Siliguri: Nagendranath Roy, known as 'Valmiki' of the Rajbongshi community of North Bengal, is on the list of Padma Shri awardees, the fourth highest civilian honour countrywide.
Roy is the one who translated the Ramayana into Rajbongshi for the first time. He wishes to dedicate this award to his mother, Bhagyeshwari Devi, and the people of North Bengal.
Nagendranath translated the Ramayana directly from Sanskrit into Rajbongshi. However, the seven-volume has not yet reached the hands of the readers since the book has not been published yet.
The Ramayana in Rajbongshi language is scheduled to be published on the first day of Baishakh, the first month of the Bengali calendar. Apart from this, he has translated Chandi, Gita, and Chandalika into Rajbongshi language.
Soon after receiving the news about the Padma Shri award, Nagendranath expressed his happiness, saying, "Like a dream, I could never have imagined it!."
Roy further said, "This is an honour for the Ramayana. But I don't understand what such an honour is for. At one time, I was eager, but due to fear, I could not start writing the Mahabharata. But now I think I can write it."
"However, this honour is not only for me. It is for every person in North Bengal as well as Rajbangshi. I feel very happy to receive this honour. I thank the Central Government and the Prime Minister for this," he added.
Nagendranath Roy was born in Bodapara, Jalpaiguri, and currently lives in the Chaitanyapur area of Shivmandir, Darjeeling. His mother moved to Siliguri from Jalpaiguri with him due to some financial hardship.
He started his education at Bhubanjot Primary School and then at Harasundar High School in Matigara and Siliguri College. After participating in the Part-One exam in Bengali at Siliguri College, Nagendranath got a teaching job at Bhubanjot Primary School.
Roy was awarded the 2011 Shiksharatna Samman, a government award. He also has awards like Saraswati Brahmaputra, Rajvanshi Bhasha Sahitya Bhagirathi, Sanskar Bharati in 2015, Rajvanshi Bhasha Academy, and Prasar Bharati.
