Suchibrata Roy Choudhury

Suchibrata Roychoudhury (Assamese: শুচিব্রতা ৰায়চৌধুৰী; 1 September 1929 – 2 December 2009; sometimes spelled Suchibrata Raichoudhury)[1] was an Assamese litterateur and poet, and the first female Judicial Magistrate of Assam as an Assam Civil Services officer.[2] She received the Sahitya Akademi Translation Prize in 2001 for translating Suvira Jaiswal's The Origin and Development of Vaishnavism in India.[3][4]

Suchibrata Roychoudhury
শুচিব্রতা ৰায়চৌধুৰী
Born(1929-09-01)1 September 1929
Guwahati, Assam, India
Died2 December 2009(2009-12-02) (aged 78)
Guwahati, Assam, India
Occupation(s)Government servant, writer, poet
Years active1942–2003
Parents
AwardsSahitya Akademi Award

Biography

Suchibrata was born on 1 September 1929 in Panbazar, Guwahati to freedom activist and poet Ambikagiri Roychoudhury and Kaushalya Devi Ambikagiri.[5] Suchibrata was the eldest of four siblings.[6]

From an early age, she was engaged in writing songs, stories, poems and articles. In class fifth, she published her first hand-written magazine Bonti along with her friend Kamala Das.[6] She wrote a poem "Sannyasi" in the magazine on Mahatma Gandhi. She started singing borgeet when she was in class fourth.

She began school at the Balika Primary School in Panbazaar, Guwahati. From class fourth onwards, she continued her high school studies at Panbazar Girls' High School and completed her matriculation in 1945. She also received the Pratibha Devi Award and Narayani Handique Award for Science in the same year.[4]

In the year 1947, she completed her intermediate examination from Handique Girls' College. She graduated from the same college in 1949 and enrolled in Gauhati University.[6] She also wrote plays for All India Radio. She started her career as a teacher in the Tarini Charan Girls' School in 1951.[4]

Social work

Suchibrata set up institutions throughout her life, leading her to earn Dinabandhavi title ("friend of the poor").[7][8]

Civil service

By 1954, Suchibrata had joined the Assam Civil Service as a civil servant.

  • 1953: Appeared the Assam Civil Service Examination (ACSE).[1]
  • 1954: Deputy Magistrate of the Gauhati Court on 15 February 1954,[9] and then posted in different parts of Assam.
  • 1970: Deputy Director of Panchayat Department, Shillong.
  • 1973: Chief Executive Officer of Khadi and Gramodyog Board.
  • 1976: Sub-Divisional Commissioner of Gauhati Division.[1]
  • 1977-83: Secretary of District Gazetteer.[10] She was once again posted as the Chief Executive Officer of Khadi and Gramodyog Board in Guwahati.[1]
  • 1983: Deputy Director of Education Department, Assam Secretariat.
  • 1986: Director of Social Welfare Department.
  • 1989: Retired as an officer of Revenue Department on 31 August 1989.[1]

Bibliography

Suchibrata's literary works generally deal with themes of patriotism and social evils.[11] Some of her literary works are:

Plays
  • Kun Bate - Her first play was translated when she was in school. The play was later published by her father, narrated on radio and performed by Arya Natya Samaj and the Handique Girls College.
  • Yugar Dabi
  • Garima
  • Troyee

Translations

Suchibrata translated many books and plays into Assamese.

Short stories
  • Saptaparna (1960)
  • Sonali Pera (1956)
  • Budhiyok Kun (1991-98)

Novels
  • Sundar Desh (1960)
  • Bah Maroli (1953-54)
  • Kamonar Jui Jolil Jetiya (1954)

Collections of poems and songs
  • Mathu Katha (1988)
  • Tumi Aru Moi (1950)
  • Hahakarar Gaan (1995)
  • Suhuri (1996)
  • Gunjan (1996)
  • Spandan

Other works
  • Jeeban Premor Atandra Anal (2000)
  • Agneepath (2010) a biography of her father, Ambikagiri Roychoudhury
  • Aain Aru Adalat (2006)
  • Sahitya Manjari
  • Chetanar Chinta (1999), a compilation of editorials of the magazine Chetana published by the Asam Sahitya Sabha.[6]

References
  1. "Suchibrata Raichoudhury no more". The Sentinel. 2 December 2009.
  2. "Your favorite newspapers and magazines". 3 December 2020. Retrieved 25 July 2021 – via PressReader.
  3. "..:: SAHITYA : Akademi Awards ::." .. (in Croatian). Retrieved 25 July 2021.
  4. Profiles, Teresa Rehman (27 March 2003). "Breaking free from fetters- PERSONALITY". Telegraph India. Retrieved 8 July 2021.
  5. Baruah, Jyotshna; Adhikary, Gajendra. "4". Ambikagiri Roy Chowdhury and the revolutionary movement in the Brahmaputra valley (PDF) – via INFLIBNET Centre. {{cite book}}: |journal= ignored (help)
  6. Borah, Dr. Jayashree. Agnisnata (in Assamese). Guwahati: Aalibaat Publication.
  7. "Glowing tributes paid to Suchibrata Roychoudhury". The Assam Tribune Online. Retrieved 2 December 2020.
  8. "Need for more old-age homes underlined". The Assam Tribune.
  9. All India Civil List. Published under the authority of the Government of India by the Associated Advertisers & Printers. 1 July 1968.
  10. Assam (India) (1991). Assam District Gazetteers: Cachar district. Government of Assam.
  11. Contemporary Indian Literature: A Symposium. Sahitya Akademi. 1968.
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