It’s true that any society’s language is its root which binds the communities. Similarly Hindi is root of India that is Bharat. There has been many ‘Kaljayi’ (Immortal) writers and their creation in Hindi on its both sides-Gaddya(Prose) and Paddya (Poetry). While Hindi Paddya is age old the Gaddya many like me believe is not that old and it originated only in 19th century and that too in ‘Bolis’ or Dialects. It was Bhartendu Harishchandra meaning of whose first name is like crescent on forehead of India who I believe refurnished and wrote Khadi Boli Gaddya. He was not only writer & Poet but also an acclaimed Journalist like all his fellow mates such as Badri Narayan Upadhyay ‘Premghan’ or Badri Narayan Choudhary ‘Premghan’ (in whose family tree Ex BBC Journalist and Gandhian thinker Madhukar Upadhyay belong) ,Shiv Prasad Siter-e-Hind(Predecessors), Devki Nandan Khattri and Jagannath Das Ratnakar who spent his larger part of life in Courts of Ayodhya and wrote a masterpiece called ‘Ganga Avtaran’ or ‘Travel of Ganga from Lord Braham’s Holy Pot into the ‘Jatas’ or Curly Hairs of Lord Shiva with inspiration of Maharani of Ayodhya and wife of Maharaja Pratap Narayn Singh.
The Gaddya and Paddya of Hindi is divided in six ‘Yugas’ or Eras.
Six Yugas or Eras of Hindi Gaddya or Prose
- (1) Poorva Bhartendu Yuga or Pre Bhartendu Era: 13 century 1868
- (2) Bhartendu Yuga or Bhartendu Era: 1868-1900
- (3) Dwivedi Yuga or Dwivedi Era based in Honor of Acharya Mahaveer Prasad Dwivedi: 1900 -1922 .
- (4) Shukla Yuga or Shukla Era based in Honor of Acharya Ramchandra Shukla: 1919 -1938
- (5) Shuklottar Yuga or Post Shukla Period based on deciples of Acharya Ram Chandra Shukla-1938 – 1947
- (6) Swatantryottar Yuga or Post Independece Era based on period when India was set free by British in 1947 – From 1947 till now.
Six Yugas or Eras of Hindi Paddya or Poetry
1-Poetry during Bhartendu Period (1850-1900)
2-Poetry During Acharya Mahaveer Prasad Dwivedi Period (1900-1920)
3-Chayavaad Yuga or Renaissance Period (1920-1936 )
4-Uttar Chayavaad Yuga or Post Renaissance Period (1936-1943)
5-Pragativaad Yug or Progressive Era (1936)
6-Prayogvaad Yuga aur Nayi Kavita or Era of Experiments and New Poetry (1943-1960)
It is obvious that there has been no new experiments and revolutionary creations after 1960 in Hindi Paddya (Poetry) if we go by this time chart but there are poets who are doing their bit. But as for as Hindi Gaddya (Prose) is concerned post independence period has seen much revolution as it is time when ‘Khadi Boli Gaddya’ (A Hindi in which Indians speak now a days and of which Bhartendu Harischandra was founder) got maturity from infant stage. While poetry has been on stage since long in various dialects (Bolis) of Hindi (Please remember Hindi as Language of India has multiple Bolis r Dialects and they are not Languages such as Awadhi,Magahi,Maithili,Bhojpuri,Angika,Bundelkhandi,Ruhelkhandi,Haryanvi,Punjabi Hindi,Marathi Hindi,Rajasthani Hindi,Braj and so on. Since all of these Boli’s (Dialect’s ) script is same as ‘Devanagri’ which is actual script of Hindi,these are called Bolis or Dialects and at no rate can be bifurcated as separate language. However, havind said that, Hindi Paddya or Poetry in Khadi Boli (The Hindi spoken in today’s India also started late and it was perhaps during rule of Mughal Emperor Akbar that first creation in Khadi Boli Hindi was made by one of his court poets.
One more point which can be noted is that renaissance period in India started very late in comparison to West specially in England and famous Hindi poets of this period or Jai Shankar Prasad,Mahadevi Verma and Harivansh Rai “Bachchan” (Father of Indian Film Star Amitabh Bachchan).
Here in below videos it describe it all in a commentary with examples of various eras while focusing and reciting Ganga Avtaran of Jaggannath Das Ratnakar who wrote it with inspiration of Maharani of Ayodhya and wife of Maharaja Pratap Narayan Singh. One more point I want to emphasize here is that many historian think that present era Kingdom of Ayodhya which was also under a Kshatriya Maharaja till 20th Centuray before last Kshatriya Maharaja of Ayodhya married her only daughter to Brahmin Rajguru or his son, is in lineage of Hindu God and also Kshatriya King Rama on whose birth place all socio-religious battle in India has been fought for has not been established till now or I can not say anything on this aspect as I never asked it to present Brahmin Raja of Ayodhya,Raja Ramendra Mohan Pratap Mishra or his Son and my friend Kunwar Yatindra Mohan Pratap Mishra in whose ancestor’s school I have studied.
In first and begining Part-1 of Discussion on Hindi Sahitya,Prof (Dr) Ratnesh Dwivedi talks about how Hindi Gaddya (Prose) started. He credits Bhartendu Harishchandra and his fellow Pt Badri Narayan Choudhary Upadhyay “Premghan” as father of ‘Kadi Boli Gaddya(Prose). He also discusses on division of various ‘Yugas’ (Eras) of Hindi Gadya (Prose and Paddya (Poetry). He further talks about Chhayavaad or renaissance period which started in India much later than west and compares it as a dense cloudy and rainy day of cold winter in which Premi(Lover) thinks and writes about his Premika (Love Consort) only about imagining her as Premika(Love Consort is far away.
In second part of Discussion on Hindi Sahitya, Prof (Dr) Ratnesh Dwivedi precisely details about six Yugas(Eras) of Hindi Gadya (Prose) and Paddya (Poetry). He talks about various epitomes of all 12 Yugas (Eras). He then carries on narrating about a famous poet of Bhartendu (Bharat +Indu= Like Moon on Forehead of India) Era, Jaggannath Das Ratnakar and how he arrives at courts of Maharaja of Ayodhya,Raja Pratap Narayan Singh. He also tells various Rajas of Ayodhya Kingdom in present Era and how the Kshatriya Raja Pratap Narayan Sigh married his only daughter to a Brahmin Rajguru and thus falling the Court of Ayodhya in to a Brahmin Rulers.
In final Part -3 of Discussion on Hindi Sahitya,Prof (Dr) Ratnesh Dwivedi talks,how Jaggannath Das Ratnakar wrote ‘Ganga Avtaran’ with inspiration of Maharani of Ayodhya and Wife of Maharaj Pratap Narayan Singh. Prof (Dr) Dwivedi also recites a part of Ganga Avtaran in his own voice.
Prof (Dr) Ratnesh Dwivedi is an Award Winning Academic by Russian Communication Association,Journalist , NASA Certified Educator with Seven Certifications,Interdisciplinary Scientist,Award winning Sec,Intel & Def Expert by OSI Intelligence and Foundation,Israel,USA and Peace Prize Winner by Center for Peace Studies,Colombo. He writes for Russian International Affairs Council,Moscow and Global Ethics Network,Carnegie Council,Washington and is serving as Chancellor,Professor & Dean,School of Humanities & Social Sciences,Yesbud University,Zambia and also as Professor & Head of Dept,Department of Journalism & Mass Communication at Hi-Tech Institute of Engg & Technology,Delhi-NCR.He can be approached at [email protected])