Abdul Mannan Syed
Encyclopedia
Bangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
i poet, author and researcher. A versatile writer and poet, he was one of the most prolific Bengali literary personalities of post-Partition India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
. Until his death on 5 September 2010, he was regarded an authority on Bengali literature. Popularly regarded as a poet, he is most notable as a literary critic and editor. Born as Syed Abdul Mannan, he assumed the pen name Ashoke Syed at the debut in literatur in 1960s. He published more than 150 titles to his credit during his lifetime. His works on poet Jibanananda Das
Jibanananda Das
Jibanananda Das was a noted Bengali poet. He is considered one of the precursors who introduced modernist poetry to Bengali Literature, at a period when it was influenced by Rabindranath Tagore's Romantic poetry....
and Kazi Nazrul Islam
Kazi Nazrul Islam
Kazi Nazrul Islam , sobriquet Bidrohi Kobi, was a Bengali poet, musician and revolutionary who pioneered poetic works espousing intense spiritual rebellion against fascism and oppression. His poetry and nationalist activism earned him the popular title of Bidrohi Kobi...
are not only seminal but also monumental in form, content and quality.
Life
He was born in a village called Jalalpur, on the rivulet Ichamati, in the district of Chabbish Paragana, in West Bengal of undivided India. That was 1943, the year of great famine. In 1946, just before the partition of British Indian, a lethal Hindu-Muslim riot took place and forced many Muslims to leave West Bengal to settle in East Bengal, now BangladeshBangladesh
Bangladesh , officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh is a sovereign state located in South Asia. It is bordered by India on all sides except for a small border with Burma to the far southeast and by the Bay of Bengal to the south...
. A less discussed but equally fearsome riot took place in 1950 that drove the family of Mannan Syed from West Bengal and to settle in Dhaka of then East Pakistan
East Pakistan
East Pakistan was a provincial state of Pakistan established in 14 August 1947. The provincial state existed until its declaration of independence on 26 March 1971 as the independent nation of Bangladesh. Pakistan recognized the new nation on 16 December 1971. East Pakistan was created from Bengal...
, now Bangladesh. He lost his motherland for ever and always felt like a refugee. They first lived in Gopibagh of Dhaka
Dhaka
Dhaka is the capital of Bangladesh and the principal city of Dhaka Division. Dhaka is a megacity and one of the major cities of South Asia. Located on the banks of the Buriganga River, Dhaka, along with its metropolitan area, had a population of over 15 million in 2010, making it the largest city...
town. Shortly his father bought a piece of land on the Green Road, formerly called Kuli Road. Since then 51 Green Road has been his address till his sudden death in September 2010.
His father Syed A. M. Badruzzdoza was a public official who served in many places of the then East Pakistan. He was very strict about the formal education of his children. He had six sons and four daughters. Mannan was married to his cousin Syra Syed Ranu. His only child was a daughter named Jinan Syed Shampa.
In 1958 Mannan Syed passed the Matriculate examination from the Nawabpur High School. In 1960, he passed the Intermediate from the Dhaka College
Dhaka College
, located in Dhaka, is one of Bangladesh's earliest and most prestigious higher educational institutions. It offers both four years bachelor's and one years masters course in various majors, but it is best known for HSC...
. He studied Bengali language and literature in the Dhaka University from where he obtained his B. A and M. A. degrees, respectively, in 1963 and 1964.
Most of his life he earned his livelihood as a teacher of Bengali language and literature in government colleges. He stated his career as a lecturer in the M. C. College of Sylhet
Sylhet
Sylhet , is a major city in north-eastern Bangladesh. It is the main city of Sylhet Division and Sylhet District, and was granted metropolitan city status in March 2009. Sylhet is located on the banks of the Surma Valley and is surrounded by the Jaintia, Khasi and Tripura hills...
town. He also taught in the Sheikh Borhanuddin College in Faridpur. However he served in the Jagannath College for a long time from where he retired in 1998. He also served as the District Gazetteer for a period of time. Later he was appointed the executive director of the Nazrul Institute (2002–2004).
Works
Abdul Mannan Syed is best known for his research on Bengali poet Jibanananda DasJibanananda Das
Jibanananda Das was a noted Bengali poet. He is considered one of the precursors who introduced modernist poetry to Bengali Literature, at a period when it was influenced by Rabindranath Tagore's Romantic poetry....
. Although he is most renowned for literary criticism, he is a versatile writer and poet. He taught as a faculty in the department of Bengali
Bengali language
Bengali or Bangla is an eastern Indo-Aryan language. It is native to the region of eastern South Asia known as Bengal, which comprises present day Bangladesh, the Indian state of West Bengal, and parts of the Indian states of Tripura and Assam. It is written with the Bengali script...
in the Jagannath College, Dhaka
Dhaka
Dhaka is the capital of Bangladesh and the principal city of Dhaka Division. Dhaka is a megacity and one of the major cities of South Asia. Located on the banks of the Buriganga River, Dhaka, along with its metropolitan area, had a population of over 15 million in 2010, making it the largest city...
