Devdas (Hindi)

About the Book

Saratchandra Chattopadhyay’s Devdas is a heartbreaking love story, told and retold since its release in 1917. It depicts the Bengali society in the early 1900s, shedding a light on social concerns such as caste hierarchy. Having known each other since they were kids, Devdas and Paro are inseparable. Their friendship soon turns into love, and they both vow to spend the rest of their lives together. But, unfortunately, their union is forbidden. Devdas is the son of an arrogant and rich Bengali Brahmin who refuses to let his son marry beneath their caste. The lovers are torn asunder when Parvati is married to another man, following which Devdas despairingly returns to Calcutta, where he meets the alluring, beautiful courtesan Chandramukhi. While Devdas remains in a drunken stupor, pining for his Paro, Chandramukhi finds herself falling for this ill-fated, brooding man. What happens when Chandramukhi swears unending love for Devdas? What will be the outcome of this tragic love triangle?

About the Author
Born on 15 September, 1876 in West Bengal, Saratchandra Chattopadhyay began writing in his early teens. The author of numerous Bengali novels, short stories, and even plays, his works have been translated in many languages across India. He achieved instant fame after his first novel Badi Didi was published in 1907 in Bharati. The quality and nuance of his writing made some readers conjecture that the author of this work was the celebrated Rabindranath Tagore writing under a pseudonym. This novel was then adapted into a TV series. Saratchandra Chattopadhyay has penned phenomenal works such as Charitraheen (1917), Srikant (1917), and Shesh Prashn (1931). His novels like Parineeta (1914) and Devdas (1917) have earned the status of classics in Bengali literature and found their way into popular culture when they were adapted into films. Some of his other notable works adapted into films, Manjhli Didi (1967) and Swami (1977), earned filmfare awards. Considered one of the most prolific writers of the early twentieth century, Saratchandra Chattopadhyay breathed his last on 16 January, 1938.