#BENGALI BOOKS FOR CHILDREN TV#

The little verses are trite, contrast unpleasantly with the implicit grandeur of the battles, and would have been better omitted or restricted to a few places. The book alternates straightforward prose descriptions with bouts of poetry, but unfortunately the poetry doesn't work quite as well. The story stands the tests of time and translation quite well. One side is favoured, then the other, but at the end there is a satisfying finale with one army completely wiped out. Family loyalties and distant relationships define who fights on which side. Each side has its allies such as Girguitee the chameleon and Kotkoti the toad.

There are strategies and battle plans, bravery and trickery. Shades of the Mahabharata and the Iliad, and the rest of the story does not disappoint. The two great ant kingdoms, the Lal Pipras (red ants) and the Kalo Pipilis (black ants) enter into battle over the outraged modesty of the lovely Kalo Bou. It is a classic battle saga set in the world of ants. 'Lal Kalo' was written in 1930, a world and several generations ago. Originally published as 'Paagla Saheber Kabar'.Īll three translations were published by Thema, which has taken on the commendable task of translating classic Indian children's literature. * Father Gabriel's Crypt, by Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay (1935 - ) Stories originally published in 'Tuntunir Boi'. * Majantali & Co, by Upendrakisor Raychaudhuri (1863-1915). * Lal Kalo, by Girindrasekhar Bose (1887 - 1953). The following trio serves as an excellent test case:

#BENGALI BOOKS FOR CHILDREN TV#

How good are the translations, and do they work at all in English? Are the stories still appealing enough to entertain children who are exposed to the high-intensity entertainment of TV serials and comic books? Is the language dated, or are the stories still as fresh and delightful as they were when our grandparents read them?

And of course, stories translated into English will open up a whole world to NRI kids, who are often fluent readers of only the English language. Kids down in Kerala will be able to read Bengali folk tales, kids from Mumbai will be exposed to stories from Bhubaneswar. It's delightful to see Indian children's literature appearing in translation. Majantali & Co, by Upendrakisor Raychaudhuri Thema ISBN:81-8įather Gabriel's Crypt, by Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay Thema ISBN:81-8 Lal Kalo, by Girindrasekhar Bose Thema ISBN:81-8 Kingdoms, Cats and Crypts : Back to the Classics

Bengali books for children