|| THE BORN LITTERATEUR: A TRIBUTE TO ANISH DEB: THANKS AND REGARDS || By Kunal Roy

In one of my articles I had mentioned the truth that this mother earth seems to have been cursed by some pious souls. The reason is obvious. The pandemic still manages to steal the sleep of the people across the globe. A week ago we have lost the precious gem Shankha Ghosh, the eminent Bengali poet and critic. And yesterday we lost another popular figure of Bengali fiction named Anish Deb! As soon as I came across this dismal news, I simply couldn’t believe it and the world around me seemed to have been shattered into pieces! Both lost their lives to the deadly COVID-19. And there was no other option, but to watch them from a distance, making a soothing journey to some other parts of the universe for a different noble purpose!

    Anish Deb, a doctorate in Applied Physics had shown a similar interest in the realm of Bengali literature. He began his writing career in 1968. Edited a huge collection of fiction, novels and detective tales. Some of his notable creations include “Ghaser Sesh nei”, “Saper Chok”, “Teish Ghanta Minute”, “Hate Kolome” and many more. The names suggest the fact that his creations are quite unconventional. The approach towards the audience is very much different from the rest! In a nutshell, suspense, mystery and uncannyness run through the common thread of his works. On the other hand, being a brilliant student and having a bright career, Deb was an asset of the prestigious Calcutta University. Later he became a Professor and Reader as well in the same department of Calcutta University. Some of his notable science fictions are “Control System Analysis and identification with MATLAB”, “Analysis and Identification of Time” “Triangular Orthogonal Functions” and many more. Being a prolific writer in more than one domain, he received many awards including the Vidyasagar Award. A personality who got everything in his life, whatever he had desired! An academic, a writer , an achiever – a complete package that garnished the colourful palette of his life.

A journey of seventy years on this earth. He has indeed left his marks on the sands of time which will never be washed away by the tantalizing waves lashing against the shore to break into tiny droplets! Every material and spiritual gain are left behind except his expertise which he carried with himself towards the heaven of glory. Today he is no more among us, but his contributions will forever be etched in each and every soul! Afterall the journey is not over, it is just the beginning of another story to enthrall the people in the accepted sense of term!!