Sankar (writer)

Mani Sankar Mukherjee (commonly known as Sankar in both Bengali and English-language literature) is an Indian writer in the Bengali language, who also served as the Sheriff of Kolkata.^[1] He grew up in Howrah of West Bengal.

Sankar
Sankar at the United Nations, New York, in August 2011.
Born	Mani Sankar Mukherjee (1933-12-07) 7 December 1933 (age 91) Hindmotor, Hooghly district, Battala Lane, (present-day Hooghly, West Bengal)
Nationality	Indian
Occupations	Writer novelist essayist researcher
Known for	Books on Swami Vivekananda, Bengali novels

Personal life

Sankar is the son of Avaya Mukherjee known as Gouri Mukherjee. Sankar's father died while he was still a teenager, as a result of which Sankar became a clerk to the last British barrister of the Calcutta High Court, Noel Frederick Barwell.^[2] At the same time he entered in Surendranath College (formerly Ripon College, Calcutta) for study. He worked in various field as typewriter cleaner, private tutor, Hawker for his living.

Literary career

Mukherjee in 2019

After Noel Barwell's sudden death, Sankar, the professional version of his name adopted for the law courts, sought to honor Barwell. "First, I wanted to build a statue. It was not possible. I then wanted to name a road. Even that was not feasible. And then I decided to write a book about him," according to Sankar. That impetus led to his first novel, about Barwell,^[3] that according to some critics is perhaps the most stimulating -- Kato Ajanare (So Much Unknown).^[4]

Around the same time in 1962, Sankar conceived Chowringhee on a rainy day at the waterlogged crossing of Central Avenue and Dalhousie - a busy business district in the heart of Kolkata. The novel, set in the opulent hotel he called Shahjahan, was made into a cult movie in 1968. It is wrongly said that Sankar marketed his literary work to Bengali households with the marketing slogan A bagful of Sankar (Ek Bag Sankar) and collections of his books were sold in blue packets through this marketing effort.^[5] He has been rewarded with Sahitya Akademi Award on 18 March 2021 for his outstanding autobiographical work of Eka Eka Ekashi.^[6][7]

Works

Sankar, speaking at the UN

• Jekhane Jemon (travelogue) (As It Is There)
• Kato Ajanare (novel) (The Many Unknowns) - his debut novel.
• Nivedita Research Laboratory (novel)
• Abasarika ISBN 978-81-7612-777-6
• Chowringhee (novel) (1962)
• Swarga Martya Patal- (collection of three stories: Jana Aranya (The Sea of People), Seemabaddha (Limited Company) and Asha Akangsha (Hopes and Desires))
• Gharer Madhye Ghar
• Nagar Nandini
• Banglar Meye ISBN 978-81-7079-454-7
• Simanta Sambad ISBN 978-81-7079-554-4
• Kamana Basana ISBN 978-81-7079-978-8
• Purohit Darpan
• Sri Sri Ramkrishna Rahsyamrito
• Purohit Darpan
• Mone Pare
• Mansamman (1981)
• Samrat O Sundari (novel)
• Charan Chhunye Jai ISBN 978-81-7079-528-5
• Bangalir Bittasadhana - Saharar Itikatha ISBN 81-7267-045-1
• Jaabar Belay ISBN 978-81-7267-066-5
• Mathar Opor Chhad
• Patabhumi ISBN 978-81-7612-637-3
• Rasabati ISBN 978-81-7612-637-3
• Ek Bag Sankar (collection) ISBN 978-81-7079-091-4
• Kamana Basana ISBN 978-81-7079-978-8
• Sonar Sangsar
• Chhayachhabi (collection)
• Muktir Swad
• Subarno Sujog
• ABCD
• Charan Chhunye Jai(Vol 2) ISBN 978-81-7612-888-9
• Bittabasana
• Eka eka ekashi
• Rup tapos

Works in translation

• Chowringhee translated by Arunava Sinha into English ISBN 978-0-14-310103-1 and ISBN 978-1-84354-913-0. Translation is pending into Italian. In 2013 the novel has been translated into French by Dr Philippe Benoit, sanskritist and head of Bengali department of Paris National Institute of Oriental Languages and Civilizations (INALCO), published by Gallimard house.
• The Middleman translated by Arunava Sinha from "Jana Aranya" into English ISBN 978-0-14-306671-2.
• The Great Unknown translated by Soma Das from "Kato ajanare" into English ISBN 978-0-670-08443-2.
• Thackeray Mansion translated by Sandipan Deb from "Gharer Madhye Ghar" into English ISBN 978-0-143-42006-4.

Screen adaptations

• Many of Sankar's works have been made into films. Some notable ones are – Chowringhee, Jana Aranya and Seemabaddha, out of which the last two were directed by Satyajit Ray.^[8]
• In 1959, Ritwik Ghatak started making a film Kato Ajanare based on Sankar's first novel.^[9]
• His novel, Man Samman, was turned into a film by Basu Chatterjee, Sheesha (1986), starring Mithun Chakraborty, Moonmoon Sen and Mallika Sarabhai.

Awards

• 1993- Bankim Puraskar for Gharer Moddhe Ghar
• Sahitya Akademi Award: 2021^[10]
• ABP Ananda Sera Bangali Award ("Sera'r Sera"): 2022^[11]

See also

• Nrisingha Prasad Bhaduri