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| period      = 1904–1948
| period      = 1904–1948
| genre        = Poetry
| genre        = Poetry
| subject      = Hindi
| subject      = Hindi literature
 
| movement    =  
| movement    =  
| notableworks =  
| notableworks =  
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'''Subhadra Kumari Chauhan''' (16 August 1904<ref>Rai, Alok (4 October 2008) [http://www.oxforddnb.com/templates/article.jsp?articleid=97283 Chauhan (née Singh), Subhadra Kumarilocked (1904–1948)]. ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography''. {{DOI|10.1093/ref:odnb/97283}}</ref><ref>[http://www.bharatdarshan.co.nz/author-profile/47/subhadrakumari-chauhan.html सुभद्रा कुमारी]. bharatdarshan.co.nz</ref> – 15 February 1948) was an Indian poet famous for the popular poem "Jhansi ki Rani" (about the [[Queen of Jhansi]]).<ref>{{cite book|last1=Rajaswi|first1=M.I.|title=Rashtrabhakt Kavyitri Subhadra Kumari Chauhan (Hindi)|date=2016|publisher=Prabhat Prakashan|location=New Delhi|isbn=978-9384344375|edition=1}}</ref>
'''Subhadra Kumari Chauhan''' (16 August 1904<ref>Rai, Alok (4 October 2008) [http://www.oxforddnb.com/templates/article.jsp?articleid=97283 Chauhan (née Singh), Subhadra Kumarilocked (1904–1948)]. ''Oxford Dictionary of National Biography''. {{DOI|10.1093/ref:odnb/97283}}</ref><ref>[http://www.bharatdarshan.co.nz/author-profile/47/subhadrakumari-chauhan.html सुभद्रा कुमारी]. bharatdarshan.co.nz</ref> – 15 February 1948) was an Indian poet. One of her most popular poems is "Jhansi ki Rani" (about the courageous [[Queen of Jhansi]]).<ref name="Rathi 2017">{{cite news |last1=Rathi |first1=Nandini |title=On Jallianwala Bagh anniversary, this poem by Subhadra Kumari Chauhan is a must read |url=https://indianexpress.com/article/india/on-jallianwala-bagh-anniversary-this-poem-by-subhadra-kumari-chauhan-is-a-must-read-4611814/ |access-date=11 July 2021 |work=The Indian Express |date=April 13, 2017}}</ref>''<ref>{{cite book|last1=Rajaswi|first1=M.I.|title=Rashtrabhakt Kavyitri Subhadra Kumari Chauhan (Hindi)|date=2016|publisher=Prabhat Prakashan|location=New Delhi|isbn=978-9384344375|edition=1}}</ref>


==About her Early life==
==Biography==
Subhadra Kumari Chauhan was a prominent poetess in India, whose writings used to be very emotionally charged. She was born in 1904 at the Nihalpur village in Allahabad district.
Subhadra Chauhan was born in Nihalpur village in [[Allahabad District]], [[Uttar Pradesh]]. She initially studied in the Crosthwaite Girls' School in [[Allahabad]] where she was senior to and friends with [[Mahadevi Verma]] and passed the middle-school examination in 1919. She married Thakur Lakshman Singh Chauhan of [[Khandwa]] in 1919 when she was sixteen with whom she had five children. After her marriage with Thakur Lakshman Singh Chauhan of Khandwa in the same year, she moved to Jubbulpore (now [[Jabalpur]]), [[Central Provinces]].<ref>{{cite book|last1=Chauhan|first1=Subhadra Kumari|title=Subhadrakumari Chauhan Ki Sampoorna Kahaniyan|date=1 January 2012|publisher=Rajpal & Sons|location=New Delhi|edition=Hindi}}</ref>


==About her family==
In 1921, Subhadra Kumari Chauhan and her husband joined [[Mahatma Gandhi|Mahatma Gandhi's]] [[Non-Cooperation Movement]]. She was the first woman [[Satyagrahi]] to court arrest in [[Nagpur]] and was jailed twice for her involvement in protests against the [[British rule]] in 1923 and 1942.<ref>{{cite web|title=Biography of Subhadra Kumari Chauhan|url=https://www.bharatdarshan.co.nz/author-profile/47/author47.html|website=www.bharatdarshan.co.nz|publisher=Bharat Darshan|access-date=27 June 2017}}</ref>
She married with Thakur Lakshman Singh Chauhan of [Khandwa] in 1919 at age of sixteen, with whom she had five children.


