Life and Work of Subhas Chandra Bose

Towards a revival of the Bose legacy Madhuri Bose "Rose early but found Prabha still suffering. A son was born at midday..." reads a brief entry in Janakinath's diary dated 23 January 1897. The newborn, the ninth child of Janakinath Bose and Prabhabati Devi was named Subhas Janakinath was then practicing law in Cuttack, in the state of Orissa. He headed a large extended family, in which, Subhas was to later recall in his autobiography An Indian Pilgrim, he felt "like a thoroughly insignificant being. My parents awed me to a degree". It is now 111 years since the birth of Subhas Chandra Bose, and sixty-three years since his last known journey out of South East Asia, reportedly to the Soviet Union, in mid-August 1945. On 23 January every year Subhas' birth anniversary is celebrated across India. Speeches extolling Bose's charisma and personality, his unique contributions towards Indian independence continue to be made, and stirring national songs continue to be sung in his honour. On that day, in addition to institutionally sponsored events, spontaneous remembrance ceremonies organized by neighbourhood and citizens' groups also take place. This is a unique feature associated only with Subhas' birth anniversary which reflects the depth of people's veneration for him after more than half a century of his disappearance. This, in a sense, is a fitting tribute to a man who dedicated his life to liberating India from British colonial rule, and had a vision to make Free India one of the leading nations in the world. But. 23 January will pass and Bose will again be relegated to the pages of history. Though deified by many, his ideology and mission are forgotten, or are not even known by the younger generations of Indians. From his entry into the Indian political movement in the early 1920s, throughout his prison years and bouts of serious illnesses, Subhas had developed his thoughts on social, political and economic issues which then formed the basis of his ideology. His