Munshi Premchand is regarded as one of the most important writers of Hindi-Urdu canon. His prolific style of writing widely contributed towards the shaping of the genre of short stories in India. Writing these short stories, Premchand used this opportunity to critique social issues such as moral bankruptcy, the plight of women, caste injustices, blind faith, patriarchy and many more.
Read on to know more details about the life of Munshi Premchand!
—————–
Premchand was born of Kayastha parents in a village called Lamahi, on the outskirts of Benaras. His mother passed away when he was eight years old and his father, a postal clerk, remarried soon after. He first went to school in Gorakhpur where his father was posted. Born Dhanpat Rai Shrivastav, Premchand was fondly called Nawab and published his early writings under the name ‘Nawab Rai’.
After passing his class 10 examinations in 1898, Premchand began a long career as a teacher and school administrator, during which he passed as a non-formal candidate in the class 12 examination. This was in 1916. Three years later, he did a BA with English literature, Persian and history as his subjects.
He published his first collection of five short stories in 1908 in a book called Soz-e Watan. The stories were all patriotic and the British government interpreted these as seditious. He had to appear before the district magistrate who told him to burn all copies and never write anything like it again. This incident gave birth to the new pen name Premchand. It was only the first of Premchand’s many brushes with authority though and he was required to deposit a security of Rs 1000 many times in the 1930’s.
Indian history and mythology, Indo-Muslim cultural history, contemporary society and his own wide readings of literature from across the world influenced Premchand’s work. He was the first Hindi and Urdu to writer to write in depth of the lives of the deprived sections of society. As a rule, he wrote on contemporary themes of immediate social and political relevance, after experimenting with a few short stories set in the historical past. His work became a vehicle for his socially engaged agenda of social reform.
In 1918, Gandhi had declared Hindi to be the national language and Premchand had, between 1915 and 1924 begun to write in Hindi instead of Urdu.
In 1921 he resigned government service at the call of Gandhi during the Non-Cooperation Movement. He bought a press in 1923 and started the publishing house Saraswati Press. Due to low income, he also worked as the editor of the Hindi journal Madhuri in Lucknow in 1924-25 and again from 1927-32. In 1930 he started a journal called Hans and two years later, took over another journal called Jagaran.
Premchand died on 8 October 1936, at the age of fifty-six. He had returned to Benares four years before, and lived in Lamahi in a bigger pukka house that he had built, which still stands. He had written what are now reckoned to be close to 300 short stories and published thirteen novels, including one left unfinished. At least four of his novels, Sevasadan, Rangbhumi, Karmabhumi, and Godaan are considered among the greatest written in Hindi.
——————
Category: Specials
The Beauty of All Ruskin's Days: 5 of Our Favourite Things about the Author
Ruskin Bond is a favorite across generations. He has authored over 500 short stories, essays and novels, more than 50 books for children and two volumes of autobiographies.
As he himself says, The Beauty of All My Days is “a memoir in which each chapter is a remembrance of times past, an attempt to resurrect a person or a period or an episode, a reflection on the unpredictability of life.”
From it, we extract 5 of our favourite things about him to help you get to know him better!
Ruskin Bond meets his ‘fans’ at Mussoorie’s Cambridge Book Depot on Saturday afternoons.
He believes the qualities of intellect and sensuality he inherited from his parents are what shaped him into a writer.
Coming home from boarding school when he was ten, Ruskin demanded (and eventually got) a tiny room of his own. Under his bed, he kept his school trunk, which accommodated the following:
His first ‘novel’ was confiscated by his Housemaster (of the boarding school that he attended) in 1946.
Ruskin Bond discovered London by walking all over the city. He did the same in Delhi and other places back in India.
Each chapter of this memoir is a remembrance of times past, an attempt to resurrect a person or a period or an episode, a reflection on the unpredictability of life. For more posts like this, follow Penguin India on Facebook!