==Career==
She was a member of the legislative assembly of the state (erstwhile [[Central Provinces]]).<ref>{{cite news |last1=Wangchuk |first1=Rinchen Norbu |title=Ghoongat, Untouchability, Dowry: This Forgotten 'Jhansi Ki Rani' Fought Them All |url=https://www.thebetterindia.com/219787/india-freedom-struggle-rani-of-jhansi-subhadra-kumari-chauhan-premchand-nor41/ |work=[[The Better India]] |date=13 March 2020 |language=en}}</ref> She died in 1948 in a car accident near [[Seoni, Madhya Pradesh|Seoni]], [[Madhya Pradesh]], on her way back to Jabalpur from Nagpur, the then capital of Central Provinces, where she had gone to attend the assembly session.<ref>{{cite news |title=आज का इतिहास: आज है सुभद्रा कुमारी चौहान की पुण्यतिथि |url=https://zeenews.india.com/hindi/zee-hindustan/video/aaj-ka-itihas-death-anniversary-of-subhadra-kumari-chauhan/499045 |work=[[Zee Hindustan]] |date=15 February 2019 |language=hi}}</ref>
In 1921, Subhadra Kumari Chauhan and her husband joined [[Mahatma Gandhi|Mahatma Gandhi's]] [[Non-Cooperation Movement]]. She was the first woman [[Satyagrahi]] to court arrest in [[Nagpur]] and was jailed twice for her involvement in protests against [[British rule]] in 1923 and 1942.<ref>{{cite web|title=Biography of Subhadra Kumari Chauhan|url=https://www.bharatdarshan.co.nz/author-profile/47/author47.html|website=www.bharatdarshan.co.nz|publisher=Bharat Darshan|access-date=27 June 2017}}</ref>


===Writing career===
===Writing career===
Chauhan authored a number of popular works in [[Hindi]] poetry. Her most famous composition is ''Jhansi Ki Rani'', an emotionally charged poem describing the life of [[Rani Lakshmi Bai]]. It is one of the most recited and sung poems in Hindi literature, and is often taught in schools across India.<ref>{{cite web|title=Poems of Bundelkhand|url=http://www.bundelkhand.in/POEM/khoob-ladi-mardani-woh-to-jhansi-wali-rani-thi|website=www.bundelkhand.in|publisher=Bundelkhand.In|access-date=27 June 2017}}</ref> A couplet repeated at the end of each stanza reads:
Chauhan authored a number of popular works in [[Hindi]] poetry. Her most famous composition is ''Jhansi Ki Rani'', an emotionally charged poem describing the life of [[Rani Lakshmi Bai]].<ref>{{cite news |last1=STP Team |title=Khoob Ladi … The Poem That Captures The Bravery Of Jhansi Ki Rani |url=https://www.shethepeople.tv/sepia-stories/khoob-ladi-the-poem-that-captures-the-bravery-of-jhansi-ki-rani/ |access-date=11 July 2021 |work=[[SheThePeople.TV]] |date=September 5, 2019}}</ref> The poem is one of the most recited and sung poems in Hindi literature. An emotionally charged description of the life of the queen of [[Jhansi]]([[British India]]) and her participation in the [[Sepoy Mutiny|1857 revolution]], it is often taught in schools in India.<ref name="Rathi 2017" /><ref>{{cite web|title=Poems of Bundelkhand|url=http://www.bundelkhand.in/POEM/khoob-ladi-mardani-woh-to-jhansi-wali-rani-thi|website=www.bundelkhand.in|publisher=Bundelkhand.In|access-date=27 June 2017}}</ref> A couplet repeated at the end of each stanza reads thus:
{{Quote|बुंदेले हरबोलों के मुँह हमने सुनी कहानी थी,<br>
:बुंदेले हरबोलों के मुँह हमने सुनी कहानी थी,  
खूब लड़ी मर्दानी वह तो झाँसी वाली रानी थी।।<ref>{{cite web|last1=Chauhan|first1=Subhadra Kumari|title=Jhansi ki rani|url=https://www.poemhunter.com/poem/hindi-poem-khub-ladi-mardani-woh-to-jhansi-wali-rani-thi/|website=www.poemhunter.com|publisher=Poem hunter|access-date=27 June 2017}}</ref>}}
:खूब लड़ी मर्दानी वह तो झाँसी वाली रानी थी।।<ref>{{cite web|last1=Chauhan|first1=Subhadra Kumari|title=Jhansi ki rani|url=https://www.poemhunter.com/poem/hindi-poem-khub-ladi-mardani-woh-to-jhansi-wali-rani-thi/|website=www.poemhunter.com|publisher=Poem hunter|access-date=27 June 2017}}</ref>


