Fluff, which tends to be so profuse, so common. With you, it was
A lifelong non-cooperation with that which is crude,
marketable,
Popular. Hence it is I have regarded you as the hallowed emblem
Of our culture. Like one of your idols, Sisir Kumar, you too
I understand, had once spurned a dishonorable
national honor.
That was not an act of aggrandizement, it was a
recognition of
The true value of art and humanism, and upholding
their honor
In the face of all that is degrading. Regardless,
you have received
Acclaim aplenty, from home and abroad, Friend, even
as I for one
Realize that those awards are no more than bogs of
folly- they
Measure not the outreach of one's work or one's
greatness. Your
Work in its fullest glory is scattered across the
spectrum of your
Creations- much as that Ikebana (title of a poem you
contributed
To our Puja Magazine)- a bouquet of your offerings
at the altar of
Art. Poems,
recitation, conversation, the theater, the silver screen-
Variegated blossoms that found a place of love and
honor inside
Uncountable hearts- there you reside, resplendent,
an installation
Of permanence which shall never be shaken by anything
shallow
And insubstantial, and much less by the depredations
of a
Heartless virus. Matinee Idol of our culture- upon the scales of
Time,
you remain unassailable for eternity.
Interpretive Glossary
Puja Varshikis- This is a
collective description of a series of annual literary magazines
bought out in Bengal to commemorate the Durga Puja, a
major Fall festival.
Ananda Bazar- Name of a
leading Bengali newspaper and publishing organization.
Hemanta,
Suchitra- Two renowned
exponents of Rabindra Sangeet, songs
created and composed by Rabindranath Tagore.
Satyajit,
Ritwik,
Mrinal, Tarun, Tapan- Leading
Bengali directors of art/intellectual films.
Uttam, Suchitra- A leading
romantic pairing in Bengali cinema through 1970s.
Borda- Bengali
appellation of respect for an eldest brother/cousin.
Manu, Babun- Family pet names
for my brother and self.
Teen Kanya,
Samapti- Film by Satyajit
Ray based on three short stories by Tagore.
Nirmalya
Acharya- Co-Editor of Ekshan with Soumitra Chattopadhyay.
Sisir Kumar- Sisir Kumar
Bhaduri, a leading theater personality from Bengal who pre-dated Soumitra Chattopadhyay.
(Article changed on November 30, 2020 at 04:37)
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