The Four Pillars of Beauty
Whoever said that great skin is purely genetic has obviously never harnessed the power of beauty foods. While it is possible to fake great skin with make-up, you can only be truly radiant when you nourish your body from within.
From basic garden-variety fruit and vegetables to potent Ayurvedic herbs, Glow by Vausdha Rai tells you what to eat to ensure beauty inside and out.
Here are four pillars of beauty as talked about by the author which will help you get that glow back:
- Vitality
Vasudha Rai emphasizes the importance of a strong immunity system in order to have a strong foundation for a beautiful body and skin. Having the energy to make strong decisions reflects a healthy mental and physical state, thereby boosting your appearance.
- Clarity
Here Vasudha Rai makes a relation between one’s habits, moods and the physical appearance. Therefore, she says that purifying one’s body is of utmost importance.
- Radiance
Once you achieve spotless skin, Vasudha Rai talks about radiance as another important aspect towards getting a luminous skin. She stresses on the beneficial properties of anti-oxidants for a radiant skin.
- Peace
Focusing on the larger effects of one’s lifestyle over one’s health and consequently the skin, Vasudha Rai here explains the disadvantages living a stressed life. Peace is an important component for one’s skin’s and body’s health and should not be taken lightly.
After all, outer beauty is only a symptom of inner health.
AVAILABLE NOW
Meet the author of The Last Englishmen: Deborah Baker
Deborah Baker is the author of Making a Farm: The Life of Robert Bly, In Extremis: The Life of Laura Riding, A Blue Hand: The Beats in India and The Convert: A Tale of Exile and Extremism, which was a finalist for the National Book Award in the nonfiction category in 2011.
The title of her new book is The Last Englishmen: Love, War, and the End of Empire.
Let’s get to know the author better!
The Last Englishmen is an engrossing and masterful story that traces the end of empire and the stirring of a new world order. For more posts like this, follow Penguin India on Facebook!
Make Money the Chanakya Way!
Radhakrishnan Pillai’s latest book, Chanakya and the Art of Getting Rich is a holistic study, written for anyone and everyone. The book is the result of his fascinating insight and research into the master diplomat, administrator and economist (before the term existed) and the man behind the Mauryan empire, Chanakya- the ancient author of the Arthashastra. Pillai has deftly extracted the maxims most relevant to wealth-creation from the Arthashastra’s vast scope of statecraft, economic policy and military strategy, and interspersed it with modern examples, bringing practical wisdom from the 4th century BC to guide contemporary ambitions!
Chanakya and the Art of Getting Rich begins with the simplest of questions-‘Do you want to be rich? If you replied in the affirmative to the most basic of all ambitions read on for some tips from the Guru of all gurus.
Aanvikshiki, the science and art of thinking.
‘Clear thinking is the foundation of all good decisions. According to Chanakya, clear thinking and calculated decision-making are the first qualities a person needs to develop. A person who cannot think clearly will always have great difficulty assessing a situation, evaluating the scenario and taking a decision that is the best in the given circumstances.’
Keep your spiritual and material life distinct
‘“No business in charity, and no charity in business” is a well-known adage in the business world. What this means is that one should never do charity for profit nor run a business as a charitable activity.’
Eternal Vigilance
‘One has to fulfill one’s duty of keeping an eye on the wealth one already has. If we are not alert and vigilant about the wealth we already own, it will deplete and eventually ebb away.
Ethical wealth is long-term wealth
Remember, the key to ‘big money’ is to understand the ‘right money’. One can become rich very fast too, but mostly through shortcuts. . Ethics are very important when it comes to amassing wealth. Illegal and immoral wealth does not stay for long.
Channel your ‘wealth potential’
Everybody cannot make money in every field. The smart ones are those who can identify which field is meant for them. Chanakya has a formula for that. In the first book of the Arthashastra, Chanakya talks about finding your swadharma. Swa means ‘your own’ and dharma is nature. If you come to know what your true nature is, wealth will come to you naturally.