This and her other poems, ''[http://www.anubhuti-hindi.org/sankalan/vasanti_hava/veeronka.htm Veeron Ka Kaisa Ho Basant]'', ''Rakhi Ki Chunauti'', and ''[http://www.kavitakosh.org/kk/index.php?title=%E0%A4%B5%E0%A4%BF%E0%A4%A6%E0%A4%BE_/_%E0%A4%B8%E0%A5%81%E0%A4%AD%E0%A4%A6%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%B0%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%95%E0%A5%81%E0%A4%AE%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%B0%E0%A5%80_%E0%A4%9A%E0%A5%8C%E0%A4%B9%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%A8 Vida]'', openly talk about the freedom movement. Here is the opening stanza of ''Jhansi ki Rani'':
This and her other poems, ''Jallianwala Bagh mein Vasant'',<ref name="Rathi 2017" /> ''Veeron Ka Kaisa Ho Basant'',<ref>{{cite web |title=वीरों का कैसा हो वसंत - सुभद्रा कुमारी चौहान |url=http://www.anubhuti-hindi.org/sankalan/vasanti_hava/veeronka.htm |website=www.anubhuti-hindi.org |access-date=15 August 2021}}</ref> ''Rakhi Ki Chunauti'', and '' Vida'',<ref>{{cite web |title=विदा / सुभद्राकुमारी चौहान - कविता कोश |url=http://www.kavitakosh.org/kk/index.php?title=विदा_/_सुभद्राकुमारी_चौहान |website=kavitakosh.org |access-date=15 August 2021 |language=hi}}</ref> openly talk about the freedom movement. They are said to have inspired great numbers of Indian youth to participate in the Indian Freedom Movement. Here is the opening stanza of ''Jhansi ki Rani'':


Original Hindi text:
{{quote box
<poem><blockquote>
| border=2px
| align=center
| bgcolor = Cornsilk
| title=झाँसी की रानी
| halign=center
| width  = 33%
| quote=<poem>
सिंहासन हिल उठे राजवंशों ने भृकुटी तानी थी,
सिंहासन हिल उठे राजवंशों ने भृकुटी तानी थी,
बूढ़े भारत में भी आई  फिर से नयी जवानी थी,
बूढ़े भारत में भी आई  फिर से नयी जवानी थी,
Line 65: Line 69:
बुंदेले हरबोलों के मुँह हमने सुनी कहानी थी,
बुंदेले हरबोलों के मुँह हमने सुनी कहानी थी,
खूब लड़ी मर्दानी वह तो झाँसी वाली रानी थी।।
खूब लड़ी मर्दानी वह तो झाँसी वाली रानी थी।।
</blockquote></poem>
</poem>
Roman transliteration using ITRANS:
|salign=right
<poem><blockquote>
|author=Opening stanza of ''Jhansi ki Rani'' in Hindi
}}
 
