World Literary Awards

← Back to Home

Dattatreya Ramachandra Bendre

だったとれーや らーまちゃんどら べんどれ

Dattātreya Rāmachandra Bendre

Aliases: Da Ra Bendre / Da Rā Bēndre
Pen Names: Ambikatanayadatta（Used as the 'universal inner voice' that dictated his poetry）

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1896-01-31 （Dharwad）
Died
1981-10-26 （Mumbai） age 85
Nationality
Indian
Languages
Kannada, Marathi, Sanskrit, English
Religion
Hinduism
Residence History
Dharwad → Pune → Solapur → Dharwad (Sadhanakeri)

Career

Occupations
Poet, Teacher
Active Years
1914-1981
Affiliations
Victoria High School, Dharwad, D.A.V. College, Solapur, Akashvani (Dharwad branch)
Memberships
Sahitya Akademi Fellowship
Influenced By
Sri Aurobindo, Rabindranath Tagore, Khalil Gibran, A.E. (George William Russell)
Influenced
Kuvempu, V. K. Gokak, Gopalkrishna Adiga

Education

Fergusson College
Sanskrit and English
Degree: BA
Period: 1913-1918
Year of Graduation: 1918
Country: India
Lived with uncle Bandopant Bendre in Pune

Awards

Sahitya Akademi Award
1958
Work: Aralu-Maralu
Organization: Sahitya Akademi
Result: 受賞
Padma Shri
1968
Organization: Government of India
Result: 受賞
Jnanpith Award
1973
Work: Naaku Tanti
Organization: Bharatiya Jnanpith
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Sakheegeeta

1937 Lyric Poetry

Descriptive account of his married life, innovative in calling his wife 'sakhee'.

MarriageJoys and sorrows of everyday lifeDesi Kannada

Naadaleele

1938 Lyric Poetry

Poetry collection emphasizing euphony and musicality.

NaturePhonaestheticsDivine play

Naaku Tanti

1964 Lyric Poetry

Jnanpith-winning collection titled 'Four Strings', symbolizing fourfold beauty.

Fourfold beautyMysticismRoots of language

Bibliography

  • Krishnakumari (1922)
  • Gari (1932)
  • Sakheegeeta (1937)
  • Naadaleele (1938)
  • Naaku Tanti (1964)

Translations by Author

  • Kannada Meghadoota

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Use of desi Kannada (Dharwad dialect)Euphony (naada) and musicalityExperimental meters and formsMantra-like poetry
Recurring Motifs
NatureFourfold beautyMother principleAmbikatanayadatta's voiceDharwad landscapes

Legacy

Greatest Kannada lyric poet of the 20th century, pioneer of Navodaya movement, hailed as Varakavi.

Museums

  • Bendre Bhavana Dharwad

Archives

  • Audumbaragaathe compilation

In Popular Culture

  • Documentary film 'Da Ra Bendre' directed by Girish Karnad

Quotes

  • The High Yoga of Poetry
    Source: Autobiographical essay
  • These are not my poems; they are Kannada's poems
    Source: Foreword to Gari (1932)

Trivia

  • Library held books on 102 subjects including quantum physics
  • Ambikatanayadatta derived from mother's name Ambika
  • Imprisoned for 3 months in 1932 on sedition charges
  • Called Dharwad 'Mother Dharwad'