"Parashuram" (Rajsekhar Basu) (1880 - 1960)
Rajsekhar Basu, or Parashuram, was one of the most venerated figures
of 20th century Bengal. A leading light of Bengali literature,
Rajsekhar was a remarkable personality. He was a chemist by
profession, but his expertise ranged over the fields of mechanical
engineering, cottage industries, linguistics, lexicography and the
scriptures. Above all, he was a humorist par exellence, and an
astonishingly creative writer.
Rajsekhar was born on 16th March, 1880, at his maternal uncle's home
in Barddhaman district. He was the second son (and sixth child) of
Chandrasekhar and Laxmimani Devi. Rajsekhar spent his infancy and
childhood in Darbhanga. He was an inquisitive child and would often
take his toys apart in order to experiment with them. In an essay on
Rajsekhar, Shashisekhar, his elder brother, writes about how his
interest in science manifested itself right from his boyhood. He had
put together a laboratory at home equipped with two cupboards of
various chemicals; he would forecast the weather by looking at a
barometer that he had hung on the wall, would write prescriptions of
cough-mixtures for his family members, and later, would even go to the
Temple Medical School to dissect corpses. At the age of 14 years and
9 months, Rajsekhar passed the Entrance Examination in the first
division. His schooling was in Darbhanga, and Hindi was like a mother
tongue to him. In fact, when he was very young, he did not even know
Bengali very well.
Rajsekhar was introduced into the world of Bengali literature when he
went to Patna to study for the F.A. degree. Some of his classmates
were Bengali, and through their discussions about Bengali literature,
his interest in the subject was aroused. (His younger brother
Girindrasekhar
(1887-1953) was a scientist by profession, but also wrote delightful
books for children.)
Later he came to Calcutta and passed the B.A. and M.A. examinations
from Presidency College. Two years later, he completed a B.L. degree
as well, but went to court for only three days. Science had been his
principal interest since his childhood, and he gave up the legal
profession to return to science.
Around this time, he met Acharya Prafulla Chandra Roy, who invited
Rajsekhar to join him at Bengal Chemical, a company he had founded. In
1903, Rajsekhar joined Bengal Chemical as a chemist. Within a year, he
became the Manager and Secretary of the company. Under his leadership,
Bengal Chemical became established as a flourishing house of research
and manufacturing. For a full thirty years, Rajsekhar worked for
Bengal Chemical. Even after his retirement, he remained associated
with the company until his death.
Rajsekhar entered the world of letters in the 1920s. His first book
of stories, Gaddalika was well-received. Rabindranath found the book
delightful. In 1931, when Chalantika, a Bengali dictionary, was
published, Rabindranath wrote, "At long last, we have a dictionary for
Bengali. The concise grammar for Bengali that you have included in the
appendix is also wonderful." Chalantika also included Rajsekhar's
first efforts to reform and rationalize Bengali orthography. A few
years after the publication of Chalantika, Calcutta University formed
a committee to formulate a set of guidelines governing the spelling of
Bengali words. Rajsekhar served as the chairman of this committee.
The recommendations of this committee were accepted by the literary
giants of the day, including Rabindranath and Sharatchandra
Chattopadhyaya.
Rajsekhar also played a major role in the history of printing in
Bengal. Sureshchandra Majumdar is credited with creating the first
linotype in Bengali. Rajsekhar was his principal assistant in this
endeavour. The second edition of Parashuram's "Hanumaaner Swapna and
other stories" was the first book to be completely printed in Bengali
linotype.
Rajsekhar was a man with diverse other achievements. He was an active
member of the National Council of Education; he served on the Bangiya
Sahitya Parishad; he even provided covert assistance to the
revolutionaries of the Independence Movement in the shape of money,
chemicals and the methods to build bombs.
Rajsekhar received a good deal of recognition for his writing, but one
has the feeling that he did not receive his due because his works were
principally in a humorous vein. Calcutta University awarded the
Jagattarini and Sarojini medals to him in 1940 and 1945, but it was
only in 1957 that the University decided to award him the
D.Litt. Jadavpur University followed suit the next year. "Krishnakali
and other stories" won the Rabindra Purashkar in 1955, and in 1956, he
was awarded the Padma Bhushan. In 1958, he was given the Akademi
Purashkar for "Anandibai and other stories". One feels, however, that
these awards and accolades which came to him when he was in his
seventies should have been awarded much earlier.
Rajsekhar's personal life was not a happy one. His son-in-law, a
learned and well-respected man, died of a terminal illness when he was
still very young, and his daughter, his only child, died of heartbreak
the same day. In 1942, he lost his wife as well. He lived for almost
18 years after his wife's demise and wrote a great deal during this
time, but he did not allow his personal tragedies to colour his
writing. He also remained actively involved with Bengal Chemical till
his last day.
Even after a debilitating stroke in 1959, he continued writing. On
27th April, 1960, he suffered a second stroke while he was resting and
died in his sleep.
-- by Mandar Mitra
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