{{quote box
| align=center
| halign=center
| width  = 33%
| quote=<poem>
sinhasan hil uthe, rajavanshon ne bhrikuti tani thi,
sinhasan hil uthe, rajavanshon ne bhrikuti tani thi,
boodhhe bharat mein bhi aayi, phir se nayi jawaani thi,
boodhhe bharat mein bhi aayi, phir se nayi jawaani thi,
Line 75: Line 86:
bundele harbolon ke munh ham ne sunI kahani thi,
bundele harbolon ke munh ham ne sunI kahani thi,
khoob ladi mardani woh to jhansI wali rani thi.
khoob ladi mardani woh to jhansI wali rani thi.
</blockquote></poem>
</poem>
English translation:
|salign=right
<poem><blockquote>
|author=Roman transliteration using [[ITRANS]]
}}
 
{{quote box
| align=center
| halign=center
| width  = 33%
| quote=<poem>
The thrones shook and royalties scowled
The thrones shook and royalties scowled
Old India was re-invigorated with new youth
Old India was re-invigorated with new youth
Line 85: Line 103:
This story we heard from the mouths of Bundel bards
This story we heard from the mouths of Bundel bards
Like a man she fought, she was the Queen of Jhansi
Like a man she fought, she was the Queen of Jhansi
</blockquote></poem>
</poem>
Subhadra Kumari Chauhan wrote in the [[Khariboli]] dialect of Hindi, in a simple, clear style. She also wrote poems for children and short stories based on the life of the middle class.
|salign=right
|author=English translation
}}


==Death==
Subhadra Kumari Chauhan wrote in the [[Khariboli]] dialect of Hindi, in a simple, clear style. Apart from heroic poems, she also wrote poems for children. She wrote some short stories based on the life of the middle class.<ref>{{cite news |last1=अग्रवाल |first1=दीपाली |title=हिंदी की वह कवयित्री जो असहयोग आंदोलन में भाग लेने वाली पहली महिला भी थीं |url=https://www.amarujala.com/kavya/hindi-poetess-subhadra-kumari-chauhan-life-poetry |access-date=15 August 2021 |work=[[Amar Ujala]]|language=hi}}</ref>
She died in 1948 in a car accident near Seoni M.P. on her way back to Jabalpur from Nagpur, where she had gone to attend the assembly session as a member of the state legislative assembly.


==Memorials==
==Legacy==
The ICGS Subhadra Kumari Chauhan,<ref>[http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/india-pakistan-plan-hotline-on-maritime-security/article3154123.ece India, Pakistan plan hotline on maritime security - NATIONAL]. ''The Hindu'' (April 29, 2006). Retrieved on 2018-12-13.</ref> an [[Indian Coast Guard]] ship, was named after the poet.<ref name=tiwari199p137 />  The government of [[Madhya Pradesh]] placed a statue of Subhadra Kumari Chauhan before the Municipal Corporation office of [[Jabalpur]]. On August 6, 1976, [[India Posts]] released a postage stamp to commemorate her.<ref>[http://www.stampsathi.in/php/public/stamps-gallery.php?page=71 Indian Postage Stamps | Commemorative | Definitive | Miniature Sheets | Sheetlets]. Stampsathi.in. Retrieved on 2018-12-13.</ref>
The ICGS Subhadra Kumari Chauhan,<ref>[http://www.thehindu.com/todays-paper/tp-national/india-pakistan-plan-hotline-on-maritime-security/article3154123.ece India, Pakistan plan hotline on maritime security - NATIONAL]. ''The Hindu'' (April 29, 2006). Retrieved on 2018-12-13.</ref> an [[Indian Coast Guard]] ship, was named for the poet.<ref name=tiwari199p137 />  The government of [[Madhya Pradesh]] placed a statue of Subhadra Kumari Chauhan before the Municipal Corporation office of [[Jabalpur]].  
 
