Padmanath Vidyabinod literary award and the Bhuparjatak (globetrotter) Ramnath Biswas literary award was given by the Ramanath Bhattacharya Foundation.
Digital Desk: At a solemn function held at the Vivekananda Kendra here on Sunday, the prestigious Padmanath Vidyabinod literary award and the Bhuparjatak (globetrotter) Ramnath Biswas literary award, both given by the Ramanath Bhattacharya Foundation of Mumbai, were presented to Assamese poet Anis Uz Zaman of Guwahati and Bengali poet Kalikrishna Guha of Kolkata, respectively.
Cited in the press release, both honours come with a cash prize of Rs 75,000, a citation, a souvenir, and a specially designed muga cloth scarf. The event, which Sudhangshu Sekhar Mukhopadhyay hosted, was attended by many dignitaries in a crowded auditorium. Prof Usharanjan Bhattacharya, the chief guest, presented the awards.
In his opening speech, Shyamashis Bhattacharya, the foundation's general secretary and a renowned producer of Hindi TV serials explained the background of the two awards, which were established in remembrance of their two great ancestors, Pandit Padmanath and Bhuparjatak Ramnath, both of whom were brilliant sons of undivided Assam, and said that the decision to give these awards was made 12 years ago primarily because of his father. As a result, the accolades awarded today are for the year 2021. But unfortunately, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the awards for the year 2020 could not be bestowed.
Prof Bhattacharya presented a well-prepared and informative memento, curated by Sudhangshu Sekhar Mukhopadhyay and published on occasion by the foundation. He added that the foundation had set a unique example by electing to bestow awards in the names of its founder's great ancestors, which should inspire future generations.
Anis Uz Zaman, who accepted the honour, spoke at length about various poetry themes. Kalikrishna Guha, the recipient of the Ramnath Biswas literary prize, remembers being overwhelmed when he first read Ramnath's 'Andhakarer Africa' at a young age and now feels proud to receive the award named after the renowned Bhuparjatak.
Previous awardee recipients include Assamese poets Ajit Barua, Hiren Bhattacharya, Nilamoni Phukan, Hirendranath Dutta, Bhaben Barua, Harekrishna Deka, Sananta Tanti, Sameer Tanti, Anubhav Tulsi, Nilim Kumar, and Bengali poets Bijit Kumar Bhattacharya, Pabitra Mukhopadhyay, Tarun Sanyal, Swapan Sengupta.
Assamese and Bengali poets Sameer Tanti and Atanu Bhattacharya led an interactive session with the two honorees.
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