Munshi Premchand Biography
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| Munshi Premchand |
Munshi
Premchand was a great writer. He gave the ‘Hindi Upanayas’ a definite shape and
Hindi fiction blossomed into a full-fledged literary form in his hand.
That is why he is known as ‘Upanayas Samrat’ or ‘The father of Hindi
Fiction’.
Premchand
was born on July 31, 1880 in Banaras (now Varanasi) in a very poor family. His
real name was Dhanpat Rai. He also wrote novels in Urdu. Then he assumed the
name Nawab Rai. He was deprived of parental love. Due to poverty, he led a
miserable life. But he never lost his courage. In 1899, Premchand joined as a
school teacher. Later he became the Deputy Inspector of Schools. In 1905, he
got married to a child widow.
Premchand’s
literary career was started as an Urdu novelist and short story writer. He attained
distinction very soon. In 1901, his first story was published in an Urdu
magazine Jamana. The name of his first story was Sansar Ke Sabse
Anmol Ratna (The Most Valuable Gems of the World). Soz-e-Watan, his
first collection of short stories came out in 1907. But as it was full of
patriotic fervor (encouragement), the British Government imposed a ban on it.
Later
Premchand turned to Hindi. He distinguished himself as one of the most popular
story writers. But the best in him was brought out in his novels. Premchand
published a lot of articles on patriotism. As an editor, he worked in various
magazines like-Azaad, Hansa, Jagaran, Jamana and Maryada.
Premchand’s
literary career lasted over three decades. He had described the life of common
people-their woes (sorrows), sufferings and foibles (weak point in person’s
character). That is why he became very popular. He fearlessly exposed the
hypocrisy and exploitation of the rural peasantry by the rich and the money
lenders. His first major Hindi novel, Sevasadana (House of Service)
was published in 1918. It dealt with the problems of prostitution and moral
corruption among the Indian middle class. Social evils of arranged marriages
and the abuses of British bureaucracy were also depicted in his writings.
Premchand
not only edited some magazines but also started his own magazine called Hansa. His
works have been translated into several Indian and foreign languages.
Much
of his best work is to be found in a book, Mansarovar (The Holy
Lake). It is a collection of short stories written in Hindi. For Hindi
writings, he assumed the pen name ‘Premchand’.
Premchand
passed away on October, 8 in 1936.
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Major Novels
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Premashram (Love Retreat, 1922); Rangabhumi (The Arena, 1924);
Ghaban (Embezzlement, 1928); Karmabhumi (Arena of Actions, 1931); Godan (The
Gift of a Cow) etc.
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