1916

The year 1916 marks both Saratchandra Chattopadhyay’s return from Burma to Calcutta and the publication of Palli Samaj. It stands at a hinge in his career: a year of movement back to Bengal and a point of reference for the exceptionally productive period in which Devdas and several other of his best-known novels appeared.

Return to Calcutta

In 1916, Saratchandra returned to Calcutta from Burma. The move preceded his taking up residence the following year in a comfortable house in Samtabed, on the outskirts of Calcutta, where he dedicated his life to writing. The return thus belongs to the transition into the period in which he would become India’s first professional writer, earning his entire livelihood through writing.

Publication of Palli Samaj

Palli Samaj was published in 1916, the year before Devdas appeared in Bengali. It was part of a notably productive phase: in 1917, Charitraheen, Nishkriti, and the first part of Srikanta were also published in book form. The sequence places Palli Samaj just before the cluster of works associated with Saratchandra’s rise to prominence, without making 1916 simply a prelude: it was itself a year of publication as well as personal return.

Place in Saratchandra’s career

The account of Saratchandra’s career treats 1916 as a connection between his years in Burma and his life as a writer based near Calcutta. It also anchors the chronology of his major fiction: Palli Samaj appeared in 1916, followed in 1917 by Devdas and three other novels named among the works for which he is best remembered. The year’s significance therefore rests on two distinct developments—the return from Burma and the publication of a novel—rather than on a single literary event.