Kavisurya Baladeva Rath- Makers of Indian Literature (An Old And Rare Book)

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Kavisurya Baladeva Rath, a nineteenth century poet administrator of Orissa, is an immortal name in Oriya literature. By jnfusing a new sensibility into Oriya literature and experimenting on new forms he tried to free Oriya poetry from the classical chains by his new style and technique.

His poems, a blend of literature and music, comprise different forms of poetry like Champu, Chautisa, Chaupadi, narrative poetry, etc. and also new forms like parody and paradox. He gave a new shape to poetic language by combining pure Sanskrit words with native Oriya dialects.

His satirical prose work Hasya Kallol, considered one of the earliest works in Oriya prose, reveals his intellectual wit and critical insight. The poet not only laughed at the contemporary administration but also satirically attacked the social institutions.

Dasarathi Das (b. 1936), the author of this monograph, is currently a Reader in Oriya at Ravenshaw College, Cuttack. Recipient of the prestigious Oriya Akademi Award of 1973 for his Kavya Sambad, Dr. Das has a number of books to his credit. In this monograph, he introduces Kavisurya Baladeva Rath, poet administrator of Orissa, to non Oriya readers.

This monograph is a modest attempt to introduce one of the makers of Indian Literature, Kavisurya Baladeva Rath, an important poet administrator of 19th century Orissa, to non-Oriya readers. In fact, it is neither a complete biography of the poet, nor a critical estimate in detail. He has been presented to the readers keeping his literary background in view, which I hope, will reveal the man and the poet in true colour. His place in the fields of Oriya language, literature and music has been appreciated, and in order to acquaint the non-Oriya readers with the powers of wit and emotion in his poems, some of his lyrics have been given in translation, though such translations it may be pointed out, can never reveal the subtle creative imagination as well as the fine musicality of the language of the great poet.

I am grateful to Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi for this assignment. I am also grateful to my poet friend Sri Sanat Das Patnaik, who has translated the lyrics into English. Finally, I am grateful to Prof. J.M. Mohanty, of Utkal University, Bhubaneswar, who has spared his time to go through the text thoroughly and make corrections wherever necessary.