দস্যু কেনারামের পালা : প্রাচীন পূর্ববঙ্গ গীতিকায় চরিত্র বিবর্তনে সংলাপ নির্মাণে নাটকীয়তা/ The Ballad of the Bandit Kenaram: Dramatic Construction of Dialogue in the Evolution of Character in Ancient East Bengal Ballads

Abstract

In medieval Bengali literature the inclusion of the ballads of Mymensingh Gitika and East Bengal Gitika marks beginning of a new chapter. Composed in the simple language of experienced rural poets, these narratives reveal distinct dramatic qualities. Like dramatists, the compospers of these ballads skillfully contruct dramatic dialogue through exchange of speech and counter speech in the character’s own voices. In the ballad ‘Bandit Kenaram’, included in the Ancient East Bengal Gitika, the evolution of the character of the bandit Kenaram is presented though dramatic dialogue. Toward the end of the ballad, a conversation between the devotee of Manasa, Dwija Banshi, and the bandit Kenaram reveals three phases of Kenaram life. Ultimately, after listening to the Bhasan Song of Manasa from Dwija Banshi Kenaram’s loving and human identity is developed. Despite the length of these Exchange, the narrative pace does not slow down. Rather, the dramatic dialogues effectively portray Kenaram’s transfor mation from a life banditry to one of love and humanity thereby becoming a powerful medium for expressing the totality of his character.