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Social drama by Syed Waliullah
Bohipir
or
Bahipir
(
Bengali
:
??????
,
romanized
:
Bahip?ra
,
lit.
'
Pir
from the books') is a
Bengali language
social drama written by Bangladeshi litterateur
Syed Waliullah
.
[2]
It was first published in 1960 from
Dhaka
,
East Pakistan
(present-day
Bangladesh
). Before being published,
Bohipir
was awarded at a 1955 international conference of
PEN Club
in Dhaka.
[3]
Characters
[
edit
]
- Bohipir
- Bohipir is the eponymous character of the play and elderly antagonist is married to Tahera. He considers the common language to be unclean and inappropriate to bear the message of God, so he uses
Sadhu bhasa
and takes the name "Bohipir".
[2]
His role is characterised by patience, tact, present intellect and realistic knowledge.
- Tahera
- Tahera is the protagonist of the play. Her superstitious father and stepmother marry her off to Bohipir, but Tahera flees from the wedding with her cousin and takes shelter in Hatem Ali's boat. The
National Curriculum and Textbook Board
(NCTB) states that she is portrayed as an inflexible and humanitarian character, and is considered to be an indication of women's rights and awakening in the early 20th century.
[3]
- Hashem Ali
- Hashem Ali is the son of Zamindar Hatem Ali and is against religious superstitions and social injustice. At the end of the play he flees with Tahera to start a new life.
- Hatem Ali
- Hatem Ali is a zamindar of Reshampur who is gradually losing his lands. His estate has been auctioned due to the Revenue Sale Law.
[4]
He asks for money to save his estate from his friend in the city. He hides this fact from his family by pretending to be sick and tells them that they are going to the city for treatment. Bohipir tries to exploit Hatem's problem by offering money to retain control of his lands for Tahera, but Hatem refuses.
- Khodeja Begum
- Khodeja Begum is Hatem's wife and Hashem's mother. She is a simple, religious and superstitious lady. She sympathises with Tahera when she listens to her story, but wants to return her as she is the Pir's wife. Although she feels that the marriage was unjust, she also fears Bohipir's curse. At first she takes Bohipir's side when Hashem confronts Bohipir, but eventually supports him. The NCTB interprets Khodeja to be an icon of a universal mother in the drama.
[3]
- Hokikullah
- Hokikullah, or Hakikullah, is Bohipir's assistant who fulfills his master's orders.
Background
[
edit
]
Bohipir
takes place in late-19th or early-20th century
British Bengal
.
[3]
Zamindar
Hatem Ali struggles against the
Revenue Sale Law
(commonly
Bengali
:
????????? ???
,
romanized
:
S?ry?sta ?'ina
,
lit.
'Sunset Law'), which was enacted in 1793, as zamindars began to lose control over their lands by that time. At the time, most of
Bengal
subscribed to
pirism
, narrow-mindedness and
superstitions
.
[2]
Pirs
were feared for their so-called spiritual power by even zamindars, and villagers in the Bengal region demonstrated poor judgement before Pirs. Their ignorance often led them to sacrifice their wealth and even their daughters for the service of Pirs.
[3]
The name
Bohipir
has a symbolic significance as
pirism in the Bengali Muslim community
originated from social prejudices and religious books. Mainly this Pirism was initiated through the Sufist philosophy of
Islam
. The name
Bohipir
(
lit.
'
Pir from the books
'
) describes the spread of pirism from the religious interpretations and
masael
(explanations) to the common people.
[3]
Theme
[
edit
]
Bohipir
is a play that portrays the hypocrisy and emptiness of
pirism in rural Bengal
.
[2]
Waliullah indicated the lifelessness of bookish religious beliefs and pirist superstitions through Bohipir's speech given in
Sadhu bhasa
.
[2]
However, the drama finally hints at an upcoming change in the social prejudice through Tahera and Hashem as they raise their voice against the system and flee together. Tahera has been portrayed as a symbol of Bengali Muslim women empowerment in the early 20th century.
[3]
Reception
[
edit
]
Syed Waliullah has been credited for discussing social stigma, inconsistency and socio-religious superstitions in literature such as
Lalsalu
and
Bohipir
.
[1]
[5]
He was awarded the PEN Prize in 1955 for
Bohipir
.
[3]
[5]
The play was included in the national curriculum of Bangladesh by the
NCTB
in 2013.
[3]
[6]
References
[
edit
]
- ^
a
b
c
"?????? by ????? ??????????????"
. Rokomari.com
. Retrieved
3 November
2020
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
Tulu, Abu Sayed (24 January 2019).
"????? ????????????? '??????'
"
['Bohipir' of Syed Waliullah] (in Bengali).
Samakal
| Nondan
. Retrieved
3 November
2020
.
- ^
a
b
c
d
e
f
g
h
i
Maddhomik Bangla Sohopath (M?dhyamika B?ngl? Sahap??ha), Classes IX-X, Academic Year 2016,
National Curriculum and Textbook Board
, Dhaka, Bangladesh.
- ^
"?????????? ????? ????????????? ??????"
. Bhorer Kagoj. 7 October 2019
. Retrieved
3 November
2020
.
- ^
a
b
Asaduzzaman, Syed (11 October 2019).
"???????????????? ?????????????? ?? ????????????"
[An anti-bigotry secular writer] (in Bengali). Prothom Alo North America
. Retrieved
3 November
2020
.
- ^
????, ?????, ?????, ??? ? ??? ??????? ?????????? ?????????????? ????????? ?????? ????
[
Curricular division for internal examinations of classes six, seven, eight, nine and ten, 2020
]
(pdf)
(in Bengali),
Board of Intermediate and Secondary Education, Jessore
, 4 February 2020
, retrieved
3 November
2020
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