Dr. Ashok K Choudhury, Ph. D., D. Litt. in Literature, an Independent lit-critic, is associated with India's National Academy of Letters, Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi, for more than three decades. For couple of years Dr. Choudhury was on deputation to Lakshmibai College, University of Delhi. Author of twelve books and more than three hundred articles on erudite research on bio-literary criticism in Hindi, English and Odia, he was one among the Team of Scholars associated with A CRITICAL INVENTORY OF RAMAYANA STUDIES IN THE WORLD (VOL.I), joint project of Sahitya Akademi and Union Academique Internationale, Bruxelles, as well, National Bibliography of Indian Literature-Series Project. Library of Congress has eight books of him in its holding.
Beginning with the 90's of the last century, two major aspects of Literature, namely literary history and anthology-making came centre stage on both sides of the Atlantic, as well as in the rest of the world, including India. Critics began to pay close attention to what came to be known as the literary canon formation, i.e., the manner in which literary texts were decided as worthy of study in the pedagogic /class room context, and the process by which literary trends and movements were constructed by anthology makers over a period in time. Consequently, students and researchers became active participants in the act of reading and in the making of literary history, instead of being passive recipients in the class room and critical context. Thus, the ideological and cultural underpinning of literature which had remained invisible, for long, began to engage the attention of the academic community.
While this development has led to salutary results in many quarters, the same regrettably has not been adequately witnessed in the context of the history of Odia literature written in English. We may recall, in this instance, the pioneering and notable work. by the doyen of Odia Literature, Dr. Mayadhar Mansingh whose history of Odia Literature in English was published by the Sahitya Akademi, New Delhi. Similarly, late Prof. Jatindra Mohan Mohanty had brought out an impressive history of Odia Literature by his own efforts. Happily, this gap has been now filled by Dr. Ashok Kumar Choudhury.
Dr. Choudhury who has long served the Odia section of the Central Sahitya Akademi ably, has now come out with a commendable volume named Literature Down the Ages: A Thematic Approach to Odia Literary History. The book, based on his D. Litt. thesis, is divided into five principal chapters, namely, 'Odia from Vedic to Pre-Independence'; 'Post Independence Odia Literature Thematic Study of Post-Independence Odia Literature; Illustrations on Thematic Varieties'; 'Conclusions;' aside from the Preface, References and the Index. It is a comprehensive volume indeed.
Odia literature, devoid of regional prejudice, in contrast to other modern Indian literature, has a very long history. The new era of modern Indian literature begins about the time of the Indian War of Independence, 1857, which was the upsurge of India's flaming desire to become free. The scope of Indian literature was primarily limited to Sanskrit. Later, Indian literature flourished with the emergence of Pali, Prakrit, and Apabhransha as languages. It was then that each regional literature refashioned itself with fresh forms and contents through the spread of English education and later the national awakening. Indian literature, today, means literature produced in any form, any dialect, particularly in twenty-two languages listed in the Eighth Schedule of the Constitution of India, and twenty-four languages, including English, recognized by India's National Academy of Letters, Sahitya Akademi.
Each language's literature is a treasure trove of cultural identity and is incredibly valuable due to its literary caliber, variety, volume, and antiquity. If to amass at one place the literary wealth of only the modern Indian languages, it will be as vast as the entire literature of Europe collected together.
Odia, now a classical language, is an important component of Indian literature in which literature enriched itself the most. Reading literary works in Odia provides a window into Indian literature. It has fiercely changed over the past 200 years despite being diverse and having a singular cohesion. The literature of post-Independence India has remained a topic of interest and importance. In this context, it is important to examine specific trends in Odia literature from recent decades. A succinct explanation and assessment of the literary tendencies and thematic variations in Odishan literature are provided in Literature Down the Ages: A Thematic Approach to Odia Literary History. This book is brief but essentially complete survey of literary activities in Odia since its appearance.
The introductory chapter of Literature Down the Ages... recounts the development of Odia literature from the Vedic to India's pre-Independence era, and to the modern period. Odia literature experienced a wide range of events and happenings in the last three decades before Independence. Nationalistic feelings spread over the entire state and across the entire nation. The fight for freedom was at its height. The arrival of Gandhiji on the political stage in India marked a turning point for the internal liberation movement. The Bolshevik Revolution and Soviet Russia, as well as the burgeoning Marxist doctrines, had a significant impact on the young Indian minds. Odia literature underwent significant modifications in both form and content after Independence as new ideas were incessantly incorporated into practically every literary work. Before India gained Independence, modern Odia literature more or less followed well-established and well-known patterns, such as sensitivity to nature, involvement in romantic and mystical feelings, acceptance of nationalistic and patriotic sentiments, compassionate solidarity with the poor and downtrodden, and the expression of implicit horror at the transition of culture from rural to urban.
**Contents and Sample Pages**
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