Gopala Chandra Praharaj

Gopala Chandra Praharaj Biography

Gopala Chandra Praharaj was a writer and linguist known for his significant contributions to Odia language. Praharaj is best remembered for compiling Purnachandra Odia Bhashakosha, the celebrated 4-language Odia Encyclopedia. As a writer, he was more engaged in non-fictional prose writing in Odia language. He also wrote satirical and analytical essays, and published in many leading Odia magazines then. Most of his writings dealt with contemporary social, political and cultural issues of the Odisha society in which he was living then. Gopala was a lawyer by profession. Noted Odia writer Santanu Kumar Acharya is a member of his family.

Gopala Chandra Praharaj was born on 9 September 1874 in Siddheswarpur in Cuttack district of Odisha. He belonged to a high class aristocratic Zamindar Brahmin family. His school and intermediate studies were completed from Cuttack, and later he completed graduation and LLB too, and pursued a career as lawyer. Since early 1900s, he started writing columns and published in different forms of media. He started writing essays for the Odia magazine Utkal Sahitya in 1901, and published his essays titled, "Bhagabata Tungire Sandhya".

He regularly wrote about social and political issues of the society through his columns, and gave them a satire touch too. He was inspired a lot by the satire writing style of Fakir Mohan Senapati, and followed same style of writing, never forgetting to add a satire touch to his works. He wrote for magazines - Utkal Sahitya, Rasachakra, Nababharata, and Satya Samachar. Purnachandra Odia Bhashakosha is his masterpiece work, for which he dedicated around three decades of his life, and now regarded as a timeless classic for Odia literature. Utkalara Kahani is his book about the folk stories of Odisha.

Published: July 17, 2018

Updated: July 17, 2018