Banglar mati, Banglar jol

Why in news?

• The West Bengal Assembly has declared Poila Baishakh (April 15), the first day of the Bengali calendar, as the statehood day and designated Rabindranath Tagore’s “Banglar mati, Banglar jol” as the state anthem.

About Banglar mati, Banglar jol:

• The song was written by Tagore in 1905 in response to Lord Curzon’s partition of Bengal, which was a divisive colonial strategy to weaken the nationalist movement.
• Curzon’s decision to partition Bengal in 1905 aimed to create division and strife among the diverse Bengali-speaking population. However, it had the opposite effect, as it united Bengalis against British rule and ignited the Swadeshi Movement, which marked the beginning of the Indian struggle for independence.
• Tagore was a vocal critic of the partition and expressed his support for the Swadeshi Movement through his songs and poems. “Banglar mati, Banglar jol” called for unity among Bengalis by celebrating the beauty of Bengal, its natural surroundings, language, people, and soul.
• This song became an anthem for the movement against the partition and was sung during passionate processions and demonstrations that emphasized Bengali unity.

PRACTICE QUESTION:

The song “Banglar mati, Banglar jol”, which united people of Bengal during the partition of 1905 was authored by:

(a) Birendra Chattopadhyay:

(b) Rabindranath Tagore

(c) Bankim Chandra Chatterjee

(d) Sarojini Naidu

Answer