Rabindranath Tagore and “World Literature”

Abstract

Guardian asked, “Rabindranath Tagore was a global phenomenon, so why is he neglected?”Indeed, the ephemerality of Tagore’s presence in the realm of global literature is in marked contrast to his powerful influence not only in the annals of subcontinental literature and culture, but in the daily lives of the 300 million Bengalis who continue to sing his two thousand songs today, to celebrate his birthday every year on Rabindra Jayanti and to hold rabindra sangeet sabhas —that is, gatherings where his songs are practised and performed. Whether deified, reified or vilified, Jack testifies, “No other language group reveres a writer as 250 million Bengali-speakers do Tagore. Shakespeare and Dickens don’t come into the picture; the popularity of Burns in Scotland 100 years ago may be his nearest equivalent in Britain” (Jack 2011). Even if we disregard the continual lament of Tagore admirers that he is not accorded the place he deserves, mainly in the Anglophone world, there is still something remarkable about his enduring presence among ordinary Bengalis 150 years on. This is despite his appropriation by the connoisseurs and cognoscenti of Bengali high culture, immortalised in the word rabindrik (from Rabi, part of the poet’s first name) and the audacious extension of the copyright over his works by Visva Bharati University, which holds his estate. 4 If uploads on YouTube can be relied upon, impromptu recitals of Tagore’s songs at Calcutta’s upmarket cafes and bars by Europeans and Indians together are not unknown (Cafe Tagore n.d.), nor are recent adaptations of his classical raga-based romantic lyrics for Valentine’s Day shows in Bangladesh (Saurav Goswami n.d.)! In a democratic transgression of Tagore’s exalted reputation, high and low cultures continue to pay equal homage to his songs. Such is the affective appeal of his lyrics that they were adopted as the national anthems of two different nation-states, divided by religious persuasion, but united in a shared love of the Bengali language: India in 1947 and Bangladesh in 1971. No wonder that Narmadeshwar Jha reports in Prospects , the UNESCO quarterly review on education: “Rabindranath Tagore’s reputation as a poet has so eclipsed his contributions to other fields that these have seldom received the attention and appreciation they deserve” (Jha 1994, 11). So what happened?