The death anniversary of one of the major poets of the 19th century Bangla literature, Bande Ali Miah, who hails from the present Pabna district of the country, goes almost unnoticed.
Today is the 35th death anniversary of Poet Bande Ali Miah. Born on January 17 in 1906 in the village Narayanpur of Pabna district, poet Bande Ali Miah earned a name for his poems, prose and plays. The poet passed away on June 27, 1979.
Though several institutions have been named after the poet such as Kobi Bonde Ali School, Bande Ali road and bus terminal existing in Pabna, the poet is hardly remembered in the district nowadays. District administration earlier used to arrange observation programme on the poet’s birth and death anniversaries, but in recent times, there seems to be a lack of interest in observing such occasions. Only Debottar Kobi Bande Ali School will commemorate the poet today at its premises.
Poet Bande Ali Miah’s verses depict the simple rural life, free from complexities, dins and bustles of mechanical life. Not only was he a poet, he was also a famous painter and script writer, carving a niche in his contemporary literature scene.
‘Char-Jamai’, the first book of Bande Ali was published in 1927 from Calcutta Ashutosh Library. Till his death, the poet wrote 84 books including poetry, prose, drama and lyrics. His famous poem Maynamatir Char was published in 1931 from D.M Library in Calcutta. The poem triggered a downright, wide popularity for the poet.
Poet Bande Ali was a school teacher by profession in Calcutta until 1947. He was also the editor of two periodicals- Bikash and Bhorer Alo. After the partition, the poet came back to his paternal home in Paba and kept himself busy with drawing and writing. Later, he was appointed in Rajshahi Radio Centre in 1964 as a scriptwriter, where he worked till his death.
-With New Age input
