Samaresh Majumdar, Author And Sahitya Akademi Award Winner, Passes Away At 79

While Majumdar is best known for portraying the Naxalaite period of the 1970s in his novels, his works also left an impression on youngsters through the character of detective 'Arjun'.

Eminent Bengali litterateur and Sahitya Akademi Award winner Samaresh Majumdar

Samaresh Majumdar Demise: Eminent Bengali litterateur and Sahitya Akademi Award winner Samaresh Majumdar passed away on Monday at a hospital in Kolkata. Majumdar, whose works transcended the borders of Bangladesh and West Bengal, was 79. 

Majumdar was suffering from Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD), and was undergoing treatment at the hospital for over a month, PTI reported.

"Majumdar has been suffering from COPD for more than 12 years. He has been under our treatment for over a month. His health has deteriorated recently and was on ventilator. He died at around 5.45 PM," an official of Sahitya Akademi told PTI.

Condoling the death of Majumdar, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee said it was an irreparable loss to the literary world. 

While Majumdar is best known for portraying the Naxalaite period of the 1970s in his novels, his works also left an impression on youngsters through the character of detective 'Arjun'. He has also written several short stories and travelogues.

The lead characters of Animesh and Madhabilata in novels Kalbela, Uttaradhikar, and Kalpurush -- set against the backdrop of the Naxalite movement in 1960s and 70s -- will always be etched in the memories of those who followed his literary work.

He received the 'Sahitya Akademi Award' for 'Kalbela', which was brought on the big screen by director Gautam Ghosh in 2009 with Parambrata Chattopadhyay and Paoli Dam in lead roles.

Bengali film 'Buno Haansh', starring actor Dev, was based on the novel written by Samaresh Majumdar of the same name. Another popular novel 'Dour' by Samaresh was also made into a film in 1979.

Majumdar completed his primary education in Jalpaiguri high school in north Bengal and then shifted to Kolkata in 1960s. He obtained his BA honours degree from Scottish Church College in Bengali literature and completed his post-graduation from Calcutta University.

In 2018, he received ABP Ananda's 'Best Bengali' award.