KAKABABU
Several novels for young adults by the renowned Bengali writer, Sunil Gangopadhyay, feature Kakababu, who solves mysteries on the basis of his immense knowledge, and his skill at several things. Kakababu was once in the archaeological survey of India, and so he has travelled to various parts of India, as well as outside. It is when he is in Afghanistan that he loses one of his legs, but this is no impediment to his detecting skills, assisted as he is by his able young nephew, Santu.
Kakababu first appears in Sunil Gangopadhyay’s the deadful Beauty. This and another book, the King of the Verdant Island, have recently appeared in an English translations published by the Kolkata based Ponytale Books. Ponytale already made a mark by its translations of Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay’s books for children.
Kakababu first appeared in Bengali fiction first in the early 1970s, when Nirendranath Chakraborty who was at the time editor of Anandmela, a Bengali children's monthly, asked Gangopadhyay to write something for children for their annual Puja number. Gangopadhyay crafted a character called Kakababu — a super-knowledgeable sleuth. Kakababu’s first novel Bhoyonkor Sundor appeared in 1974 and thereafter more followed.
Several novels for young adults by the renowned Bengali writer, Sunil Gangopadhyay, feature Kakababu, who solves mysteries on the basis of his immense knowledge, and his skill at several things. Kakababu was once in the archaeological survey of India, and so he has travelled to various parts of India, as well as outside. It is when he is in Afghanistan that he loses one of his legs, but this is no impediment to his detecting skills, assisted as he is by his able young nephew, Santu.
Kakababu first appears in Sunil Gangopadhyay’s the Dreadful Beauty. This and another book, the King of the Verdant Island, have recently appeared in an English translations published by the Kolkata based Ponytale Books. Ponytale already made a mark by its translations of Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay’s books for children.
Kakababu first appeared in Bengali fiction first in the early 1970s, when Nirendranath Chakraborty who was at the time editor of Anandmela, a Bengali children's monthly, asked Gangopadhyay to write something for children for their annual Puja number. Gangopadhyay crafted a character called Kakababu — a super-knowledgeable sleuth. Kakababu’s first novel Bhoyonkor Sundor appeared in 1974 and thereafter more followed.
The King of the Verdant Island actually rules over a remote island, inhabited only by adivasis (the unique tribe of the Jarawas), where strange happenings occur. But this story begins actually in not too far away Calcutta when an attempt is made to steal passports belonging to Kakababu and Santu.
Santu is accompanying his uncle Kakababu on a trip the latter keeps secret until they are finally arrive in Port Blair. The adventure begins soon after. They notice suspicious looking foreigners loitering around. These same people move around with seeming ease in a motorboat, which need special permits to operate in the Andamans. When Kakababu instantly gives chase, Santa and he soon find themselves in an island which is a special reserve for the Jarawas. They are the original inhabitants of these islands, whose way of live is locked in ancient methods. Apparently, they do not even know the use of fire. But it is obvious that they do possess something mysterious, which has brought the “foreigners” into their midst.
Santu and Kakababu find out too late, when there is immediate danger to their lives.
The action is fast-paced, Santu who comes across as timid and nervous, shows real pluck towards the end, while the character of Gunada Talukdar adds some complexity to the story. He is a revolutionary who was once incarcerated in the Cellular jail, a jail built by the British in the 1860s to house revolutionaries. As Gunada staged his own escape in pre independence times he was unfortunate enough to be caught in an accident and that is how he found himself in the island of the Jarawas. There he lives, caught in a time-warp till Kakababu and Santu find him. In fact, he still carries his manacles with him, on that occasion. The two worlds are juxtaposed – the greedy foreigners in search of the Jarawas secret, and the tribals lost in a time of their own making.
Kakababu is a likeable sleuth, with his easily recognizable quirks, the way he moves with agility despite his disability, his refusal to accept any help. His penchant for keeping secrets, and his vast storehouse of knowledge, makes Kakababu in a sense similar to his contemporaries, Satyajit Ray’s Feluda or Sarodindo Bandyopadhyay’ s Byomkesh Bakshi. He is however older than either of these and manages to save himself by quick thinking and sheer grit.
