Thakurmar Jhuli - Revision history

Jameshowlett179011: formatting fix

2026-03-27T08:01:27Z

formatting fix

->Billjones94: /* Legacy */

2022-01-06T16:13:23Z

Legacy

← Older revision		Revision as of 21:43, 6 January 2022
Line 25:		Line 25:
	'''''Thakurmar Jhuli''''' ({{lang-bn\|ঠাকুরমার ঝুলি}}; ''Grandmother's Bag [of tales]'') is a collection of [[Bengali language\|Bengali]] folk tales and fairy tales. The author [[Dakshinaranjan Mitra Majumder]] collected some folktales of Bengali and published some of them under the name of "''Thakurmar Jhuli''" in 1907 (1314 of [[Bengali calendars\|Bengali calendar]]). The Nobel-Laureate, [[Rabindra Nath Tagore\|Rabindranath Tagore]] wrote the introduction to the anthology. Since then, it has become iconic in Bengali children's literature, becoming a household name in [[West Bengal]] and [[Bangladesh]] over the years.		'''''Thakurmar Jhuli''''' ({{lang-bn\|ঠাকুরমার ঝুলি}}; ''Grandmother's Bag [of tales]'') is a collection of [[Bengali language\|Bengali]] folk tales and fairy tales. The author [[Dakshinaranjan Mitra Majumder]] collected some folktales of Bengali and published some of them under the name of "''Thakurmar Jhuli''" in 1907 (1314 of [[Bengali calendars\|Bengali calendar]]). The Nobel-Laureate, [[Rabindra Nath Tagore\|Rabindranath Tagore]] wrote the introduction to the anthology. Since then, it has become iconic in Bengali children's literature, becoming a household name in [[West Bengal]] and [[Bangladesh]] over the years.

	Certain characters and stories like "''Lalkamal-Nilkamal''", "''Buddhu-Bhutum''" and "''[[Byangoma\|Byangoma-Byangomi]]''", have gained legendary status. Hundreds of editions of this book have been published from Bangladesh and West Bengal since the original publication~~. This book is a gem in the world literature~~.		Certain characters and stories like "''Lalkamal-Nilkamal''", "''Buddhu-Bhutum''" and "''[[Byangoma\|Byangoma-Byangomi]]''", have gained legendary status. Hundreds of editions of this book have been published from Bangladesh and West Bengal since the original publication.

	==Publishing background==		==Publishing background==
Line 37:		Line 37:
	==Character types and tropes==		==Character types and tropes==
	The first section, "Dudher Sagor", contains the very popular stories "Kalabati Rajkanya" (Princess Kalabati) and "Kiranmala", among others. The former is known elsewhere as "Buddhu Bhutum". Both these stories, like others in the collection, depict characters who initially suffer a series of misfortunes, display admirable personal qualities, like courage, kindness and wit, and eventually rise to great fortune.		The first section, "Dudher Sagor", contains the very popular stories "Kalabati Rajkanya" (Princess Kalabati) and "Kiranmala", among others. The former is known elsewhere as "Buddhu Bhutum". Both these stories, like others in the collection, depict characters who initially suffer a series of misfortunes, display admirable personal qualities, like courage, kindness and wit, and eventually rise to great fortune.
	The second section, "Rooptarashi", contains what is probably the most popular story from this iconic volume, "Lalkamal Neelkamal". These stories usually depict human protagonists encountering other creatures like ''rakkhoshes'', magical snakes, and the like. A ''rakkhosh'', or a [[Rakshasa]], is a race of beings from Hindu mythology, who are known from magical abilities, shapeshifting as well as eating humans, sometimes. The birds with human faces, [[Byangoma]] and Byangomi,are also encountered in "Lalakamal Neelkamal".		The second section, "Rooptarashi", contains what is probably the most popular story from this iconic volume, "Lalkamal Neelkamal". These stories usually depict human protagonists encountering other creatures like ''rakkhoshes'', magical snakes, and the like. A ''rakkhosh'', or a [[Rakshasa]], is a race of beings from Hindu mythology, who are known from magical abilities, shapeshifting as well as eating humans, sometimes. The birds with human faces, [[Byangoma]] and Byangomi, are also encountered in "Lalakamal Neelkamal".
	The third section, "Chyang Byang" deals with miscellaneous stories, and features some feats by the proverbial ''sheyal pandit''(Fox Pandit).<ref name=swadeshi/>		The third section, "Chyang Byang" deals with miscellaneous stories, and features some feats by the proverbial {{transl\|bn\|sheyal pandit}} (Fox Pandit).<ref name=swadeshi/>

