Bharatendu Harishchandra

Bharatendu Harishchandra Biography

Bharatendu Harishchandra is known as the father of modern Hindi literature and Hindi theatre. His name always stands in front among the Hindi writers of modern era. He was equally verse in poems as well as prose whose works have been regarded as trendsetters. He wrote under the pen name "Rasa". His major works include – drama, poetry, translations and essay collections. ‘Mathrubhasha ke prathi’ is one of his most noted poems. Born in 1850, he died at a very young age of 34.

This great poet was born in Banaras on September 9, 1850 as the son of poet Gopal Chandra. His ancestors were landlords. He lost his parents at a younger age. But his parents have influenced him a lot during his writings later. When Bharatendu was 15 years old, he went to the Jagannath temple in Puri with his family in 1865 which influenced him a lot. He was influenced by the Bengal Renaissance and decided to bring puranic and historic writings to Hindi. In 1868, he translated Bengali drama Vidyasundar to Hindi. Later he devoted his full life for the development of Hindi literature. His poetry works include - Bhagat sarvagya, Varsha Vinod, Krishan Charitra, Prem malika, Prem Maduri, Utrarat Bhagat Mal, Prem Tarang, Pholo ka Guchha, Prem Pralap ,Prem fuhalwari and Prem Srowar.

His noted translation works include - Harsha's Ratnavali, Visakhadatta’s Mudra-Rakshasa, Vidya-Sundar, Karpoor manjari and Merchant of Venice written by Shakespeare. He entered theatre field as an actor and later became a playwright and director as well. His major plays are Vaidiki himsa hitnsa na bhavati (1873), Bharat durdasha (1875), Satya Harishchandra (1876), Anderi Nagari and Neel devi (1881). Later his dramas were modified and staged by prominent stage directors like B. V. Karanth, Prasanna, Arvind Gaur and Sanjay Upadyaye. He has also served as an editor of magazines - Harishchandra Magazine, Harishchandra Patrika and Bal Vodhini.

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Updated: January 23, 2014