Bhubaneswar: Odisha Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik paid tributes to Bhakta Kabi Madhusudan Rao on his birth anniversary today.
Taking to his Twitter handle, Patnaik described the prolific Odia writer as a teacher and a poet.
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ଓଡ଼ିଆ ଭାଷା ଆନ୍ଦୋଳନର ଅନ୍ୟତମ କର୍ଣ୍ଣଧାର ତଥା ଛବିଳ ମଧୁ ବର୍ଣ୍ଣବୋଧର ପ୍ରଣେତା ଭକ୍ତକବି ମଧୁସୂଦନ ରାଓଙ୍କ ଜୟନ୍ତୀରେ ଶ୍ରଦ୍ଧାଞ୍ଜଳି। ଉତ୍କଳ ସାହିତ୍ୟ ସମାଜ ଜରିଆରେ ଓଡ଼ିଆ ଭାଷା ଓ ସାହିତ୍ୟର ପ୍ରଚାର ପ୍ରସାର ସହ ଜଣେ ଆଦର୍ଶ ଶିକ୍ଷକ, କବି ଓ ସମାଜ ସଂସ୍କାରକ ଭାବେ ନିଜ ଅବଦାନ ପାଇଁ ସେ ସର୍ବଦା ସ୍ମରଣୀୟ ରହିବେ। pic.twitter.com/NDX24z1dII
— Naveen Patnaik (@Naveen_Odisha) January 19, 2021
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Madhusudan Rao was born on 19 January 1853. He was born to Bhagiratha Rao, an employee of Orissa police department at Puri. He lost his mother at the age of five and was raised by his father.
He is known as Bhaktakavi of Odia and is considered the father of modern (using western lyrical forms) Odia poetry.
The very mention of ‘Barnabodha’ make every Odia nostalgic as this had laid the foundation of his/her formal learning days.
This book was recognized and prescribed by the Education Department and more than one lakh copies were sold from 1947 to 1948.
Some of his remarkable works for children include ‘Sishubodha’, ‘Balabodha’, ‘Sahitya Kusum’, and ‘Prabandhamala’. ‘Utkal Gatha’, ‘Basanta Gatha’ and ‘Padma’ are some of his most popular poems. Magazines like ‘Sikhyabandhu’, ‘Asha’ and ‘Utkal Darpan’, were published with his efforts.
His poem ‘Ki Sundara Aha’ was made into song for the movie ‘Gouri’, and still sung in schools as a prayer song.
He had established the erstwhile Cuttack Town School in 1881, which later came to be known as ‘Bhakta Madhu Bidyapith’, in Cuttack. He also laid the foundation and became the first president of ‘Alochana Sabha’, now ‘Utkal Sahitya Samaj’, in 1890.