	==Language==		==Language==
Line 50:		Line 50:
	*''Saat Bhai Champa'' (1978). Indian Bengali-language film directed by Chitrasathi.		*''Saat Bhai Champa'' (1978). Indian Bengali-language film directed by Chitrasathi.
	*''[[Arun Barun O Kiranmala]]'' (1979). Indian [[fantasy film]] directed by Barun Kabasi.		*''[[Arun Barun O Kiranmala]]'' (1979). Indian [[fantasy film]] directed by Barun Kabasi.
	*''Thakumar Jhuli'', an Indian animated television series which aired on [[Zee Bangla]] in the 2000s.{{cn\|date=January 2021}}		*''Thakumar Jhuli'', an Indian animated television series which aired on [[Zee Bangla]] in the 2000s.{{citation needed\|date=January 2021}}
	*''[[Kiranmala]]'', an Indian fantasy television series based on some stories of ''Thakurmar Jhuli'', which aired on [[Star Jalsha]] channel from 2014 to 2016.<ref>{{cite news \|title=Fantasy classic reinvented for TV audiences \|url=https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/fantasy-classic-reinvented-for-tv-audiences-115020800768_1.html \|work=Business Standard \|agency=PTI \|date=February 8, 2015}}</ref>		*''[[Kiranmala]]'', an Indian fantasy television series based on some stories of ''Thakurmar Jhuli'', which aired on [[Star Jalsha]] channel from 2014 to 2016.<ref>{{cite news \|title=Fantasy classic reinvented for TV audiences \|url=https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/fantasy-classic-reinvented-for-tv-audiences-115020800768_1.html \|work=Business Standard \|agency=PTI \|date=8 February 2015}}</ref>
	*''Buddhu Bhutum'' (2017). Indian [[fantasy drama]] film directed by [[Nitish Roy]].<ref>{{cite web \|last1=Mukherjee \|first1=Srijoy \|title=Buddhu Bhutum Movie Review \|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/bengali/movie-reviews/buddhu-bhutum/etmoviereview/71215656.cms \|website=[[The Times of India]] \|date=Sep 21, 2019}}</ref>		*''Buddhu Bhutum'' (2017). Indian [[fantasy drama]] film directed by [[Nitish Roy]].<ref>{{cite web \|last1=Mukherjee \|first1=Srijoy \|title=Buddhu Bhutum Movie Review \|url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/bengali/movie-reviews/buddhu-bhutum/etmoviereview/71215656.cms \|website=[[The Times of India]] \|date=Sep 21, 2019}}</ref>
	*''[[Saat Bhai Champa (TV series)\|Saat Bhai Champa]]'', an Indian Bengali-language fantasy television series that aired on Zee Bangla from 2017 to 2019.		*''[[Saat Bhai Champa (TV series)\|Saat Bhai Champa]]'', an Indian Bengali-language fantasy television series that aired on Zee Bangla from 2017 to 2019.
Line 62:		Line 62:

	== Legacy ==		== Legacy ==
	The four initial folktale anthologies of Mitra Majumdar are titled after a grandparent, who represents the bygone era and thereby embodies cultural heritage. In the contemporary context ~~the~~ written and digital recordings of these fables seem to have replaced the earlier oral tradition, but ''Thakurmar Jhuli'' remains a compilation that is not limited to children alone, and over the years has found tremendous response among the adults. It is a veritable treasure of Bengali literature.		The four initial folktale anthologies of Mitra Majumdar are titled after a grandparent, who represents the bygone era and thereby embodies cultural heritage. In the contemporary context, written and digital recordings of these fables seem to have replaced the earlier oral tradition, but ''Thakurmar Jhuli'' remains a compilation that is not limited to children alone, and over the years has found tremendous response among the adults. It is a veritable treasure of Bengali literature.