Kakababu first appears in Sunil Gangopadhyay’s the deadful Beauty. This and another book, the King of the Verdant Island, have recently appeared in an English translations published by the Kolkata based Ponytale Books. Ponytale already made a mark by its translations of Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay’s books for children.
Kakababu first appeared in Bengali fiction first in the early 1970s, when Nirendranath Chakraborty who was at the time editor of Anandmela, a Bengali children's monthly, asked Gangopadhyay to write something for children for their annual Puja number. Gangopadhyay crafted a character called Kakababu — a super-knowledgeable sleuth. Kakababu’s first novel Bhoyonkor Sundor appeared in 1974 and thereafter more followed.
Several novels for young adults by the renowned Bengali writer, Sunil Gangopadhyay, feature Kakababu, who solves mysteries on the basis of his immense knowledge, and his skill at several things. Kakababu was once in the archaeological survey of India, and so he has travelled to various parts of India, as well as outside. It is when he is in Afghanistan that he loses one of his legs, but this is no impediment to his detecting skills, assisted as he is by his able young nephew, Santu.
Kakababu first appears in Sunil Gangopadhyay’s the Dreadful Beauty. This and another book, the King of the Verdant Island, have recently appeared in an English translations published by the Kolkata based Ponytale Books. Ponytale already made a mark by its translations of Shirshendu Mukhopadhyay’s books for children.
Kakababu first appeared in Bengali fiction first in the early 1970s, when Nirendranath Chakraborty who was at the time editor of Anandmela, a Bengali children's monthly, asked Gangopadhyay to write something for children for their annual Puja number. Gangopadhyay crafted a character called Kakababu — a super-knowledgeable sleuth. Kakababu’s first novel Bhoyonkor Sundor appeared in 1974 and thereafter more followed.
The King of the Verdant Island actually rules over a remote island, inhabited only by adivasis (the unique tribe of the Jarawas), where strange happenings occur. But this story begins actually in not too far away Calcutta when an attempt is made to steal passports belonging to Kakababu and Santu.
Santu is accompanying his uncle Kakababu on a trip the latter keeps secret until they are finally arrive in Port Blair. The adventure begins soon after. They notice suspicious looking foreigners loitering around. These same people move around with seeming ease in a motorboat, which need special permits to operate in the Andamans. When Kakababu instantly gives chase, Santa and he soon find themselves in an island which is a special reserve for the Jarawas. They are the original inhabitants of these islands, whose way of live is locked in ancient methods. Apparently, they do not even know the use of fire. But it is obvious that they do possess something mysterious, which has brought the “foreigners” into their midst.
Santu and Kakababu find out too late, when there is immediate danger to their lives.
The action is fast-paced, Santu who comes across as timid and nervous, shows real pluck towards the end, while the character of Gunada Talukdar adds some complexity to the story. He is a revolutionary who was once incarcerated in the Cellular jail, a jail built by the British in the 1860s to house revolutionaries. As Gunada staged his own escape in pre independence times he was unfortunate enough to be caught in an accident and that is how he found himself in the island of the Jarawas. There he lives, caught in a time-warp till Kakababu and Santu find him. In fact, he still carries his manacles with him, on that occasion. The two worlds are juxtaposed – the greedy foreigners in search of the Jarawas secret, and the tribals lost in a time of their own making.
Kakababu is a likeable sleuth, with his easily recognizable quirks, the way he moves with agility despite his disability, his refusal to accept any help. His penchant for keeping secrets, and his vast storehouse of knowledge, makes Kakababu in a sense similar to his contemporaries, Satyajit Ray’s Feluda or Sarodindo Bandyopadhyay’ s Byomkesh Bakshi. He is however older than either of these and manages to save himself by quick thinking and sheer grit.
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