'Farewell Song', Rabindranath Tagore's metafiction novel aimed at silent critics

In the introduction to his translation of Rabindranath Tagore’s iconic novel Farewell song (Sesher Kobita), Radha Chakravarty gives a detailed account of why Tagore wrote the novel and why he turned poetry into prose. Written at a time when the Nobel laureate was rethinking his work and readers were beginning to move on and even criticize him, Farewell song appears to be a response to a new school of Bengali writers and critics.

Novel and literature

Centering his novel around a young couple, Amit Raye and Labanyalata, Tagore uses a romantic relationship to comment on marital love, social expectations, and literary criticism. Amit returned from Oxford University, a young man, a common specimen in Tagore’s time – rich men who did little and said too much. Meanwhile, Labanya grew up under the care of his widow “korta ma” Yogamaya. She is well educated, quite refined and dedicated to the poetry of “Robi Thakur”. Through her, Tagore lavishes himself with praise while Labanya tries to convince Amit that the poet is worthy of all the adulation he receives. Amit, who prides himself on being a man of the world, becomes disenchanted with Robi Thakur – in fact, he claims to have never liked him. His list of complaints includes the fact that Thakur’s poetry is too melodramatic and sentimental for its own good. He is more interested in modern, realistic poetry – words that speak of his times – and that is why he feels that Nibaran Chakrabarti is the true poet of Bengal.

Through Chakrabarti, Amit airs his discontent with Thakur, along with his general views on poetry and poets. But something doesn’t feel right…

It is soon revealed that Chakrabarti is Amit’s alter ego, who represents the growing anti-Tagore trend in Bengal. Labanya’s efforts to make Amit see the folly of his judgment yielded no success – a clever and convincing way for Tagore to respond to criticisms against him that were ripe not long after his Nobel win. Labanya’s studious investigation of Thakur’s work provides an opportunity for the reader to decide whether Tagore is in fact relevant – and modern – and whether the accusations against him arise from envy or genuine concern for the future of Bengali literature. Tagore’s light touch in dealing with his critics produces many laugh-out-loud moments that also put to rest the accusations of unnecessary melodrama against him.

As for Labanya and Amit, their opposing opinions conflict too often as neither of them seems to be able to convince the other to agree with them. At a time when couples got married without prior conversations about likes and dislikes, it is radical of Tagore to allow his protagonists to enjoy a long courtship where domesticity is not the only thing on their minds. In fact, Amit even suggests taking a separate vacation to clear your mind. When Labanya says she will do as he says, he gently rebukes her, saying that it wouldn’t be the same as her “embracing the idea wholeheartedly.” These surprisingly modern approaches to love separate the relationship between a man and a woman from the socially obligatory act of marriage – for Tagore, love is a state in which two souls understand and respect each other’s opinions, even if they are opposite. And love, although so complete in itself, is not enough to make a marriage socially acceptable.

Poetry for everyone

Although Amit remains committed to denouncing Thakur’s poetry, he himself borrows from nature while writing poetry to express his love and loyalty for Labanya. In these compositions, he is not the practical man he claims to be, but a weeping lover who is building a world of his own – a world of Banya and Mita (the names the lovers give each other) – that is untouched by greed and ambitions. this is inseparable from his social life in Calcutta.

If Labanya remains steadfast in his dedication to Robi Thakur, Amit turns out to be an unknown admirer who often follows his heart when it becomes separated from his mind. He dreams of making a home with Labanya, but she knows that marriage is not the answer to a woman’s life as it has been considered – she accepts her solitary and independent life as a more fulfilling choice than a marriage to a man who is in love with her. Tagore’s sympathetic view of marriage still rings true as couples, especially women, struggle to find a common middle ground between their intellectual and emotional selves that allows them freedom and choice.

Staying true to Tagore’s vision, translator Radha Chakravarty changes the narrator’s personalities while translating the text’s diverse poetic voices. Written by Amit, Labanya and others, Tagore speaks through poetry as well as prose and dialogue. A perfect novel about the comings and goings of an incipient romance, Farewell song it does not silence Tagore’s critics, but comfortably establishes his literary genius among generations to come.