. Later he served as Director General of the Nazrul Institute. He was the first Scholar-in-residence in Bangladesh at North South University. For a long time he was associated with the Shilpataru, a monthly literary magazine published from Dhaka
Dhaka
Dhaka is the capital of Bangladesh and the principal city of Dhaka Division. Dhaka is a megacity and one of the major cities of South Asia. Located on the banks of the Buriganga River, Dhaka, along with its metropolitan area, had a population of over 15 million in 2010, making it the largest city...
by poet Abid Azad
Abid Azad
Abid Azad was an eminent Bangladeshi Poet, critic and a literary editor. Azad was the author of 19 books of poetry including Ghaser Ghatana , Amar Mon Kemon Kore , Banotaruder Marma , and Shiter Rachanabali . - References :...
.
Death
He had been suffering from diabetes and cardiac troubles for a long time. On 27 August 2010, he fell sick while participating in an event of Channel Eye. On 5 September 2010, he was having an afternoon sleep when he suffered a massive cardiac arrest and succumbed to death just before Iftaar. On the following day he was buried at the Azimpur Graveyaed after three Salatul Janazas at Green Road Jam-e-Masjid, Bangla AcademyBangla Academy
Bangla Academy , established on 3 December 1955, is the national academy for promoting Bangla language in Bangladesh. The main office of the organization is located at the Burdwan House, once a part of the campus of the University of Dhaka, beside Suhrawardy Udyan.-History:The importance of...
and Dhaka University mosque. His death was widely mourned across the country. All national dailies carried obituary on the following day. Next Friday, all dailies carried in the literary essays on his life and works. Electronic media also featured his death in a befitting manner.
Works
Poems:- Janmandho Kobita Guchcha(1967)
- Jotchna-Rouddrer Chikitsha(1969)
- Matal Manchitro(1970)
- O Shongbedon O Joltorongo(1974)
- Selected Poems(1975) ( Muktodhara publication)
- Kobita Company Pvt Ltd.(1982)
- Porabastab Kobita(1982)
- Park Street e Ek Ratri(1983)
- Mach Series(1984)
- Amar Sonnet(1990)
- Shokal Proshongsha Taar(1993)
- Nirobota Govirota Dui Bon Bole Kotha(1997)
- Selected Poems(2001)(Shomoy publication)
- Kobita Shomaggro(2001)
- Kobitar Boi(2006)
- He Bondhur Bondhu He Priyotomo(2006)
- Premer Kobita(2007)
- Matal Kobita Pagal goddya(2008)
- Ogghraner Nil Din(2008)
Novels
- Poriprekshiter Dasdasi (Slaves of Perspectives (1974)
- Kolkata (1980)
- Poramatir Kaj (Terracotta, 1982)
- A-Te Ajgor (A for Ajogor, 1982)
- He Songsar He Lota (Oh the World, Oh the Creeper, 1982)
- Gavir Gavirtara Asukh (Disease, Deep and Deeper, 1983)
- Prabesh (Entrance, 1994)
- Kshuda Prem Agun (Hunger Love Fire, 1994)
- Shyamali Tomar Mukh (Shyamali Your Face,1997)
Editorial works
- Life on Distant Shores, written by Abdur Rouf ChoudhuryAbdur Rouf ChoudhuryAbdur Rouf Choudhury was a Bengali writerChoudhury was born on 1 March 1929, in Habiganj District, Bangladesh where his father Azhar Choudhury, a land owner, and his mother Nazmun Nesa Choudhury, a house wife resided....
, Bengali novel, published by Pathak Samabesh, Dhaka, 2003 - New Horizon, written by Abdur Rouf ChoudhuryAbdur Rouf ChoudhuryAbdur Rouf Choudhury was a Bengali writerChoudhury was born on 1 March 1929, in Habiganj District, Bangladesh where his father Azhar Choudhury, a land owner, and his mother Nazmun Nesa Choudhury, a house wife resided....
, Bengali novel, published by Pathak Samabesh, Dhaka, 2005. - Bangladesher Chhara, jointly edited with Shahabuddin NagariShahabuddin NagariShahabuddin Nagari is a modern poet of Bangladesh,, who appeared in the 1970s and gained pre-eminence as a lyricist. According to famous literary critic Abdul Mannan Syed, "Shahabuddin Nagari is one of those few powerful poets of 1970s whose mastery of mixing romanticism with instinct is amazing. ...
and Abid Azad by Shilpatoru Prakashani, Dhaka, 1987. - Bagladesher Kabita, jointly edited with Shahabuddin NagariShahabuddin NagariShahabuddin Nagari is a modern poet of Bangladesh,, who appeared in the 1970s and gained pre-eminence as a lyricist. According to famous literary critic Abdul Mannan Syed, "Shahabuddin Nagari is one of those few powerful poets of 1970s whose mastery of mixing romanticism with instinct is amazing. ...
and Abid Azad by Shilpatoru Prakashani,Dhaka, 1987.
Awards
- Bangla Academy Award (1981)
- Alaol Literary Award (1981)
- Kabi Jasimuddin Award
- চট্টগ্রাম সংস্কৃতি কেন্দ্র (Chattagram Sangskriti Kendro) Farrukh Memorial Award (1991)