May 25, 2018
Renovated Rabindranath Tagore Museum in Mungpoo inaugurated
On May 8, on the occasion of Rabindra Jayanti, that is, birth anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore, the renovated Rabindranath Tagore Museum in Mungpoo in Darjeeling was inaugurated. The programme was organised by the State Information and Cultural Affairs Department.
The museum was where the Nobel laureate stayed four times between 1938 and 1940, and hence is also known as Rabindranath Bhavan. It was one of the first places in the country to be established to pay homage to the bard, in 1944.
Rabindranath was very fond of hills, and kept coming back to his houses in the Hills region throughout his life. The reason he chose this as one of the places to stay was because it was the house of the writer Maitreyi Devi, the daughter of his good friend, Surendranath Dasgupta. Maitreyi Devi stayed here as she was married to the then director of the cinchona plantation. She also shared a special relation with Tagore. Detailed accounts of Tagore’s stays there can be read in the book she wrote, Mungpoo-te Rabindranath.
Tagore was also attracted by the soothing and quiet ambience, and by the beauty of the surrounding cinchona plantations.
People visiting the museum can see the place where Tagore used to eat and the bed and other things he used, like his chairs and the mahogany desk on which he wrote. Tagore penned about 12 poems here, including the famous poem ‘Janmadin’. In 1940, he also celebrated his birthday here, his second-last birthday, with the local people.
Source: The Statesman
Image Source: http://www.mungpoo.org/2015/05/rabindra-bhavan-at-mungpoo-to-get-restoration.html