	==References==		==References==

imported>Tamingimpala: Importing Wikidata short description: "Bengali fairytales" (Shortdesc helper)

2021-08-01T07:59:52Z

Importing Wikidata short description: "Bengali fairytales" (Shortdesc helper)

New page

{{Short description|Bengali fairytales}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=September 2020}}
{{Infobox book
| italic title = 
| name = Thakurmar Jhuli
| image = Jhuli.jpg
| image_size =
| alt =
| caption = Cover design of ''Thakurmar Jhuli'' (1907)
| author = [[Dakshinaranjan Mitra Majumder]]
| country = India
| language = Bengali
| subject = Children's Literature
| genre =
| set_in =
| published = 1907
| publisher =
| publisher2 =
| pub_date =
| english_pub_date =
| media_type =
| pages =
| awards =
}}{{Culture of Bengal}}
'''''Thakurmar Jhuli''''' ({{lang-bn|ঠাকুরমার ঝুলি}}; ''Grandmother's Bag [of tales]'') is a collection of [[Bengali language|Bengali]] folk tales and fairy tales. The author [[Dakshinaranjan Mitra Majumder]] collected some folktales of Bengali and published some of them under the name of "''Thakurmar Jhuli''" in 1907 (1314 of [[Bengali calendars|Bengali calendar]]). The Nobel-Laureate, [[Rabindra Nath Tagore|Rabindranath Tagore]] wrote the introduction to the anthology. Since then, it has become iconic in Bengali children's literature, becoming a household name in [[West Bengal]] and [[Bangladesh]] over the years.

Certain characters and stories like "''Lalkamal-Nilkamal''", "''Buddhu-Bhutum''" and "''[[Byangoma|Byangoma-Byangomi]]''", have gained legendary status. Hundreds of editions of this book have been published from Bangladesh and West Bengal since the original publication. This book is a gem in the world literature.

==Publishing background==
Rabindranath Tagore notes in his introduction to Thakurmar Jhuli, that there was a dire need for folk literature of Bengal to be revived because the only such works available to the reading public of the time were European fairytales and their translations. He expressed the need for a swadeshi or indigenous folk literature that would remind the people of Bengal of their rich oral traditions. This would be a method of contending the cultural imperialism of the British.<ref name=swadeshi>{{cite book|last=Mitra Majumdar|first=Dakhshinaranjan|title= Thakurmar Jhuli|date= 1907}}</ref>
Dakshinaranjan recounts the memories of listening to fairytales told by his mother as well as his aunt, in his own introduction to Thakurmar Jhuli. Dakshinaranjan's aunt, Rajlakkhi Debi had given him the duty of visiting the villages in their zamindari. He travelled and listened to Bengali folktales and fairytales being narrated by the village elders. He recorded this material with a phonograph that he carried, and listened to the recordings repeatedly, imbibing the style. However, he found no publisher initially, and had set up a press to self-publish the first book that would be a compilation of the stories he developed from the recorded tales. At this juncture, [[Dinesh Chandra Sen]], impressed by the manuscript, arranged for it to be published by Bhattacharya and Sons, a renowned publisher of the time. Within a week, three thousand copies were sold. Several illustrations for the collection were also drawn by the author. His drawings were turned into lithographs for printing.<ref name=hist>{{cite news |script-title=bn:দক্ষিণা বাতাসে পাল তুলে দিল শুকপঙ্খী নৌকা |url=https://www.anandabazar.com/supplementary/patrika/a-short-write-up-on-bengali-fairy-tale-writer-dakshinaranjan-mitra-majumder-1.1062921 |work=Anandabazar Patrika |language=bn |access-date= 20 August 2020}}</ref>

==Contents==
[[File:Thakurmar Jhuli.jpg|thumb|Audio book release cover]]
The book fourteen stories, divided into three sections- "Dudher Sagor" (Sea of Milk), "Rooptarashi" (Scary Form), and "Chyang Byang" (Fish-Frog). The final section "Shona Ghumalo" (Cutie Sleeps) contains three poems. Apart from this, some other poems act as introductions to the collection as a whole, and to each section.<ref name=swadeshi/>

