Muragacha (Nadia), Sept. 29: The Bhattacharyyas of Bahirgachi in Nadia's Muragacha remain indebted to Ishwar Chandra Vidyasagar, as he had rescued the family from big trouble during Durga Puja by playing the role of a priest on Mahashtami around 160 years ago.

Vidyasagar, the Bengali polymath who played a pivotal role in the Bengal Renaissance of the 19th century, was close friends with Sanskrit scholar Madhusudan Tarkapanchanan, a member of the Bhattacharyya family.

Sometime in the 1850s, Vidyasagar had spontaneously taken up the responsibility to perform the puja on Mahashtami, the most auspicious day of the puja, after Tarkapanchanan had fallen ill that day.

"Madhusudan Tarkapanchanan, one of our forefathers, was a great scholar and the author of many books. He used to perform the puja personally. But on the day of Mahashtami, he fell ill and lost consciousness. He was in no position to perform the puja," said Madhab Bhattacharyya, an IT professional.

The situation, he said, caused panic in the family as there was nobody to take over and perform the puja. Vidyasagar, who was present at the time, stepped up and offered to carry out the task. Everybody readily agreed.

"That gesture of Vidyasagar, who was already an icon, greatly moved our family members. We do not know when exactly it happened, but it was sometime in the 1850s. This family will remain indebted to him," said Bhattacharyya.

Vidyasagar was a philosopher, academic, writer, translator, printer, publisher, entrepreneur, reformer and philanthropist who played a pivotal role in social reform in the 19th century and was instrumental in introducing widow remarriage in Hindu society.

The Bhattacharyyas of Bahirgachi have, over generations, produced several philosophers, academics and writers, starting with Rambhadra Tarkalankar, a Sanskrit pundit, whom Nadia monarch Krishna Chandra Roy appointed as head family priest in the 18th century.

Tarkalankar began organising the puja in the Bhattacharyya family 18th century. Madhusudan Tarkapanchanan was the son of Rambhadra's second son.

Tarkapanchanan was a Sanskrit scholar who authored several books and was appointed the court scholar by the Burdwan royals.

"Vidyasagar had developed close proximity with some like-minded Sanskrit scholars, who were progressive, liberal and pragmatic. Tarkapanchanan was one of them. Vidyasagar often visited the two villages and even taught children at the school run by his friend in Bahirgachi," said Subrata Bhattacharyya, another scion of the family.