এক বঙ্গনারীর দৃষ্টিতে জাপান : হরিপ্রভা তাকেদা ও বিংশ শতাব্দীর প্রথমার্ধের সমাজ-সংস্কৃতি / A Bengali Woman’s Gaze : Hariprabha Takeda and the Socio-Cultural Landscape of Early 20th Century Japan

Abstract

This paper explores the historical and cultural significance of Hariprabha Takeda’s travelogue, Bongomohilar Japan Jatra (A Bengali Woman’s Journey to Japan), which documents her 1912 voyage to Japan with her Japanese husband, Uemon Takeda. As the first Asian woman to write a book on Japan, Hariprabha’s narrative offers a unique bridge between early 20^th-century India and Japan during the transformative Meiji and Taisho eras. The study contextualizes her journey against the backdrop of Japan’s shift from the isolationist policies of the Tokugawa shogunate to its rapid modernization and emergence as a global power, a transformation that deeply inspired colonial India.

             The text analyzes Hariprabha’s detailed observations of Japanese social dynamics, categorized into three key dimensions: family life, religious culture, and the education system. It highlights her documentation of the fluidity of Japanese domesticity, where women were active economic participants, and her appreciation for the syncretic blend of Shintoism and Buddhism in daily life. Furthermore, the paper examines her admiration for Japan’s practical, holistic education system that balanced academic rigor with vocational skills. Beyond a mere travel diary, the narrative illustrates the personal and political intersections of the time, touching upon the Takeda couple’s involvement with Indian freedom fighters like Netaji Subhas Chandra Bose during World War II. Ultimately, this study positions Hariprabha Takeda not just as a traveller, but as a vital cultural conduit whose writings provide rare, non-Western perspectives on the socio-political evolution of Japan and the enduring diplomatic and emotional ties between the two nations.