Rediscovering & Reviving of “Bhagwan Sri Ram” in Bengali socio-cultural evolutionary journey of Life

Partha Roy, Kolkata: “Noboborsho 1431Bonggabdo” – Bengali Hindu New Year will begin on “Poila Boishakh” i.e. on 14th April 2024. Kolkata witnessed launching of a Bengali Wall Calendar based on the theme “Sri Ram”.

Efforts are on to rediscover and revive omnipresence of Sri Ram in socio-cultural-religious-spiritual scape of Bengal for thousands of years in various forms. A unique cultural program welcoming Noboborsho 1431 was organised by MAKAIAS (Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Institute of Asian Studies) in collaboration with several other organisations of Ministry of Culture, Government of India and NGOs Sanskar Bharati West Bengal chapter, Bharatiya Sanskriti Nyas at SPM Bhasa Bhawan at National Library in Kolkata.

MAKAIAS presented “Ramayan Yatra” a medley of songs written in Bengali based on life of Bhagwan Sri Ram. Smt. Nilanjana Roy Secretary of Central Committee of Sanskar Bharati in her address highlighted reverence and presence of Sri Ram in various forms through art, craft, music, painting in every day life of people of West Bengal for many centuries.

The program was attended by Sri Ajay Pratap Singh Director General of National Library, Dr. Radharaman Chakraborty Chairman MAKAIAS, Shri Sarup Prasad Ghosh Director MAKAIAS, Shri Kushal Choudhary Trustee of Dakshineshwar Kali Mandir, Shri Subhash Bhattacharya Trustee Bharatiya Sanskriti Nyas and others. Dr. Shuvendu Sen currently Vice Chair, and Professor of Medicine at Jersey Shore University Medical Center New York USA and globally promoting awareness about Alzheimer disease attended the program.

Nritya -Guru Monalisa Ghosh was presented “Nataraj Samman” Mahakavi Krittibas Ojha medieval Bengali poet translated and wrote Indian epic Rāmāyaṇa in Bengali in poetry form which facilitated spread of Ramayan across all sections of the society and across all generations in Bengal. Ramayan katha has spread across South, South East Asia to Middle East Asia for over thousands of years and influenced culture and Life of the people residing there.