Gitiswami award conferred on Moromi Kobi

Bangladesh writer Sushil Kumar proposes inclusion of fifth martyr in list

By our Staff Reporter

GUWAHATI, Nov 27: Gitiswami Jayanti Udjapan Samiti (GJUS) conferred the Gitiswami Award posthumously on Late Madan Mohan Mukherjee – a poet, dramatist, social activist all rolled into one – at a function held on the occasion of the 120th birth anniversary of Gokulanda Gitiswami – a bard, poet, altertive media maven, balladeer and what not – at Shilpgram in the city today.

Late Mukherjee, popularly called as Moromi Kobi, had quality poetry collections like Thoigo, Ten Kokok, Rong Firok, Beleya Jar Aage Prithibir Prem and Disha, and a drama, Loilat, to his credit. With this award, the Gitiswami Jayanti Udjapan Samiti has done justice to the contribution of a poet of repute.

Noted organizer and litterateur from Bangladesh, Sushil Kumar Sinha, who is the editor of Pouri, a literary magazine being published from Bangladesh, noted dance teacher Guru Bibhul Kanti Sinha and Manipuri dancer of repute from Bangladesh Sami Hussain Prema were felicitated at the programme.

Sushil Sinha has the credit of having published under his stewardship as many as 35 books under the banner of Pouri, a publication house of Bangladesh. Soft-spoken and publicity-shy Sinha was quite unequivocal when he said: “Gokulanda was born in Bangladesh with talents that were brought out in India… He, however, is not as popular in Bangladesh as he is in India where he’s considered as the ideologue, Jatiya kobi and Jatir Jak by many in the community. Gokolanda is an undisputed model for many writers in India even though he is little known in Bangladesh. I assure this gathering that I’ll play an active role in erecting a statue of Gokulanda at his place of birth in Bangladesh.”

The writer from the neighbouring tion proposed to include the fifth Bishnupriya Manipuri martyr, Girindra Sinha, who was brutally killed in the Bangladesh Liberation was in 1971, along with the four – Raja Babu Sinha, Salil Sinha, Sudesh Sinha and Bimal Sinha – of the community in India.                

Educationist Hemkanti Sinha, who was the chief guest at the programme, also spoke at length on the contribution of Gokulanda. He availed this forum to give an explation as to why his long 20-year stay in Manipur was ‘unproductive’ for literary and social activities for the community he belongs to. He was on record saying that his ‘laziness, professiol hazards’ etc., were behind the   ‘unproductive’ stint. He, however, said that off and on he kept publishing some articles in Loktak, a literary magazine.

Dr. lini Kanta Sinha opted to the bottom-up approach in evaluating the contribution of Gokulanda. He was skeptical of the lack of punctuality among community  members, lack of respect to own language and culture that makes all efforts of holding the birth anniversary of the altertive media maven meaningless.

The president of the function, Col (retd) ni Gopal Sinha mooted that the birth anniversary of Sri Sri Bhubaneswar Sadhuthakur should also be observed every year in Guwahati. He appealed to the younger generation to respect their own language, literature and culture so that the language and culture of the community can survive extinction scare. 

Earlier, in his welcome address Gitiswami Jayanti Udjapan Samiti president and writer Prabbas Kanti Sinha said that some of Gitiswami's verses like the one requesting women of the community not to go to markets are obsolete nowadays when both males and females contribute equally in all respects. After the lunch a cultural programme followed. Tushar Arjun, Bithi Sinha and Bangladesh dancer Sami Hussain Prema, and others performed.