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Top 10 Remarkable Facts about Dwijendra Lal Roy

Dwijendralal Lol Ray was born on 19 July 1863 in Krishnanagar, Nadia. The modern day India state of West Bengal.

He was the seventh child of Kartikeyachandra Ray, Dewan (Chief Officer) of Krishnanagar palace. Ray had six elder brothers and a younger sister.   He was married to Surabala Devi in 1887.

From his mother’s side which is very important to note in the Indian culture, he was a descendant of Vaishnava ascetic Advaita Acharya.  Acharya was one of the apostles of the medieval Bengali saint Shri Chaitanya. 

He was a great poet, playwright and musician in his time. He had a record of over 500 songs of Dwijendralal which he created separately in subgenre of Bengali music.

He was known for his Hindu mythological and nationalist historical plays and songs known as Dwijendrageeti or the Songs of Dwijendralal, which number over 500, create a separate subgenre of Bengali music. 

His first songs were written between the age of 12 and 17 and were published in 1882. This was his first and definitely not his last. His published songs continued in early 1900.

What was special about his songs is the combination of Western music styles with sophisticated lyrics in Bengali and in doing so marked a breakthrough in the  Indian music tradition. Dwijendralal.

1. A Young Achiever

As a child, he was introverted, thoughtful, temperamental and a lover of nature. He possessed the gift of the gab. He passed the first Arts examination in 1880.

Being a brilliant student, he received a scholarship owing to his performance in the students receiving M.A. degrees from the University of Calcutta in 1884.

2. He made Self  Discovery

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Ray, got a state scholarship to study agriculture in 1884. He later passed the examination from the Cirencester College and enrolled as member of the Royal Agricultural College and the Royal Agricultural Society.

However, his passion for music and literature did not get carried away by his agricultural achievement.

3. He had Passion For Literature

Dwijendralal was the monthly Bharatvarsq in 1913. He explored his literature side by writing poems while still in his teens.

While still a student he wrote Aryagatha (part 1). He wrote The Lyrics Of India in 1886 during his stay in England. Among his other books are collections of poems and songs.

4. Devotion To Performing Arts

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He also wrote plays, many of which are included in university syllabi. Among his mythical plays are Pasani in 1900. Sita followed shortly in 1908. another one hit in 1914 known as Visma.

His social plays included Parapare which went viral in the whole of India in 1912 followed by Babganari  in 1916.

He also added historical plays to his endless list of works. He is specially remembered for his historical plays.

5. Musical Scrutiny

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He composed about five hundred songs on different topics. Initially his songs were songs were known as Dwijubabu’s songs, subsequently became known as Dwijendragiti.

His first collection of songs, Aryagatha was published in 1882 with 108 songs.  Surprisingly, the songs were composed before he was seventeen years old.

He was famous as a dramatists. His lyrical songs and comic poetry captured the imagination of the people. They were used in historical and social dramas and satires of the period.

The themes are the beauty of nature, romantic agony, devotion to God and patriotism.

6. Government Clash

While working for the government, he clashed with the Bengal Governor on the issue of peasant land rights and tithing obligations.

The songs and poems themed against the government prompted the authorities to act against him. They said that the songs were insightful.

The public started realizing that they were oppressed by the government of the day. However, he continued composing the songs.

7. Bitter Sweet Memories

His wife died in 1903, this affected Dwijendralal who stopped composing songs of mirth and gaiety.

The anti-British movement and the swadeshi movement inspired him to write patriotic and nationalistic songs for the motherland and against the partition of Bengal.

8. Patriotism

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The most popular patriotic songs are ‘Banga amar Japanese amar’& ‘Dhanadhanya puspabhara’. In these songs, Dwijendralal combined Western music with Indian Raga.

For instance, ‘Dhanadhanya puspabhara’is based upon the Kedra Raga, but the line ‘se amar janmabhumi’ has three types of musical tempo, imitates the English music pattern.

9. Antagonism

Dwijendralal antipathy towards the colonial rulers was mingled with his uncommon musical talent. He did not reject the west 5otally as revealed in his melding Bangla lyric and Western music.

His songs characterized by truth and beauty and sense of joy, became a part of the Bangla tradition.

10. Dignitary

He was known for his commitment to the uplifting of women and his stance against Hindu religious orthodoxy and ritual. 

His collection Hanshir Gaan was a satire against upper-caste Hindu dominance of religious practices.

It is important to note that Dwijendra Lal Roy was a famous dramatists, poet whose music and plays were a great entertainment to people in the early 1900s.

Most importantly,  his lyrical songs and comic poetry captured the imagination of the people. They were used in the whole of India in functions and made a mark in the history of the country. Locals loved dancing to his songs. 

Social gatherings could not miss one of his songs. Schools children enjoyed watching his plays and of course the entire community was well entertained by his well themed literature.

The unique part of his songs was that they had a mixture of western music. He contributed a great deal in the India history, mostly in the area of music, dram and poetry. 

In addition, he was the greatest poet of his generation. Moreover, his record of more than 500 songs is overwhelmingly great! It is incredible how his music was a thrill in the country. Everybody loved to have his music played during their function and most events actually sounded his melody. 

Unfortunately, the great poet, playwright and musician died in Kolkata, India on 17 May 1913. However, he died as a great achiever, never to be forgotten for his input in the music and literature  industry.