Devdas (Bengali: দেবদাস Debdash; Hindi: देवदास; Urdu: دیوداس) (also called Debdas) (1917) is a Bengali novella by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay. Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay, also known as Sarat Chandra Chatterjee (15 September 1876 - 16 January 1938) was a popular Bengali novelist of early 20th century India. ... Bengali or Bangla (বাংলা, IPA: ) is an Indo-Aryan language of the eastern Indian subcontinent, evolved from Prakrit, Pāli and Sanskrit. ... A novella is a narrative work of prose fiction somewhat longer than a short story but shorter than a novel. ... Year 1917 (MCMXVII) was a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar (see link for calendar) or a common year starting on Tuesday of the 13-day slower Julian calendar (see: 1917 Julian calendar). ... This article or section does not adequately cite its references or sources. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article may require cleanup. ... Bengali or Bangla (বাংলা, IPA: ) is an Indo-Aryan language of the eastern Indian subcontinent, evolved from Prakrit, Pāli and Sanskrit. ... Hindi (Devanagari: or  ;; IPA: ), an Indo-European language spoken mainly in northern and central India, is one of the official languages of the Union government of India. ... (اردو), historically spelled Ordu, is an Indo-Aryan language of the Indo-Iranian branch, belonging to Indo-European family of languages. ... Bengali or Bangla (বাংলা, IPA: ) is an Indo-Aryan language of the eastern Indian subcontinent, evolved from Prakrit, Pāli and Sanskrit. ... A novella is a narrative work of prose fiction somewhat longer than a short story but shorter than a novel. ... Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay, also known as Sarat Chandra Chatterjee (15 September 1876 - 16 January 1938) was a popular Bengali novelist of early 20th century India. ...

Plot summary

The childhood friendship of Devdas (who is from a wealthy family) and Paro (Parvati) (whose family was not as well off) blossoms into love as they grow up. Devdas' father does not approve of the relationship due to difference in their families' statuses in village and the caste. (Devdas is of the Brahmin caste and Paro of the Merchant caste.) The Indian caste system is the traditional system of social division in the Indian Subcontinent, in which social classes are defined by a number of endogamous groups often termed as jātis. ... A Brahmin (anglicised from the Sanskrit adjective belonging to Brahma, also known as Brahman belonging to ; Vipra, Dvija twice-born, Dvijottama best of the twice born or earth-god) is considered to be the highest class (varna) in the Indian caste system of Hindu society [1] [2], although this status...

Devdas realizes he cannot live without Paro and seeks her out, but she has already been married off to an older man with children. Devdas falls into despair and drinks to excess; then he meets a courtesan, Chandramukhi, who falls in love with him and looks after him. During his alcohol-instilled dreams, he frequently dreams of Paro and Chandramukhi. The two women replace each other in his dreams, so it is left unclear, if, in the end, Devdas overcomes his love for Paro and finds some peace by falling in love with Chandramukhi. At the end Devdas dies with alchohol poisioning after being warned to stop drinking. He keeps his promise with paro by arriving at the mansion before he dies. Paro attempts to see him at the gate but she fails with her undying love. A courtesan in mid-16th century usage was a high-class prostitute or mistress, especially one associated with rich, powerful, or upper-class men who provided luxuries and status in exchange for her services. ... This article does not cite its references or sources. ...

Translations of the novella

• A new English translation was released in 2002 by Penguin India. It was translated from the Bengali into English by Sreejata Guha (who also wrote the introduction).

Bengali or Bangla (বাংলা, IPA: ) is an Indo-Aryan language of the eastern Indian subcontinent, evolved from Prakrit, Pāli and Sanskrit. ...

Film, TV or theatrical adaptations

The novella has been made into a film in multiple Indian languages including Bengali, Hindi, Telugu and Tamil *[1] Bengali or Bangla (বাংলা, IPA: ) is an Indo-Aryan language of the eastern Indian subcontinent, evolved from Prakrit, Pāli and Sanskrit. ... Hindi (Devanagari: or  ;; IPA: ), an Indo-European language spoken mainly in northern and central India, is one of the official languages of the Union government of India. ... Telugu (తెలుగు) is a Dravidian language primarily spoken in the Indian state of Andhra Pradesh, where it is the official language. ... Tamil ( ; IPA ) is a Dravidian language spoken predominantly by Tamils in India and Sri Lanka, with smaller communities of speakers in many other countries. ...

Notable versions of the novella include:

• Devdas (1928 film), directed by Naresh Mitra, Phani Burma as Devdas, Tarakbala as Parvati or Paro and Niharbala/Miss Parul as Chandramukhi.
• Devdas (1935 film), directed by P.C. Barua, starring himself as Devdas, Jamuna as Parvati or Paro and Chandrabati Devi as Chandramukhi.
• Devdas (1936 film), directed by P.C. Barua, starring K.L. Saigal as Devdas, Jamuna as Parvati or Paro and Rajkumari as Chandramukhi.
• Devdas (1953 Telugu film) (also known as "Devadasu"), directed by Vedantam Raghavaiah, starring Akkineni Nageswara Rao as Devdas and Savitri as Parvati.
• Devdas (1955 film), directed by Bimal Roy, starring Dilip Kumar as Devdas,Suchitra Sen as Paro, and Vyjayantimala as Chandramukhi.
• Devdas (1979 film) (also known as "Debdas"), directed by Dilip Roy, Soumitra Chatterjee as Devdas, Sumitra Mukherjee as Parvati or Paro and Supriya Choudhury as Chandramukhi.
• Devdas (2002 Bengali film), directed by Shakti Samanta, starring Prasenjit Chatterjee as Devdas, Arpita Pal as Parvati or Paro and Indrani Halder as Chandramukhi.
• Devdas (2002 film), Bollywood film directed by Sanjay Leela Bhansali, starring Shahrukh Khan as Devdas, Aishwarya Rai as Parvati or Paro and Madhuri Dixit as Chandramukhi.

