Rabindra Nath Tagore, 7 May 1861 7 August 1941, was the youngest son of Debendranath Tagore, a leader of Brahmo

o Samaj. He was a Bengali poet, novelist, musician, painter and playwright who reshaped Bengali literature and music. ANTHEMS In the recently concluded "ICC World Cricket Tournament - 2011" jointly organised by the said three countries, it was witnessed again that the players of three different nationalities singing 'Anthems' created and inspired by the same genius for their respective nations. : india, Bangladesh and sri lanka. The Bengali song "Bharat Vidhata" was published in a magazine Tattvabhodhini Patrika of which Rabindranath Ta gore was the Editor. It translated into English by Rabindra Nath Tagore, under the title of Morning Song of India. And this Morning Song of India, Jana Gana Mana was adopted as National Anthem on 24 th January 1950. Some student from Sri Lanka named Anand S amarkun came to Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore to study in the Art & Music Dept. He made an earnest request to Gurudev to write a National Anthem for Sri Lanka. Rabindranath did not disappoint his student and wrote one in Bengali the first line of which is Sri Lanka Mata (=Mother SriLanka). Anand translated the Anthem into Sinhalese language in 1953 and gave it to the then President of Sri Lanka. The President was charmed and approved of the song as his countrys National Anthem. Amar Shonar Bangla (My Golden Bengal) is a 1905 song written and composed by the Bengali poetRabindranath Tagore from undivided India, the first ten lines of which were adopted in 1972 as the Bangladeshi national anthem.
NOVELS

Rabindranath Tagore wrote eight novels and a number of poems and most of his creations are in the Bangla language. He was the first Indian to bring an element of psychological realism to his novels. his eight novels and four novellas, among them Chaturanga, Shesher Kobita, Char Odhay, and Noukadubi. Ghare Baire (The Home and the World)through the lens of the idealistic zamindar protagonist Nikhilexcoriates rising Indian nationalism, terrorism, and religious zeal in theSwadeshi movement; a frank expression of Tagore's conflicted sentiments, it emerged out of a 1914 bout of depression. The novel ends in Hindu -Muslim violence and Nikhil's (likely mortal) wounding. Gora raises controversial questions regarding the Indian identity. As with Ghare Baire, matters of self-identity personal freedom, and religion are developed in the context of a family story and love triangle.

Aside from fictions and autobiographical works, he also wrote essays, lectures and short stories on various topics ranging from history to science and arts. The fruit seller from Kabul is considered one of the best creations among at least eighty four stories written by him. Based upon his early experience with villagers, he wrote stories which give a glimpse of the life most Bengali live. OTHER WORKS: In 1874, Tagore's poem Abhilaash (Desire) was published anonymously in a magazine called Tattobodhini. Rabindranath's first book of poems, Kabi Kahini ( tale of a poet ) was published in 1878. In the same year Tagore sailed to England with his elder brother Satyandranath to study law. But he returned to India in 1880 and started his career as poet and writer. In 1884, Tagore wrot e a collection of poems Kori-o-Kamal (Sharp and Flats). He also wrote dramas - Raja-o-Rani ( King and Queen) and Visarjan (Sacrifice). Between 1893 and 1900 Tagore wrote seven volumes of poetry, which included Sonar Tari (The Golden Boat) and Khanika. In 1 901, He became the editor of the magazine Bangadarshan. He Established Bolpur Bramhacharyaashram at Shantiniketan, a school based on the pattern of old Indian Ashrama. In 1902,Tagore composed Smaran ( In Memoriam ), a collection of poems, dedicated to his dead wife. In 1905, Lord Curzon decided to divide Bengal into two parts. Rabindranath Tagore strongly protested against this decision. Tagore wrote a number of national songs and attended protest meetings. He introduced the Rakhibandhan ceremony , symbolizing the underlying unity of undivided Bengal. In 1909, Rabindranath Tagore started writing Gitanjali. In 1912, Tagore went to Europe for the second time. On the journey to London he translated some of his poems/songs from Gitanjali to English. He met Wi lliam Rothenstein, a noted British painter, in London. Rothenstien was impressed by the poems, made copies and gave to Yeats and other English poets. Yeats was enthralled. He later wrote the introduction to Gitanjali when it was published in September 1912 in a limited edition by the India Society in London. Rabindranath Tagore was awarded Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913 for Gitanjali. In 1915 he was knighted by the British King George V. In 1919, following the Jallianwala Bagh massacre, Tagore renounc ed his knighthood. He was a supporter of Gandhiji but he stayed out of politics. He was opposed to nationalism and militarism as a matter of principle, and instead promoted spiritual values and the creation of a new world culture founded in multi -culturalism, diversity and tolerance. 1n 1921, Rabindranath Tagore established Viswabharati University. He gave all his money from Nobel Prize and royalty money from his books to this University. Tagore was not only a creative genius, he was quite knowledgeable o f Western culture, especially Western poetry and science too. Tagore had a good grasp of modern - post-Newtonian - physics, and was well able to hold his own in a debate with Einstein in 1930 on the newly emerging principles of

quantum mechanics and chaos. His meetings and tape recorded conversations with his contemporaries such Albert Einstein and H.G. Wells, epitomize his brilliance. In 1940 Oxford University arranged a special ceremony in Santiniketan and awarded Rabindranath Tagore with Doctorate Of Literature. Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore passed away on August 7, 1941 in his ancestral home in Calcutta.
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