja Rammohan Roy and musician.
During the fair, two international painters, Dipankar Samaddar and Viswanath Das, painted various pictures, especially on Pallikbi. Not only East Burdwan district but also West Burdwan, Howrah, Birbhum, Kolkata, Nadia and even Jessore area of Bangladesh, more than three hundred poets, writers, journalists came to Kumud Sahitya Mela. Molla Jasimuddin, editor of Kumud Sahitya Mela, said – “On the occasion of the birthday of Pallikbi Kumudranjan Mallik, we have been holding this literature fair every year on March 3 at Kabir’s residence in Kogram, Mangalkot. We could have held this fair on a larger scale if we got government support.”
