Kazi Nazrul Islam has always written on behalf of the exploited and deprived people and protested in a strong voice. Islamic tradition and Muslim Sufism occupy a unique place in his literature. His poetry embodies spiritualism and Islamic equality, and he has always been one of the sources of inspiration for Muslims
।। Majhar Mannan ।।
Kazi Nazrul Islam, the national poet of Bangladesh, was the one who greatly enriched Bengali literature. This rebellious poet of Bengali literature was born on May 25, 1899. He was one of the leading Bengali poets, novelists, playwrights, musicians, philosophers, journalists, editors and politicians of the twentieth century. He is considered a rebellious poet because of his rebellious attitude in his poetry. Nazrul’s poems have reached a unique height in Bengali literature as his poems have emerged as a tool to protest against social exploitation and oppression. He was always vocal against exploitation, oppression and injustice and his pen has always been for the truth. He has always been vocal against colonialism and has published his famous poem ‘Bidrohi’ and ‘Dhumketu’ a bi-weekly Bangla paper. Kazi Nazrul Islam was imprisoned for writing the poem ‘Anandomoyir Agomone’ and while in prison he wrote ‘Rajbandir Jabanbandi’ which is one of the most important literary works in the world. Nazrul’s literary work hates imperialism and colonialism and his literary work is dominated by love, humanism, secularism, cosmopolitanism, liberation and rebellion. He wrote against religious orthodoxy, superstition and class discrimination. He gave birth to a new genre in Bengali literature and that is Islamic music or ghazals and besides this he composed many excellent Shyama music and Hindu devotional songs. Nazrul composed about three thousand songs and he was the melodist of most of the songs himself.
He joined the non-cooperation movement that had started across India and wrote poem ‘Bidrohi’ that resonated all over India. Nazrul Islam published Dhumketu paper in 1922. The non-cooperation and caliphate movement once failed and then Dhumketu had a special contribution in the emergence of armed revolution in the formation of Swaraj. The Russian Socialist Revolution of 1917 greatly affected him. Nazrul’s thoughts and feelings were greatly influenced by Kamal Pasha. Nazrul’s poetry was always in protest against orthodoxy, conservatism, bigotry and superstition. The arrival of national poet Kazi Nazrul Islam in Bengali literature is like a hero and his poetry, songs, novels, short stories, dramas have taken Bengali literature to a unique height. Nazrul’s work continues to inspire Bengali Muslims today, and Nazrul became a permanent fixture of Bengali literature with his first book of poetry, Agniveena. Most of the poems in his book Agniveena were Islamic poems dealing with the life, philosophy and thought of Muslim Bengalis.
Kazi Nazrul Islam was a humanist and non-communal poet whose poems always proclaimed in a bright voice the words of the poor, the words of the exploited and the words of the oppressed. He has always written on behalf of the exploited and deprived people and protested in a strong voice. Islamic tradition and Muslim Sufism occupy a unique place in his literature. His poetry embodies spiritualism and Islamic equality, and he has always been one of the sources of inspiration for Muslims. His songs and poems have been the source of inspiration for the life struggle and freedom struggle of Bengalis for ages. He wanted to free the enslaved nations from exploitation and oppression, and he wrote ‘ Bolo Bir Bolo Unnoto Momo Shir’. Kazi Nazrul Islam was a poet of humanism and so he forgot the differences between all religions and triumphed humanism and truth. He has clearly shown in his poetry that there is nothing greater than man and nothing more sublime than man. Kazi Nazrul Islam was a poet whose patriotism manifested in his poetry and who triumphed over nationalism.
He went to Karachi in 1917 and joined the war out of the desire to fight for independence and his main dream was to make India independent. He has said in many of his writings that there is no alternative to making India independent through armed movement.
He embarked on a direct struggle against British colonial rule and published a series of protest poems and was imprisoned several times for his leading role in the nationalist movement. He has always protested against communalism, imperialism and colonialism and exploitation, and holds a pen. He did not believe in any kind of religious orthodoxy and misinterpretation. He was a great poet of secularism and his writings spoke of the renaissance of Bengal. Professor Rafiqul Islam says Nazrul’s Dhumketu newspaper demanded full independence of India before Congress. He used to think about the political, economic, socio-cultural freedom of the people and he wrote about it in his poems. Nazrul felt that literature could not be for the elite or the educated only and he was influenced by the communist ideology and blended the idea of social revolution with freedom. Kazi Nazrul Islam started regular journalism during the non-cooperation movement in India and continued to write against injustice.
Nazrul Islam started a new trend in Bengali literature and language and successfully combined Bengali words with Arabic, Persian and other languages. He made a great combination of Indian classic music and folk music. A non-communal poet like him has never been seen in Bengali literature for thousands of years. His writings have never been religiously biased, but have paralleled the Hindu and Muslim faith traditions. Nazrul Islam has further strengthened the relationship of Bengali literature with Bengali Muslims and through his literary work Bengali Muslims have been able to enter the mainstream of Bengali literature.
Nazrul played a historic role in bringing Bengali Muslims together with modern Bengali literature and Bengali culture, which played a leading role in the development of Bengali nationalism. Nazrul’s contribution to the Muslim renaissance was truly outstanding. The ‘Bidrohi’ poem was written by 22-year-old Kazi Nazrul Islam in December 1921 and today marks the 100th anniversary of that poem. The best expression of his poetic power was expressed in this poem and this poem stood against colonialism. It is astonishing that the essence of various myths has been creatively applied in this poem with infinite skill. This centenary Nazrul’s ‘Bidrohi’ poem will serve as a source for the exploited and deprived people for age after age.
Nazrul’s creations have enriched the Bengali language and literature on the one hand, and at the same time served as one of the tools on the path to liberation and struggle for centuries. Nazrul Islam has endured many tortures and imprisonment in his writing life, yet he did not give up his hope and with more courage he started writing and took up the pen against injustice.
No threat or torture could move him from his position, and he continued to write freely until the end of his life. If we can truly capture Nazrul’s work in our hearts, we will see the light of day and we will be able to build a pure and healthy society.
The writer is Assistant Professor, B A F Shaheen College Kurmitola, Dhaka Cantonment.
