Indian Writers Stories - Toru Dutt: A Litterary Profile

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Toru Dutt is one of the distinguished authors in Indian English literature. There is hardly another Indian author having written in English who is so regularly remembered in the journals and newspapers of the country and abroad. She was the first 'major' Indian English author who forcefully interpreted the soul of India to the west, and thereby acted as a bridge between the East and the West. Her wonderful creative works place her Country on the international map of letters. This book has already undergone two successive editions, but a third edition has become unavoidable because of the persistent demand of the academic circle that needs a comprehensive critique on Toru Dutt and her Ancient Ballads and Legends of Hindustan. For this edition, the book has been thoroughly revised and slightly enlarged. The sixth chapter "Toru Dutt and Sarojini Naidu: A Comparative Approach has been added to it for the benefit of readers and scholars.

Born in 1943 and educated at the University of Allahabad, Amar Nath Dwivedi has taught graduate and post-graduate classes since 1965, lastly at the University of Allahabad, where he was a professor in English. Presently Dr. Dwivedi is Senior Consultant in English at U.P. Rajarshi Tandon Open University, Allahabad. A recipient of the state Bursary for four years (1961-1965), he was awarded a Teacher's Research Grant by the ASRC (Hyderabad) in 1972. He was conferred the Ph.D degree in 1975 for this dissertation 'Indian Thought and Tradition in T.S. Eliot's Poetry", which was later published in both India and Austria with a Foreword by Professor Grover Smith of the Duke University, U.S.A. Dr. Dwivedi has published about a dozen books and seventy-five research papers and serious articles. His papers and articles have appeared in such prestigious journals and periodicals as WLWE (U.S.A), Explicator (U.S.A), JSAL (U.S.A), WLT (U.S.A), Review Journal (Australia), The Aryan Path, Indian Literature, The Banasthali Patrika, Indian Journal of American Studies and New Literary Horizons. His translations of Hindi Poetry have appeared in Voices of Emergency, edited by professor John O. Perry, 1982, and in The Poetry of R.L. Khandelwal 'Tarun', 1991. Dr. Dwivedi is listed in the International Who's Who of contemporary Achievement of Cambridgeshire, England, He has participated in many national seminars and conferences and has delivered talks and recited his poems in English over the All India Radio. He is on the board of advisors for the Literary journals The Quest, The Vedic Path, Wings, The Explorer and Canopy, and is the General Editor of the Indian Writers Seriies for BRPC, Delhi.

Toru Dutt has been treated as 'a dead horse' for quite some time. But the fact remains that she has never been completely 'forsaken'. There is hardly another Indian author having written in English who is so regularly remembered in the journals and newspapers of the country and abroad. In India's Who's Who, she figures among the great ones. Neither are her biographers in Bengali and English scarce. She has decidedly passed the acid test of time and, though she died more than a hundred years ago, is still very much alive, proving herself a classic writer. One great factor for the revival of interest in Toru Dutt is that India is now a sovereign, democratic republic and is asserting her nationhood and individuality with a good deal of gusto and zeal. This assertion of her's will, however, turns out to be hollow and self- defeatist if she does not show an interest in the illustrious sons and daughters of the soil. And Toru Dutt is unquestionably one of the illustrious daughters of Mother India. Another factor contributing to the revival of interest in Toru Dutt is that Indian English literature has acquired today a scope and status which it never enjoyed in the past. This branch of literature is no more regarded as a sub-standard variety of English, and has considerably gained in depth and dimension. Under the circumstances, it is quite natural to recall one who, through the brief span of her life, made splendid contributions to Indian English literature. It is on the solid achievements of Toru Dutt that the edifice of Indian English literature is built. It can be said without much exaggeration that Indian English literature, particularly its poetry, would have been something different from what it is today, had there been no Toru Dutt. This 'prestigious child of our culture' was the first 'major' Indian English author who forcefully interpreted the soul of India to the West, and thereby acted as a bridge between the East and the West. Her wonderful creative works place her country on the international map of letters, and as such she needs no indulgence or apology. Very often Toru is remembered today for her 'Savitri' or some small poems, but in reality she is more than that. She is also a novelist, an essayist, a letter writer, and a translator. The present monograph considers her in all these different aspects and objectively evaluates her overall contribution to the development of Indian English literature. This book has already undergone two successive editions, but a third edition has become unavoidable because of the persistent demand of the academic circle that needs a comprehensive critique on Toru Dutt and her Ancient Ballads and Legends of Hindustan. Toru Dutt is prescribed today in the Indian universities and colleges. Shri Praveen Mittal, the Managing Director of M/s. B. R. Publishing Corporation, deserves my heartfelt thanks for readily agreeing to bring out this book in its present format. For this edition, the book has been thoroughly revised and slightly enlarged. The sixth Chapter, Toru Dutt and Sarojini Naidu: A Comparative Approach', has been added to it for the benefit of readers and scholars. It would have been pretty difficult for me to complete this monograph without the active co-operation of the National Library, Calcutta, the Library of the University of Bombay, Bombay, the Western Regional Centre of the ICSSR, Bombay, and a few other centres of higher learning, and I wish to express my deep sense of gratitude to their efficient staff.

**Contents and Sample Pages**