Find your guru
‘You may have all the potential to become rich. But, the fact is that you still require a mentor and guide to become rich.’
Know your political environment
‘If you want to expand your business and become rich, think about the place you are in. Read about the government policies that affect your area, your city, your business, your country.. Any changes in policy have a ripple effect—if they don’t touch you directly they will affect other things that will affect you in return.
Keep your Equanimity and carry on
‘Equanimity Is of Paramount Importance A person who desires to become wealthy should also develop another important quality—equanimity. This state of mind is comparable to a lamp which is steady and calm, and the flame does not flicker.’
The Blueprint of Success
‘As the famous saying goes, ‘If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.’ So if you want to put into action any roadmap of wealth creation, then plan the whole strategy. It is like drawing your blueprints before you start the construction. Thinking is the blueprint required before you get into action’
Money attracts money.
‘Wealthy people become wealthier. But if you do not take care of the wealth you own, it will slip away. So learn the art of managing your wealth well so that it can grow, not deplete.’
Accountability in Accounting
‘Chanakya says, “He [the leader] should check the accounts for each day, group of five days [week], fortnight, month, four months [quarterly] and a year.”’
Partnership Is a Way to Wealth
‘No one person can have all the qualities required for success. Therefore, to succeed, it is good to have partners. Partnerships are about complementing each other. Partners make up for each other’s weaknesses and support each other’s strengths.’
Words of Wisdom from our Beloved, Ruskin Bond
Ruskin Bond has been capturing hearts with his writing for many years now. Most of us who grew up reading his work are happy to read almost anything by him especially as we realize how beautiful and relevant his quotes always are. Here are four quotes by him, that we hold close to our hearts from his new book, The Beauty of All My Days.
The Beauty of All My Days is Ruskin Bond’s latest book. Each chapter of this memoir is a remembrance of times past, an attempt to resurrect a person or a period or an episode, a reflection on the unpredictability of life. For more posts like these, check out our Facebook page!
Facts on the Formative Years of the Most Powerful Corporation in the History of the World
The East India Company controlled half of the world’s trade and deployed a vast network of political influencers at home and abroad. Yet the story of the Company’s beginnings in its formative years remains largely untold.
In A Business of State, Rupali Mishra offers critical insights into the rise of the early modern English state and the expansion and development of its nascent empire.
Here are some interesting facts about the Company’s inception, the way it maintained secrecy and access to information and how it managed its reputation in its initial years:
The formation
Secrecy and Access
Reputation
Drawing on a host of overlooked and underutilized sources, Rupali Mishra’s account of the East India Company reconstructs the inner life of the Company, laying bare the era’s fierce struggles to define the difference between public and private interests and the use and abuse of power. Available Now.
For more posts like these, follow us on Facebook!
Sexual Desires: Is Different Bad?
Everything we read, watch, hear and observe signals to us what is natural and normal, and what isn’t. Natural, normal stuff typically includes boy-meets-girl, American romcom–inspired love: loss of virginity to The One, subsequent marriage to The One and a happily-ever- after ending. Unnatural, abnormal stuff included pretty much everything that fell outside that neat arc.
But is abnormal and unnatural necessarily bad? In her book, Cyber Sexy, Richa Kaul Padte takes readers on an intimate tour of online sex cultures. From it, we’ve extracted some quotes that clearly showcase how different sexual desires are totally normal:
- For most people living in India, sex is often very difficult to access. Depending on the type of sex you’re after, your desire is seen as anything from shameful to dirty to illegal.
- BDSM is an overlapping acronym for Bondage/ Discipline, Dominance/Submission, Sadism/Masochism. These words refer to what the BDSM community calls ‘play’—mostly sexual activities that are both playful and play-acted. Popular culture often conflates ‘kink’ with BDSM, but it’s actually an umbrella term for a range of alternative sexual practices that include everything from BDSM to foot fetishes to golden showers. In essence, anything that strays from the broadly accepted norm.