On August 6, 1976, [[India Posts]] released a postage stamp to commemorate her.<ref>[http://www.stampsathi.in/php/public/stamps-gallery.php?page=71 Indian Postage Stamps | Commemorative | Definitive | Miniature Sheets | Sheetlets]. Stampsathi.in. Retrieved on 2018-12-13.</ref>
 
On 16 August 2021, search engine Google commemorated Subhadra Kumari with a [[Google Doodle|Doodle]] on her 117th birth anniversary.<ref name="Subhadra Kumari on Google Doodle">{{cite web | title=Google Honours India's First Woman Satyagrahi, Subhadra Kumari Chauhan, With A Doodle | website=NDTV | date=16 August 2021 | url=https://ndtv.com/india-news/google-honours-indias-first-woman-satyagrahi-subhadra-kumari-chauhan-with-a-doodle-2511195%3famp=1&akamai-rum=off | access-date=16 August 2021}}</ref> Google commented: "Chauhan’s poetry remains a staple in many Indian classrooms as a symbol of historical progress, encouraging future generations to stand up against social injustice and celebrate the words that shaped a nation’s history".<ref name="Subhadra Kumari Chauhan's Google Doodle">{{cite web | title=Subhadra Kumari Chauhan's 117th Birthday | date=16 August 2021 | url=https://www.google.com/doodles/subhadra-kumari-chauhans-117th-birthday | access-date=16 August 2021}}</ref>


==Works==
==Works==
Line 101: Line 124:
* ''Mukul'' (1930)
* ''Mukul'' (1930)
* [http://kavitakosh.org/kk/%E0%A4%AF%E0%A4%B9_%E0%A4%95%E0%A4%A6%E0%A4%AE%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AC_%E0%A4%95%E0%A4%BE_%E0%A4%AA%E0%A5%87%E0%A4%A1%E0%A4%BC_/_%E0%A4%B8%E0%A5%81%E0%A4%AD%E0%A4%A6%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%B0%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%95%E0%A5%81%E0%A4%AE%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%B0%E0%A5%80_%E0%A4%9A%E0%A5%8C%E0%A4%B9%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%A8 ''Yeh Kadamb Ka Ped'']
* [http://kavitakosh.org/kk/%E0%A4%AF%E0%A4%B9_%E0%A4%95%E0%A4%A6%E0%A4%AE%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%AC_%E0%A4%95%E0%A4%BE_%E0%A4%AA%E0%A5%87%E0%A4%A1%E0%A4%BC_/_%E0%A4%B8%E0%A5%81%E0%A4%AD%E0%A4%A6%E0%A5%8D%E0%A4%B0%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%95%E0%A5%81%E0%A4%AE%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%B0%E0%A5%80_%E0%A4%9A%E0%A5%8C%E0%A4%B9%E0%A4%BE%E0%A4%A8 ''Yeh Kadamb Ka Ped'']
These anthologies consist some of the well-known poems like "Jhansi ki Raani", "Veeron Ka Kaisa Ho Basant" and "Yeh Kadamb Ka Ped", " Rakhi ki chunauti ".
These anthologies consist some of the well-known poems like "Jhansi ki Raani", "Veeron Ka Kaisa Ho Basant" and "Yeh Kadamb Ka Ped".


* "Seedhe-Saade Chitra" (1946)
* "Seedhe-Saade Chitra" (1946)
Line 107: Line 130:
* "Bikhare Moti" (1932)
* "Bikhare Moti" (1932)
* [https://www.amarujala.com/kavya/irshaad/famous-poem-on-rani-laxmi-bai-by-subhadra-kumari-chauhan "Jhansi ki Rani"]
* [https://www.amarujala.com/kavya/irshaad/famous-poem-on-rani-laxmi-bai-by-subhadra-kumari-chauhan "Jhansi ki Rani"]
=== Short Stories ===
* ''Hingvala'' (or Hingwala)


