| The early life | | | | novels were "Gora" in 1910, "Ghare-Baire" in 1916, |
| Born as the youngest son of Debendranath Tagore in | | | | "Chokher Bali" and Yogayog in 1929. Besides he wrote |
| the year 1861, Rabindranath Tagore, the great poet of | | | | a number of famous plays like the "Raja" in 1910, |
| contemporary Bengal and undivided India, received his | | | | "Dakghar" in 1912, "Achalayatan" in 1912, "Muktadhara" in |
| early education at home. Debendranath was a leader | | | | 1922 and "Raktakaravi" in 1926. He also composed |
| of the Brahmo Samaj which was a new religious faith | | | | music for his poems and lyrics and used to paint |
| aimed at reviving the old monastic base and glory of | | | | pictures too. Truly speaking he had multifarious |
| Hinduism. At the age of seventeen, Rabindrantah was | | | | creative expertise and brilliance. During the sixty years |
| sent to England for schooling though he did not finish | | | | of his writing and composing life he could come up with |
| his study there. But from the beginning he had a | | | | one thousand poems, two dozens of play, eight novels, |
| preference for literature and arts. | | | | and two thousand songs with music, a lot of other |
| In the grown up age | | | | writings and volumes of short stories. Three marked |
| When he grew up, Rabindranath was entrusted with | | | | influences are visible in his writings, the Sanskrit lyrics, |
| the responsibility of managing his family real estate and | | | | the Vaisnaba writings in Bengal and the renowned |
| this provided him with a broader view of the | | | | English poet Shelly. |
| humanitarian and social reform aspects. He started an | | | | Visit Santiniketan to know more about him. |
| experimental school trying a new pattern of education | | | | Shantiniketan |
| following the ideals of Upanishad, at Shantiniketan. He | | | | No writing on the great Rabindranath can be complete |
| was a close follower of the Indian National Movement | | | | without a reference to his creation, the Shantiniketan |
| and had a great friend in the father of the nation | | | | that he founded at Bolpur in 1901. This was his way of |
| Mohandas Karmchand Gandhi. Side wise his literary | | | | protest against the existing system of education. The |
| pursuits continued and culminated in the epoch making | | | | School became popular instantly and ultimately caused |
| "Geetanjali" for which he was awarded the prestigious | | | | the arrival of Viswbharati University. Most of his ripe |
| Nobel Prize. He was also awarded the Knighthood by | | | | ages were spent in Shantiniketan except the times |
| the British Empire which he relinquished after some | | | | taken off for lecture tours outside the country and |
| time protesting against rule of British tyrannies in India. | | | | state. Shantiniketan school was established at the |
| As a poet and writer his fame continued to grow | | | | same place where his father Debendranath founded |
| higher and he was frequently invited to deliver lectures | | | | an Ashram in 1863. The Shantiniketan culture is a |
| in most prestigious venues world over. He had in fact | | | | mixture of the East and West. One of the unique |
| become the symbol of the Bengali Literature. | | | | events at Shantiniketan is the Pausa Mela where |
| The works | | | | students and teachers take active part together. To |
| The first work of this great literary genius came in the | | | | day Shantiniketan is a famous university not only in |
| shape of a collection of fifty odd poems captioned | | | | Bengal but in India and world. The main attraction of |
| "Manasi" in the year 1890. Manasi was followed by | | | | Shantiniketan is various artistic buildings set up inside |
| "Sonar Tari" in 1894, "Gitanjali" in 1910, "Gitimalya in 1914, | | | | the university campus. The Poet, also popularly called |
| and "Balaka" in 1916. Many of his poems were | | | | as Gurudev (Teacher) lived in Uttarayn Complex. Later |
| translated in English and published worldwide. Though | | | | his son Rathindranath Tagore also made several |
| he was most well known as a poet and earned the | | | | improvements to the buildings. Some renowned artists |
| nickname of "Viswakabi" a poet of the world his | | | | like Abanindranath Tagore, Gaganendranath Tagore |
| works were not confined to composing poems only. | | | | and Nandalal Bose and the great sculptor Ramkinkar |
| He was also the author of many short stories in | | | | Baize were the proud products of Shantiniketan. |
| Bengali and a number of novels. His most notable | | | | Rabindranath breathed his last at the age of 80 in 1941. |