==Character types and tropes==
The first section, "Dudher Sagor", contains the very popular stories "Kalabati Rajkanya" (Princess Kalabati) and "Kiranmala", among others. The former is known elsewhere as "Buddhu Bhutum". Both these stories, like others in the collection, depict characters who initially suffer a series of misfortunes, display admirable personal qualities, like courage, kindness and wit, and eventually rise to great fortune.
The second section, "Rooptarashi", contains what is probably the most popular story from this iconic volume, "Lalkamal Neelkamal". These stories usually depict human protagonists encountering other creatures like ''rakkhoshes'', magical snakes, and the like. A ''rakkhosh'', or a [[Rakshasa]], is a race of beings from Hindu mythology, who are known from magical abilities, shapeshifting as well as eating humans, sometimes. The birds with human faces, [[Byangoma]] and Byangomi,are also encountered in "Lalakamal Neelkamal".
The third section, "Chyang Byang" deals with miscellaneous stories, and features some feats by the proverbial ''sheyal pandit''(Fox Pandit).<ref name=swadeshi/>

==Language==
[[File:Kiranmala.jpg|thumb|Illustration by Dakshinaranjan Mitra Majumdar for the story "Kiranmala"]]
In his introduction, Tagore noted that Dakhshinaranjan has successfully put into writing, the linguistic flavour of traditional oral tales. The poems read as collages of references to Bengali culture and folklore motifs.<ref name=swadeshi/>

==Translations==
* ''Tales My Grandmother Told Me'' (2005). English. Translation by Rina Pritish Nandy.

==Film and television==
*''Saat Bhai Champa'' (1978). Indian Bengali-language film directed by Chitrasathi.
*''[[Arun Barun O Kiranmala]]'' (1979). Indian [[fantasy film]] directed by Barun Kabasi.
*''Thakumar Jhuli'', an Indian animated television series which aired on [[Zee Bangla]] in the 2000s.{{cn|date=January 2021}}
*''[[Kiranmala]]'', an Indian fantasy television series based on some stories of ''Thakurmar Jhuli'', which aired on [[Star Jalsha]] channel from 2014 to 2016.<ref>{{cite news |title=Fantasy classic reinvented for TV audiences |url=https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/fantasy-classic-reinvented-for-tv-audiences-115020800768_1.html |work=Business Standard |agency=PTI |date=February 8, 2015}}</ref>
*''Buddhu Bhutum'' (2017). Indian [[fantasy drama]] film directed by [[Nitish Roy]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Mukherjee |first1=Srijoy |title=Buddhu Bhutum Movie Review |url=https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/entertainment/bengali/movie-reviews/buddhu-bhutum/etmoviereview/71215656.cms |website=[[The Times of India]] |date=Sep 21, 2019}}</ref>
*''[[Saat Bhai Champa (TV series)|Saat Bhai Champa]]'', an Indian Bengali-language fantasy television series that aired on Zee Bangla from 2017 to 2019.
*''Thakurmar Jhuli'', an Indian anthology television series that aired on [[Star Jalsha]] in 2019.<ref>{{cite web |title=Thakumar Jhuli |url=https://www.hotstar.com/in/tv/thakumar-jhuli/1260003658 |website=[[Disney+ Hotstar]] |language=en}}</ref>

==In other media==
*Audio tapes and CDs.
*Puppet-theatres.
*Children's radio shows narrating the stories with the help of child artistes.

== Legacy ==
The four initial folktale anthologies of Mitra Majumdar are titled after a grandparent, who represents the bygone era and thereby embodies cultural heritage. In the contemporary context the written and digital recordings of these fables seem to have replaced the earlier oral tradition, but ''Thakurmar Jhuli'' remains a compilation that is not limited to children alone, and over the years has found tremendous response among the adults. It is a veritable treasure of Bengali literature.

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Further reading==
* {{cite journal |last=Maitra |first=Lopamudra |year=2007 |title=100 years of Thakurmar Jhuli (Grandmother’s Bag of Tales): From Oral Literature to Digital Media - Shaping Thoughts for the Young and Old |url=http://www.indianfolklore.org/journals/index.php/IFRJ/article/view/14 |journal=Indian Folklore Research Journal |volume=4 |issue=7 |pages=77–95 |citeseerx=10.1.1.730.7554 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150726184942/http://indianfolklore.org/journals/index.php/IFRJ/article/view/14 |archive-date=26 July 2015}}

{{Thakurmar Jhuli}}

[[Category:Bengali-language literature]]
[[Category:Collections of fairy tales]]
[[Category:Asian fairy tales]]
[[Category:Bangladeshi literature]]
[[Category:Indian fairy tales]]
[[Category:Indian folklore]]
[[Category:Indian literature]]
[[Category:Indian legends]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian books]]