==References==
==References==
Line 113: Line 140:
==Further reading==
==Further reading==
* {{cite book
* {{cite book
|title=Handbook of Twentieth-century Literatures of India
|title=Handbook of Twentieth-century Literature of India
|author=Nalini Natarajan, Emmanuel Sampath Nelson
|author=Nalini Natarajan, Emmanuel Sampath Nelson
|year=1996
|year=1996
Line 119: Line 146:
|isbn=0-313-28778-3
|isbn=0-313-28778-3
|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vfSPI2irzUgC&q=subhadra+kumari+chauhan&pg=PA146
|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vfSPI2irzUgC&q=subhadra+kumari+chauhan&pg=PA146
}} by Natarajan, N.
}}
*{{cite book |author=Experts, Saraswati|title=Purak Pustak Series: Amrit Sanchay-Subhadra Kumari Chauhan |year=2016 |publisher=New Saraswati House India Pvt Ltd|isbn=978-81-7335-997-2 |url=https://www.google.co.in/books/edition/Purak_Pustak_Series_Amrit_Sanchay_Subhad/vms_DAAAQBAJ |language=hi}}


==External links==
==External links==
{{Commons category|Subhadra Kumari Chauhan}}
{{Commons category|Subhadra Kumari Chauhan}}
{{wikisourcelang|1|सुभद्रा कुमारी चौहान likes are there.|Subhadra Kumari Chauhan}}
{{wikisourcelang|hi|लेखक:सुभद्रा कुमारी चौहान|Subhadra Kumari Chauhan}}
* '''[link Subhadra Kumari Chauhan at Kavita Kosh]'''
 
* {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091027173647/http://geocities.com/dakshina_kan_pa/art31/women6.htm |date=27 October 2009 |title=Another brief biography }}
* {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20091027173647/http://geocities.com/dakshina_kan_pa/art31/women6.htm |date=27 October 2009 |title=Great Women of India - SUBHADRA KUMARI CHAUHAN (1904-1948)}}
* [https://archive.is/20130125180001/http://www.historytalking.com/hindi.htm Short note and recitation of the poem Jhansi Ki Rani]
* [https://archive.today/20130125180001/http://www.historytalking.com/hindi.htm Short note and recitation of the poem Jhansi Ki Rani]
* [http://oldpoetry.com/opoem/41054-Subhadra-Kumari-Chauhan-Jhansi-Ki-Rani--With-English-Translation- Jhansi Ki Rani English Translation By Qazi Muhammad Ahkam]
* [http://oldpoetry.com/opoem/41054-Subhadra-Kumari-Chauhan-Jhansi-Ki-Rani--With-English-Translation- Jhansi Ki Rani English Translation By Qazi Muhammad Ahkam]
* [http://www.bharatdarshan.co.nz/author-profile/47/subhadrakumari-chauhan.html]
* [http://www.bharatdarshan.co.nz/author-profile/47/subhadrakumari-chauhan.html Subhadra Kumari Chauhan] at ''Bharat Darshan''
* [http://www.oxforddnb.com/templates/article.jsp?articleid=97283]
 


{{Authority control}}
{{Authority control}}
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[[Category:Prisoners and detainees of British India]]
[[Category:Prisoners and detainees of British India]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian women writers]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian women writers]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian writers]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian poets]]
[[Category:20th-century Indian poets]]
[[Category:Women writers from Uttar Pradesh]]
[[Category:Women writers from Uttar Pradesh]]

Revision as of 00:54, 19 January 2022


Subhadra Kumari Chauhan
Subhadra Kumari Chauhan.JPG
Subhadra Kumari Chauhan
Born(1904-08-16)16 August 1904
Allahabad, United Provinces of Agra and Oudh, British India
Died15 February 1948(1948-02-15) (aged 43)[1]
Seoni, Central Provinces and Berar, India
OccupationPoet
LanguageHindi
NationalityIndian
Period1904–1948
GenrePoetry
SubjectHindi literature
SpouseThakur Lakshman Singh Chauhan
Children5

Subhadra Kumari Chauhan (16 August 1904[2][3] – 15 February 1948) was an Indian poet. One of her most popular poems is "Jhansi ki Rani" (about the courageous Queen of Jhansi).[4][5]

