Samachar Darpan, the Bengali newspaper was first published on this day. It is regarded generally as the first newspaper in an Indian language, though some think Bengal Gazetti published by Ganga Kishore Bhattacharya came earlier.
Samachar Darpan was published by Serampore Baptist Mission press, with John Clark Marshman as its editor. Although Marshman was officially the editor of Samachar Darpan, Bengali scholars, such as Tarinicharan Shiromani, actually helped with its publication.
It printed a wide range of news and became very popular. But the primary — though hidden — aim of the newspaper was to propagate Christianity. It had entered into an unpleasant theological argument with Rammohun Roy, leaving him outraged. It closed down in the 1840s.
