100 year Literary Nobel

Rabindranath Tagore

Rabindranath Tagore (1861-1941) received the Nobel Prize in literature for Gitanjali on November 13, 1913, a hundred years ago. He was educated at home in Bengal; and at seventeen was sent to England for formal schooling but he did not finish his studies there.
Tagore was a foremost poet. Among his more than fifty volumes of poetry were many protests against British policies in India. Besides poetry he wrote musical dramas, dance dramas, essays, about travel and he wrote diaries. Tagore also left numerous drawings and paintings, and songs for which he wrote the music himself. He wrote two autobiographies, one in his middle years and the other shortly before his death in 1941.
In addition to his vast literary contribution in his latter years he managed the family estates, a project which brought him into close touch with common people and increased his interest in social reforms. He was a close and devoted friend of Gandhi. Tagore was knighted by the ruling British Government in 1915, but within a few years he resigned the honour.
‘For the world he became the voice of India’s spiritual heritage; and for India, especially for Bengal, he became a great living institution.’