Remembering Rashtra Kavi' Ramdhari Singh Dinkar on His 114th Birth Anniversary

RAMDHARI SINGH DINKAR BIRTH ANNIVERSARY: Popularly by his pen name ‘Dinkar’, Ramdhari Singh was one of the greatest Hindi poets and essayists in history. He channeled patriotic sentiments through the “veer rasa” or heroic style of composition. His writings inspired Indian freedom fighters in their struggle against the British. On Dinkar’s 114th birth anniversary, we look back at some of the lesser-known facts about the revolutionary poet.

1. Dinkar was born in the village Simaria in Bihar in Begusarai district, on September 23, 1908, into a poor Bhumihar Brahmin family; to parents Babu Ravi Singh and Manroop Devi.
2. Dinkar lost his father when he was only two years old and was raised along with his siblings, by his mother.
3. The works of Rabindranath Tagore, Iqbal, John Milton and John Keats greatly inspired Dinkar. ‘Rabindranath ki Kavitayen’ is a book of his translations of Tagore’s works.
4. Dinkar studied at Mokama High School. Each day, he had to leave during the lunch break to catch the last steamer back home.
5. Poverty, however, could not stop Dinkar from completing his education. He went on to become the head of the Department of Hindi at Muzzafarpur College after graduating from Patna University.
6. Dinkar got his first poem published in 1924, in a newspaper called Chhatra Sahodar, which translates to the brother of students.
7. Dinkar’s nationalistic sentiments grew during the protests against the Simon Commission in 1928 and the subsequent killing of Lala Lajpat Rai by the British. He supported the revolutionaries through his writings during the Independence movement but eventually became a Gandhian.
8. Dinkar published his poetry of protest against the British government’s cruelty under the pseudonym Amitabh. His first major poetry publication was Vijay Sandesh in 1928.
9. Dinkar was very dear to historian Dr Kashi Prasad Jaiswal, who appreciated his historical sense and poetic endeavours.
10. Dinkar is a recipient of the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1959 for Sanskriti Ke Chaar Adhyaye. He also received the Padma Bhushan and the Jnanpith Award in 1959 and 1972, respectively.

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