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Prajapati (novel)
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Prajapati (novel)
Prajapati (lit. 'Butterfly') is a 1967 novel by Bengali author Samaresh Basu. It was first published in the puja issue of Desh, by Ananda Publishers. The novel is about a young boy who is used as the premises to understand his background and the society in which he lives.
On 2 February 1968, a lawyer named Amal Mitra filed a charge of obscenity against Basu and the publisher Shitangshu Kumar Dasgupta. The Government of West Bengal supported Mitra and spoke against Prajapati. The lower court ruled the novel is obscene and has no literary value. Calcutta High Court upheld the lower court's verdict. After seventeen years, Prajapati was unbanned after a ruling by the Supreme Court of India in its favour.
Ananda Publishers had published Prajapati as a hard-cover book before the charge of obscenity was made against it. In its second edition in 1985, soon after the verdict was overturned, it made record sales. The 11th edition of Prajapati states the first edition had a print-run of 8,800 copies but the second-to-tenth editions (from 1985 to 2003) sold 48,000 copies.
Sukhen, the protagonist, is trying to capture a butterfly. Sukhen goes to his lover's house early in the morning. As he tries to catch a butterfly, he is talking with his lover and analysing his own life as he recollects the past. Sukhen had been brought up in a family where he had found no love or affection. His mother died, leaving behind her husband and three sons: Keshav, Purnendu, Sukhendu. Both of Sukhen's elder brothers are politicians and according to Sukhen, mere opportunists. The brothers use people for their own benefit and cheat them without remorse. Sukhen remembers his mother as a flirtatious woman, and his father is devoid of any moral depth and realisation, and is mean and money-minded. Sukhen He became adventurous and had no respect for his elders and women. Sukhen's mostly-rich neighbours feared him. Mr. Chopra, manager of neighbouring industry and Mr. Mittir, the labour advisor, flattered Sukhen out of fear. Sukhen remembers Jina, the daughter of Mr. Mittir, who had been seduced by her uncle Mr. Chatterjee, a colleague of her father. Sukhen also had seduced Jina.
Sukhen had become addicted to women and alcohol soon after having entered college. He became attracted to a woman named Shikha. Sukhen fell in love with Shikha when he was taking part in a hunger strike conducted to demand the rehabilitation of a recently dismissed teacher of the college and to stop the construction of a multi-storeyed building close to the college gate.
Shikha is from a poor family and her father is a drunkard. Shikha's two brothers were subordinates of Sukhen's brothers in Sukhen's brothers' political parties. Her only sister Bela was married but lived at her father's house and flirted with several men.
The presence of Shikha in Sukhen's life offered him respite from his careless, perplexed life. This relationship helped revive his latent sense. Sukhen hates hypocrisy and politicians who cheated and oppressed people for their own needs, and teachers who used their students as a political weapon for personal benefits. Sukhen also hates the owners and governing-body members of industries who squeeze the labourers; he also hates parents who were indifferent to their children, and those who abused children for sexual satisfaction. He also disliked the heinous attack of American soldiers on prostitutes. The atrocities around him agonised and traumatised him. He sometimes suffers from a subtle pain to his shoulder, and channelled his energy into anger to numb the pain. Sukhen urinates under his father's table, untidies his brothers' rooms, and calls out to servants to divert his attention.
Sukhen, who was otherwise brash, respected Shulada, an elderly servant of their house. Keshob, Sukhen's elder brother, is a powerful political leader who allegedly illegally traded in baby foods and railway spare parts. Keshav has several extramarital affairs with married women and young women who were members of his own party. Purnendu, Sukhen's immediate elder brother, is also a political leader and an employee in a governmental office. Purnendu's political party apparently worked for the poor and fought for justice but Purnrndu has sex with their maidservant's daughter. Both of Sukhen's brothers want him to join their parties. Sukhen refuses to join either of them and severely criticises their agendas. Sukhen becomes the enemy of both groups.
