Kabi Samrat Upendra Bhanja
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Upenra Bhanja was born during 1670 (opinions differ between 1670 and 1688) at Kulada, Ghumusara, a princely state in Orissa and died during 1740 (again opinions differ), considered as the greatest poet of Oriya Literatureand was awarded the title "kabi-Samrata" in or "The Emperor of the Poets".[1] Born in a Royal family, Upendra Bhanja had never eyed for throne. His first wife was the sister of the king of Nayagarh and the daughter of the king of Banapur was his second wife, who was an erudite princess and gave Upendra Bhanja poetical inspiration in an abundant measure. His grand father King Dhananjaya Bhanja was a great poet and wrote Raghunath Bilash (The Ramayana), Ratna Manjari (A poetical romance) etc. Which provided models to Upendrabhanja for writing. But unlike his Grand father, he preferred his entire life to poetry rather than to ruling over a kingdom. He had a thorough training in Sanskrit classical literature and mastered Sanskrit Dictionaries such as Amar-Kosha, Trikanda Kosha and Medini-Kosha. He even wrote a dictionary Geetabhidhana for helping poets.
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[edit] Kavyas
Upendra Bhanja - wrote some 52 books of which only 20 or 25 are available now.Due to absence of a printing press, many books have been lost. Some of his eminent Kavyas are - Baideheesha Bilasha(with"Ba" initial for each line), Rasalila, Brajaleela, Subhadra Parinaya(with "Sa" initial for every line), Lavanyabati, Premasudhanidhi, Rasikaharabali, Subhadra-Parinya and Chitrakavya-Bondodhya Labanyabati, Koti Brahmanda Sundari, Kala Koutuka (with "Ka" initial for every line), Satisha biLAsa" (with initial 'sa'initials every line), "Damayanti BiLasa" (with 'da' initial each line) and "Padmabati Parinaya" (starts with 'pa') etc.[1]
[edit] Style
Upendra Bhanja wrote in the last decade of seventeenth and the early decades of eighteenth century and championed a style of poetry called 'Reeti' in Sanskrit poetics. Though many poets in the seventeenth and eighteenth centaurs write in reeti style, Upendra Bhanja is decided by the greatest of them all. Whether it is shringara, viraha, bhakti or karuna rasa, Upendra Bhanja is the poet of unsurpassed rhetorical excellence. We may venture to say that, apart from Sanskrit, no other language has a poet to compare with him.Upendra Bhanja had practiced his great poetic talents in using "upama","aLankara", "rasas"in all his Kavyas.
The greatness of Upendra Bhanja was in his "Alankara" use such as: Anuprasa, Jamak, etc. The style of presenting facts with comparable factors (upama) is very distinguishable in his Kavyas.
[edit] Controversy
Though he had a poetic excellence, his Kavyas have made some critiques irritated for the sexuality he used in his imagery descriptions.During the beginning of modern period or age of Radhanath, Upendra Bhanja was criticized by some modernist for the obscenity in his Kavyas.[1] There was a war of words between two literary periodicals The Indradhanu and The Bijuli. The two periodicals kept their support in favour of two poets Kabisamrat Upendra Bhanja and Radhanath Ray. It was also a war between conservatives and modernist in Oriya Literature.Upendra Bhanja was also criticized for his obscure words. Once a modern poet Guru Prasad (See Oriya literature) wrote "Upendra Bhanja means a woman and a Dictionary".
But above all the role of Upendra Bhanja can not be denied during the Riti Yuga period of Oriya Litearature. Though many poets in the seventeenth and eighteenth centaurs write in reeti style, Upendra Bhanja proved himself as the greatest of them all.