Devdas is a 1928 silent film based on the Sharat Chandra Chattopadhyay novella, Devdas. ... Devdas (Hindi: देवदास, Urdu: دیوداس) is a 1935 silent film based off of the Sharat Chandra Chattopadhyay novel, Devdas. ... Pramathesh Chandra (P.C.) Barua (1903 - 1951) was a famous actor, director, and screenwriter of Indian films in the pre-independence era. ... Devdas (Hindi: देवदास, Urdu: دیوداس) is a 1936 film based on the Sharat Chandra Chattopadhyay novella, Devdas. ... Kundan Lal (K.L.) Saigal (April 11, 1904 - January 18, 1947) was an Indian actor and singer who is considered the first big superstar of Bollywood, the Hindi film industry centred in Mumbai. ... To meet Wikipedias quality standards, this article or section may require cleanup. ... Devdas ( Telugu), also known as Devadasu: is a 1953 film based on the Sharat Chandra Chattopadhyay novella, Devdas. ... Akkineni Nageswara Rao (born September 20, 1924), also known as ANR, is a film actor from Andhra Pradesh. ... Savitri and similar spellings represent various Sanskrit words and names:- Savitri, with all vowels short, is a (confusing) Roman-phonetic spelling of the Vedic Hindu sun god Savitr. ... Devdas (Hindi: देवदास, Urdu: دیوداس) is a 1955 film based off of the Sharat Chandra Chattopadhyay novel, Devdas. ... Bimal Roy (July 12, 1909—January 7, 1966), nicknamed Bimalda, was one of the most successful Hindi film directors of all time. ... This article is written from a fans point of view, rather than a neutral point of view. ... Suchitra Sen Suchitra Sen (April 6, 1929) (Bangla: সুচিত্রা সেন) is a Bengali actress who has attained legendary status because of her performances in Bengali cinema. ... Vyjayantimala (born 1936) is an Indian film actress. ... Devdas (Bengali: Debdash): is a 1979 film based on the Sharat Chandra Chattopadhyay novella, Devdas. ... Soumitra Chatterjee (born 1935) is a Bengali actor from India, most famous for his frequent collaborations with the great Indian director Satyajit Ray. ... Supriya Devi (Bengali: সুপ্রিয়া দেবী), also known as Supriya Choudhury (Bengali: সুপ্রিয়া চৌধুরী) (born 1933) is a Indian Bengali female actor, acting in Bengali cinemas for more than 50 years. ... Devdas (Bengali: Debdas) is a 2002 film based on the Sharat Chandra Chattopadhyay novella, Devdas. ... TRIVIA: Born in Bengal on 13th January 1926. ... Prasenjit Chatterjee, professionally known as Poshenjit, is a Bengali film actor. ... Devdas (Hindi: देवदास, Urdu: دیوداس) is a 2002 Bollywood film based on the Sharat Chandra Chattopadhyay novella, Devdas. ... Bollywood (Hindi: is movies staring the infamous actor named Ice T., Urdu: ) is the informal name given to the popular Mumbai-based Hindi language film industry in India. ... Sanjay Leela Bhansali is an Indian director, famous for helming the 2002 adaptation of Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyays Devdas. ... Shah Rukh Khan (Hindi: शाहरुख़ ख़ान, Urdu: شاه رخ خان), pronunciation: (also known as King Khan), is an Indian actor in Bollywood. ... Aishwarya Rai (Tulu-Kannada: ಐಶ್ವರ್ಯ ರೈ, Devanāgarī: ऐश्वर्या रय, IPA: ) (born on November 1, 1973), is a two-time Filmfare Award-winning Indian actress and is the highest paid actress in India. ... Madhuri Dixit (Marathi: माधुरी दीक्षित) pronunciation: or ) (born as Madhuri Shankar Dixit to a Marathi family on May 15, 1967) is a five-time Filmfare Awards winning Indian Bollywood actress. ...

References

• Guha, Sreejata. "Introduction." In Devdas by Sharat Chandra Chattopadhyay. New Delhi: Penguin Books, 2002.

Sharat Chandra Chattopadhyay (Bangla: শরত্চন্দ্র চট্টোপাধ্যায় Shôrotchôndro Chôţţopaddhae), also known as Saratchandra Chattopadhyay or Sharat Chandra Chatterjee (15 September 1876 - 16 January 1938) was an author from India. ...

See also

• Parinita/Parineeta, 1914

Parineeta (1914), a novella written in the Bengali language, is a story by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay set in Calcutta, India during the early part of the twentieth century. ... Parineeta (1914), a novella written in the Bengali language, is a story by Sarat Chandra Chattopadhyay set in Calcutta, India during the early part of the twentieth century. ...

External links

• Penguin India book review
• The Hindu (newspaper) essay on the novel