By Jaspal Singh,
Today is the 134th birth anniversary of one of the greatest writers of Hindustan, Munshi Premchand. He is referred to as Upanyas Samrat(emperor of the novelists) Munshiji was born in a small village near Banaras in a family of limited means.His father was a Patwari.His earlier education was done in a local Madrasa,where he learnt Farsi and Urdu from a Maulvi.Later on he went to other schools and colleges in Banaras and Allahabad.
He first started writing in Urdu and then in Hindi.He wrote many novels and short stories.The times of Premchand were the times of the intensification of the anti colonial struggle against the British and social reform movements against the anti human customs such as caste discrimination,child marriage,bad treatment of widows,oppression by landlords,exploitation by industrialists and religious bigotry.
Munshi Premchand [Courtesy: Wkipedia]
Munshi Premchand threw himself in the independence movement and used his pen to depict the conditions of the rural and urban poor as well as the middle class.His writings became the mirror of his times found a special place in the hearts of people.They expressed their aspirations and anguish,despair and joy with a master’s stroke in a simple language.
Several of his novels and stories have been turned into famous films.He handled his subjects and themes with great tenderness.One of his stories that I remember that had great tenderness was Shankhnaad. It is a story of a young man in a joint family in a village.The young man does not pull his weight and is a burden on the family.The family gets him married thinking that he will mend his ways,but he does not change.His wife gives birth to a son,whom he loves very much.Time goes on,the young man carries on as before,playing around with his buddies and not lifting a finger to help the family.His son is now growing.
One day his wife in a fit of great frustration beats up the son saying that because of idleness of your father we are humiliated so much.The slap on his son’s cheek Acts like a Shankhnaad (clarion call) and wakes up the young man from his stupor and he becomes a changed man.
Several of Premchand’s stories were banned by the British because they were arousing the people against them. In Anmol Ratan,he proclaims that the most precious Jewel in the world is the drop of blood which is given in the service of one’s country.During the non cooperation movement he gave up his teaching job and devoted himself to writing in spite of financial difficulties.In one of his earliest works he depicts the corruption of the temple priests,which earned him the wrath of religious authorities.Each of his works dealt with the problems of his times.
He was elected president of Progressive Writers Association at its founding in 1936. After a spell of sickness,Munshi Premchand passed away on October 8,1936.he left behind a great wealth of Urdu and Hindi novels and stories.
Modern Urdu and Hindi fiction ,according to some scholars starts with Munshi Premchand in a mature way.His novels and stories find resonance with great deal of people and their lives.Thus he is remembered and will be remembered for the times to come.
—
Jaspal Singh is a philosopher based in Cambridge, MA, USA.