When you see, may you not feel hurt, / May your sight be soothed and you feel good,/ For that/ I have stuck flowers in all the thorns pricked in my breast,/ Do smile. /May you not feel sad when you hear,/ May your ears be soothed with sweet sound and you feel good,/ For that/ I have wrapped my weeping heart in melodious tunes/ Do smile, all ye, do enjoy... (Translated from Subhas Mukhopadhyay’s poem Jol Saite)

Subhas Mukhopadhyay was too self-conscious of his identity as a poet. He preferred and even enjoyed the anonymity of being part of the crowd. His concentrated effort to conceal his private world of griefs and sorrows from prying eyes and display his sunny disposition endeared him to one and all. Mukhopadhyay had a child-like heart that used to revel in anything novel and experimental. As Keya-Chaitali of Sravasti says, when she was tinkering with the novel idea of introducing Padya-Poshak (Bengali verses of well-known poets inscribed on dresses) for the fashionable Calcuttans, she wasn’t too sure how her effort would be accepted. But “Subhas-da was most enthusiastic about the project. He not only encouraged me but insisted that he would wear my first creation...” That was the beginning for Keya-Chaitali and the poet opened for her an entire treasure-trove of his vast creations to pick and choose from for her creations. This evening, she hosts a programme for all those who knew the poet personally, or through his works, to congregate and pay homage to the Padatik who marched on to his final journey on July 8.

When: Today at 6 pm

Where: Nari Seva Sangha, Koushik Hall, 1/1/2A, Gariahat Road (South), Jodhpur Park