West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee writes 'Epang Opang Jhopang'

In the heart of the bustling Kolkata International Book Fair surrounded by stalls of publishers and book sellers from around the world rises an installation that has been drawing people in hordes Some pose for selfies against the Bankura horses and pat chitra highlights others walk into the artistic Bengali cottage It is actually a stall dedicated to one of the most prolific writers at the fair and if nothing else you can walk out with a copy of Trinamool Congress Newspaper priced at R3 two pocket calendars with the party leaderrsquos smiling face and at least a couple of books by her Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is the star atthe fair grounds breaking her previous records by releasing 10 titles this yearA stall at the Kolkata Book Fair exclusively sells books by the statersquos CM belowDidi has written 63 books so far says a polite old man seated near the entrance who has the onerous task of enticing book lovers into walking in All are very good he adds earnestly while handing us a pamphlet that lists the titlesMamata Banerjeersquos artistic and literary aspirations are not news The indefatigable lsquoDidirsquo has been painting the city in her favourite shade of Trinamool Congress Blue and has put her art with the TMC flower logo and variation of her MaaMaatiManush slogan everywhere from fivestar lobbies to book coversThe cover of Ajob Chhora which carries the nonsense versesShe has been a prolific writer as well mdash author bios on her book jackets say she prefers to write late in the night While most titles have been an extension of the party manifesto and explore topics such as womens and minority rights unrest in North Bengal etc she has also dabbled in Bengali poetry and Urdu shayari But this year she has broken new literary grounds with three books for children mdash Shishu Sathi which means childrenrsquos companion Ajob Chhora or peculiar rhymes and Shishu KathaThere is also a book on baby names A party worker manning the counter tells us that the CM is often besieged with requests from new parents to suggest names for their babies The book mdash that lists names for children of all communities mdash is a result of her thoughtful response to such requests It is a bestseller at the stall we are told These are displayed alongside books on intolerance Dadri lynching minority and industrial development reports Priced at an average of R40 they are little more than booklets in girthOn social media and at chai breaks the big talking point has been Banerjeersquos attempts at channelling her inner child as a wellknown author puts it Refusing to be named no intellectual author or academic is willing to go on record evaluating Banerjeersquos creative repertoire this author of several bestselling Bengali titles says the book of limericks shows how despite her role as CM she seems to be in touch with a certain innocence which should not be confused with her Quixotic approach towards administration The childrenrsquos books he says have no political baggage And thats interesting he addsSample thisThank YouHow are you mdash Thank youGreetings mdash Thank youWherersquos ma Bow wowWhat does it mean I got Pheu Bengali for foxGot admission College has queuePicked up the form That is dueThank You mdash See YouWhorsquos with you mdash Friend PiuStay well mdash Bye ByeHare Krishna mdash Hello HiWhile it is nearly impossible to translate the limericks without losing much of its essence we try our best with this oneEpang Opang JhopangEpang Opang JhopangWe are all dang dangLetrsquos go see a bull frogDo they have any legsAn IIM professor who too refused to be drawn into any official conversation about the books observed that most of her verses are either parodies or lsquoheavily inspiredrsquo by alltime classics You can say the nonsense verses are highly original and very characteristic of the author but the slightly more structured and meaningful ones borrow heavily from wellknown works of legendary poets he says of Shishu Sathi the book that has verses extolling Bengalrsquos natural beauty and celebrates the statersquos cultural political and literary iconsBanerjeersquos books are published by bonafide publishers mdash Roli printed her autobiography while her recent titles are with Deyrsquos Publishing one of the oldest and biggest names in the business of Bengali titles While TMC volunteers at the Book Fair are tight lipped about the number of copies sold so far according to sources the books on children have been a hit this time and a few thousands of copies should be sold by Sunday Some of her more controversial titles have sold five lakh copies says an independent publisherSenior journalist Sujoy Dhar insists Mamatarsquos books for children should not be subjected to any form of critical evaluation You cannot and should not take them seriously he says Despite what a section of the media or urban elite think of her unique style of functioning she is actually quite a cool lady who goes about things the way she wants to And these verses will definitely make you smileTarit Sen a businessman from Malda district who was posing against the Bankura horses a copy of Ajob Chhora in hand said I have heard so much about these books I wanted to see what they are really like From the looks of it moder addyay darun jombe will be a great hit at a drinking session