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Prajapati (novel)
Prajapati (lit. 'Butterfly') is a 1967 novel by Bengali author Samaresh Basu. It was first published in the puja issue of Desh, by Ananda Publishers. The novel is about a young boy who is used as the premises to understand his background and the society in which he lives.
On 2 February 1968, a lawyer named Amal Mitra filed a charge of obscenity against Basu and the publisher Shitangshu Kumar Dasgupta. The Government of West Bengal supported Mitra and spoke against Prajapati. The lower court ruled the novel is obscene and has no literary value. Calcutta High Court upheld the lower court's verdict. After seventeen years, Prajapati was unbanned after a ruling by the Supreme Court of India in its favour.
Ananda Publishers had published Prajapati as a hard-cover book before the charge of obscenity was made against it. In its second edition in 1985, soon after the verdict was overturned, it made record sales. The 11th edition of Prajapati states the first edition had a print-run of 8,800 copies but the second-to-tenth editions (from 1985 to 2003) sold 48,000 copies.
Sukhen, the protagonist, is trying to capture a butterfly. Sukhen goes to his lover's house early in the morning. As he tries to catch a butterfly, he is talking with his lover and analysing his own life as he recollects the past. Sukhen had been brought up in a family where he had found no love or affection. His mother died, leaving behind her husband and three sons: Keshav, Purnendu, Sukhendu. Both of Sukhen's elder brothers are politicians and according to Sukhen, mere opportunists. The brothers use people for their own benefit and cheat them without remorse. Sukhen remembers his mother as a flirtatious woman, and his father is devoid of any moral depth and realisation, and is mean and money-minded. Sukhen He became adventurous and had no respect for his elders and women. Sukhen's mostly-rich neighbours feared him. Mr. Chopra, manager of neighbouring industry and Mr. Mittir, the labour advisor, flattered Sukhen out of fear. Sukhen remembers Jina, the daughter of Mr. Mittir, who had been seduced by her uncle Mr. Chatterjee, a colleague of her father. Sukhen also had seduced Jina.
Sukhen had become addicted to women and alcohol soon after having entered college. He became attracted to a woman named Shikha. Sukhen fell in love with Shikha when he was taking part in a hunger strike conducted to demand the rehabilitation of a recently dismissed teacher of the college and to stop the construction of a multi-storeyed building close to the college gate.
Shikha is from a poor family and her father is a drunkard. Shikha's two brothers were subordinates of Sukhen's brothers in Sukhen's brothers' political parties. Her only sister Bela was married but lived at her father's house and flirted with several men.
The presence of Shikha in Sukhen's life offered him respite from his careless, perplexed life. This relationship helped revive his latent sense. Sukhen hates hypocrisy and politicians who cheated and oppressed people for their own needs, and teachers who used their students as a political weapon for personal benefits. Sukhen also hates the owners and governing-body members of industries who squeeze the labourers; he also hates parents who were indifferent to their children, and those who abused children for sexual satisfaction. He also disliked the heinous attack of American soldiers on prostitutes. The atrocities around him agonised and traumatised him. He sometimes suffers from a subtle pain to his shoulder, and channelled his energy into anger to numb the pain. Sukhen urinates under his father's table, untidies his brothers' rooms, and calls out to servants to divert his attention.
Sukhen, who was otherwise brash, respected Shulada, an elderly servant of their house. Keshob, Sukhen's elder brother, is a powerful political leader who allegedly illegally traded in baby foods and railway spare parts. Keshav has several extramarital affairs with married women and young women who were members of his own party. Purnendu, Sukhen's immediate elder brother, is also a political leader and an employee in a governmental office. Purnendu's political party apparently worked for the poor and fought for justice but Purnrndu has sex with their maidservant's daughter. Both of Sukhen's brothers want him to join their parties. Sukhen refuses to join either of them and severely criticises their agendas. Sukhen becomes the enemy of both groups.