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Tenida

Bhajahari Mukhujjee (Bengali: ভজহরি মুখার্জী), commonly known as Tenida (Bengali: টেনিদা) or Teni (see Tenida for da), is a fictional native of Potoldanga in Calcutta, who appears in a number of short stories and larger works of the Bengali author Narayan Gangopadhyay. The leader of a group of four young lads who lived in the neighbourhood of Potoldanga, Tenida was depicted as the local big-mouthed airhead, who, although not blessed with academic capabilities, was admired and respected by the other three for his presence of mind, courage, and honesty as well as his vociferous appetite. Descriptions of Tenida's nose also make frequent appearances in the text, being described as "a large nose resembling Mount Mainak". The narrator of the stories is Pyalaram, who seemed to share his leader's frailty in academic exertions. The other two characters who formed an integral part of the quartet were Habul, the brawny and Kyabla, the erudite among the four.

The stories of Tenida are basically two types. (i) Tenida narrates fabricated stories of his so-called heroism or stories of his relatives, specially the stories of his "five hundred and fifty five" maternal uncles (ii)Tenida & Pyala or all the four are involved in hilarious adventures where the gang goes through interesting situations but solves the mystery at the end. The short stories were extensively based in Calcutta and its suburbs, but the Charmurti traveled to Hajaribag, Duars, Darjeeling where their pleasure trip turned into a series of mysterious incidents.

The suffix da used after his actual nickname Teni is short for dada(elder brother) which is used to initiate conversations with an elderly male stranger in colloquial Bengali. The shorthand, used after a person's name, is a mark of respect and acknowledgment of seniority. He is the leader of the gang. He is an indigent Bengali Brahmin. In the earlier novels, he is shown as a timid person. However, in the later novels, he is portrayed as a brave person. In the story entitled as "Kombol Niruddesh" (Bengali: কম্বল নিরুদ্দেশ ), it is mentioned that he knows Karate, Boxing and Judo.In the same story, Tenida knocked down a man of 112 kg weight with a single swirl.

In March 1946 Narayan Gangopadhyay, shifted to a rented house at Patoldanga, Kolkata, where his Landlord was Mr. Probhat Mukherjee (Tenida). Narayan Gangopadyay had a good relation with his landlord, to the extent where the two families were almost family friends. When Bishu Mukherjee approached him for stories for 'Mouchak". Tenida was created initially to mock his landlord in two stories "Matsya-Puran" & "Khattango O Pallanno". Other two characters Kybla & Habul were added subsequently and profile of Tenida also evolved.

Pyalaram (Bengali: প্যালারাম), the narrator of the stories, wrote from the point of view of the writer himself. He was a timid member and suffered from a chronic stomach ailment. His unfavourite food items appear to be potol diye singhi maacher jhol (a type of fish curry with Pointed gourd) and bashok patar rosh (the juice of the malabar nut leaf). Pyalaram followed Tenida's footsteps, having repeated his final year in school for two years before passing matriculation with the rest of the gang. Pyala's real name is Kamalesh Banerjee (Bengali: কমলেশ ব্যানার্জী). These names are listed, among other stories in the short novella in "Tenidar Abhijan" entitled "Charmurtir Abhijan". Like Tenida, he is also a Bengali Brahmin.

Kushal Mitra (Bengali: কুশল মিত্র) also known as Kyabla (Bengali: ক্যাবলা), is supposedly the most intelligent, smart and brave among them. Clever and the top among his classmates, this handsome and dapper young man is the backbone of this group. Tenida always looks up to Kyabla for finding solutions to tricky situations. Kyabla has solved all the mysteries in all the adventures that they have been to. He is the integral part of Tenida's gang. The word Kyabla in Bengali means stupid. He is a Bengali Kayastha by caste,and also the most hardworking one.

Habul Sen (Bengali: হাবুল সেন) stands out in having an independent character of the stories — he is timid but not as much as Pyalaram. He is also a very good student unlike Tenida and Pyalaram. Habul's real name is Swarnendu Sen (Bengali: স্বর্ণেন্দু সেন). In some novels, it is stated that he has expertise in boxing. In later novels it was known that, Habul's family hailed from Dhaka before moving to Calcutta.

In 90's, Rabi Ghosh played Tenida in DD Bangla shows. Apart from this three Tenida films were released in Bengali.

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