- Porn and the internet did not create new ‘weird’ sexual desires. Desires that are often attributed to the internet’s effects, be it the desire to lick feet or women’s non-monogamous arousal, have been around for a long, long time—and there is historical data to prove it.
- When it comes to deviant sexual desires, the harm that people are worried about is precisely the harm they believe is taking place against symbolic bodies: nations, ideologies, parties. Indian Culture, feminism, religion, family values.
- For many people and sexual minorities especially, the internet—and in particular, its sexy URLs—is a place to see their desires laid bare. This doesn’t mean that everything you come across online will brings you pleasure.
A Timeline of the Making of a Maharatna Company
In When Coal Turned Gold, former Coal India Limited (CIL) chairman and managing director Partha Sarathi Bhattacharya, tells the story of the amazing journey of India’s largest coal-mining company; its ups and downs and the stupendous effort it took the company to reach its present stature.
Here are major events and milestones that led to the company’s transformation:
1975-91:
The company reversed the CAGR of coal production from less than 2 per cent during the pre-nationalization period to over 5 per cent post-nationalization.
2005:
After being granted permission for a trial by the Prime Minister’s Office (PMO), e-auctions were introduced in BCCL for the first time in the country.
2008-09:
The average manpower declined to 4,19,214 from 5,74,477 in 1999-00, while coal production grew from 261 MT to 404 MT during the same period. This led to the OMS nearly doubling from 2.10 in 1999-00 to 4.09 in 2008-09.
2011-12:
CIL was valued at Rs 1,52,000 crore. The valuation was in excess of the government’s expectation by a whopping Rs 52,000 crore.
Nevertheless, within minutes of listing, the valuation crossed Rs 2,00,000 crore mark, making CIL the most valued coal company in the world in terms of EV as a multiplier of EBITDA at close to nine.
CIL became a Maharatna company.
———-
When Coal Turned Gold captures in detail the evolution of Coal India Limited and unfolds the challenges faced and insightful strategies applied, by the company along its path to success.
AVAILABLE NOW
Little Known Facts about Nur Jahan
Beautiful and accomplished, Nur Jahan was the daughter of nobles who’d fled persecution in Persia. She was also the widow of a court official implicated in a plot against Jahangir, but that didn’t stop the emperor from falling hard for her. She was thirty-four when they married, nearly middle-aged in the Mughal world. Since their wedding in 1611, the same year that Shakespeare premiered The Tempest, Nur Jahan (Light of the World in Persian, the name bestowed by her husband), had proved to be a devoted wife, a wise and just queen, a shrewd politician—and an expert markswoman.
Here are 5 little known facts about Nur Jahan.
She was an expert markswoman:
On his 50th birthday, Jahangir had promised Allah that he wouldn’t injure another living being with his own hands. Nur decided to protect her subjects by shooting the tiger that had been a nuisance, as Jahangir was obligated to decline the request by local huntsman to hunt the man-eater.
She held a position in the empire never before filled by a woman: co-sovereign
For more than a decade and a half, from a few years after their wedding until Jahangir’s death, Nur Jahan ruled along with her husband, effectively and prominently, successfully navigating the labyrinth of feudal courtly politics and the male-centered culture of the Mughal world.
Nur sat where no other Mughal queen had sat before…or would after
That is, in the jharokha – an elaborately carved balcony projecting from the palace wall, from which government business was conducted. Subjects gathered below the jharokha to pray for her health, and getting a look at her was considered auspicious.
‘At last her authority reached such a pass that the King was such only in name….Repeatedly he gave out that he bestowed the sovereignty on Nur Jahan Begam.’
Princes and courtiers sought her advice and followed her commands
Between 1614 and 1627, the year of Jahangir’s death, Nur served as her huband’s co-sovereign, a decisive player in courtly and succession politics, and a commanding strategist.
Nur led her imperial troops to rescue Jahangir
Many of her male contemporaries were in awe of Nur, whom they saw as a person of uncommon political and cultural acumen, and a remarkable leader.