Biography

Subhadra Chauhan was born in Nihalpur village in Allahabad District, Uttar Pradesh. She initially studied in the Crosthwaite Girls' School in Allahabad where she was senior to and friends with Mahadevi Verma and passed the middle-school examination in 1919. She married Thakur Lakshman Singh Chauhan of Khandwa in 1919 when she was sixteen with whom she had five children. After her marriage with Thakur Lakshman Singh Chauhan of Khandwa in the same year, she moved to Jubbulpore (now Jabalpur), Central Provinces.[6]

In 1921, Subhadra Kumari Chauhan and her husband joined Mahatma Gandhi's Non-Cooperation Movement. She was the first woman Satyagrahi to court arrest in Nagpur and was jailed twice for her involvement in protests against the British rule in 1923 and 1942.[7]

She was a member of the legislative assembly of the state (erstwhile Central Provinces).[8] She died in 1948 in a car accident near Seoni, Madhya Pradesh, on her way back to Jabalpur from Nagpur, the then capital of Central Provinces, where she had gone to attend the assembly session.[9]

Writing career

Chauhan authored a number of popular works in Hindi poetry. Her most famous composition is Jhansi Ki Rani, an emotionally charged poem describing the life of Rani Lakshmi Bai.[10] The poem is one of the most recited and sung poems in Hindi literature. An emotionally charged description of the life of the queen of Jhansi(British India) and her participation in the 1857 revolution, it is often taught in schools in India.[4][11] A couplet repeated at the end of each stanza reads thus:

बुंदेले हरबोलों के मुँह हमने सुनी कहानी थी,
खूब लड़ी मर्दानी वह तो झाँसी वाली रानी थी।।[12]

This and her other poems, Jallianwala Bagh mein Vasant,[4] Veeron Ka Kaisa Ho Basant,[13] Rakhi Ki Chunauti, and Vida,[14] openly talk about the freedom movement. They are said to have inspired great numbers of Indian youth to participate in the Indian Freedom Movement. Here is the opening stanza of Jhansi ki Rani:

झाँसी की रानी

सिंहासन हिल उठे राजवंशों ने भृकुटी तानी थी,
बूढ़े भारत में भी आई फिर से नयी जवानी थी,
गुमी हुई आज़ादी की कीमत सबने पहचानी थी,
दूर फिरंगी को करने की सबने मन में ठानी थी।
चमक उठी सन सत्तावन में, वह तलवार पुरानी थी,
बुंदेले हरबोलों के मुँह हमने सुनी कहानी थी,
खूब लड़ी मर्दानी वह तो झाँसी वाली रानी थी।।

Opening stanza of Jhansi ki Rani in Hindi

sinhasan hil uthe, rajavanshon ne bhrikuti tani thi,
boodhhe bharat mein bhi aayi, phir se nayi jawaani thi,
gumi hui azadI ki keemat sab ne pahachani thi,
door firangi ko karne ki sab ne mann mein thani thi.
chamak uthi san sattawan mein, woh talwaar puraani thi,
bundele harbolon ke munh ham ne sunI kahani thi,
khoob ladi mardani woh to jhansI wali rani thi.

Roman transliteration using ITRANS

The thrones shook and royalties scowled
Old India was re-invigorated with new youth
People realised the value of lost freedom
Everybody was determined to throw the foreigners out
The old sword glistened again in 1857
This story we heard from the mouths of Bundel bards
Like a man she fought, she was the Queen of Jhansi

English translation

Subhadra Kumari Chauhan wrote in the Khariboli dialect of Hindi, in a simple, clear style. Apart from heroic poems, she also wrote poems for children. She wrote some short stories based on the life of the middle class.[15]

Legacy

The ICGS Subhadra Kumari Chauhan,[16] an Indian Coast Guard ship, was named for the poet.[1] The government of Madhya Pradesh placed a statue of Subhadra Kumari Chauhan before the Municipal Corporation office of Jabalpur.

On August 6, 1976, India Posts released a postage stamp to commemorate her.[17]

On 16 August 2021, search engine Google commemorated Subhadra Kumari with a Doodle on her 117th birth anniversary.[18] Google commented: "Chauhan’s poetry remains a staple in many Indian classrooms as a symbol of historical progress, encouraging future generations to stand up against social injustice and celebrate the words that shaped a nation’s history".[19]

Works

Collections of poems

These anthologies consist some of the well-known poems like "Jhansi ki Raani", "Veeron Ka Kaisa Ho Basant" and "Yeh Kadamb Ka Ped".

  • "Seedhe-Saade Chitra" (1946)
  • "Mera naya Bachpan" (1946)
  • "Bikhare Moti" (1932)
  • "Jhansi ki Rani"

Short Stories

  • Hingvala (or Hingwala)

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Biography of Subhadra Kumari Chauhan". All poetry. Retrieved 27 June 2017.
  2. ↑ Rai, Alok (4 October 2008) Chauhan (née Singh), Subhadra Kumarilocked (1904–1948). Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. doi:10.1093/ref:odnb/97283
  3. ↑ सुभद्रा कुमारी. bharatdarshan.co.nz
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Rathi, Nandini (13 April 2017). "On Jallianwala Bagh anniversary, this poem by Subhadra Kumari Chauhan is a must read". The Indian Express. Retrieved 11 July 2021.
  5. ↑ Rajaswi, M.I. (2016). Rashtrabhakt Kavyitri Subhadra Kumari Chauhan (Hindi) (1 ed.). New Delhi: Prabhat Prakashan. ISBN 978-9384344375.
  6. ↑ Chauhan, Subhadra Kumari (1 January 2012). Subhadrakumari Chauhan Ki Sampoorna Kahaniyan (Hindi ed.). New Delhi: Rajpal & Sons.
  7. ↑ "Biography of Subhadra Kumari Chauhan". www.bharatdarshan.co.nz. Bharat Darshan. Retrieved 27 June 2017.
  8. ↑ Wangchuk, Rinchen Norbu (13 March 2020). "Ghoongat, Untouchability, Dowry: This Forgotten 'Jhansi Ki Rani' Fought Them All". The Better India.
  9. ↑ "आज का इतिहास: आज है सुभद्रा कुमारी चौहान की पुण्यतिथि". Zee Hindustan (in हिन्दी). 15 February 2019.
  10. ↑ STP Team (5 September 2019). "Khoob Ladi … The Poem That Captures The Bravery Of Jhansi Ki Rani". SheThePeople.TV. Retrieved 11 July 2021.
  11. ↑ "Poems of Bundelkhand". www.bundelkhand.in. Bundelkhand.In. Retrieved 27 June 2017.
  12. ↑ Chauhan, Subhadra Kumari. "Jhansi ki rani". www.poemhunter.com. Poem hunter. Retrieved 27 June 2017.
  13. ↑ "वीरों का कैसा हो वसंत - सुभद्रा कुमारी चौहान". www.anubhuti-hindi.org. Retrieved 15 August 2021.
  14. ↑ "विदा / सुभद्राकुमारी चौहान - कविता कोश". kavitakosh.org (in हिन्दी). Retrieved 15 August 2021.
  15. ↑ अग्रवाल, दीपाली. "हिंदी की वह कवयित्री जो असहयोग आंदोलन में भाग लेने वाली पहली महिला भी थीं". Amar Ujala (in हिन्दी). Retrieved 15 August 2021.
  16. ↑ India, Pakistan plan hotline on maritime security - NATIONAL. The Hindu (April 29, 2006). Retrieved on 2018-12-13.
  17. ↑ Indian Postage Stamps | Commemorative | Definitive | Miniature Sheets | Sheetlets. Stampsathi.in. Retrieved on 2018-12-13.
  18. ↑ "Google Honours India's First Woman Satyagrahi, Subhadra Kumari Chauhan, With A Doodle". NDTV. 16 August 2021. Retrieved 16 August 2021.
  19. ↑ "Subhadra Kumari Chauhan's 117th Birthday". 16 August 2021. Retrieved 16 August 2021.

Further reading

External links

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