Bengali Journalism

FIRST NEWSPAPER
Bengal Gazette, Kolkata 1780

First Newspaper of India

Samachar Darpan: 23rd May, 1818.

First newspaper in Bengali Language

Serampore Mission Press

Started by Carey & Marshman

Monthly to weekly

Became Bilingual in 1829

FIRST NEWSPAPER Sambad Pravakar

Published in 1839

First Bengali Daily Newspaper

Ishwar Chnadragupta

FIRST WEEKLY

Rangpur Bartabaha, 1847

Rangpur

Decca News, 1856

Dhakka
 Digdarshan was also published in 1818

OTHER
NEWSPAPER Sambad Koumudi, a remarkable Bengali Journal

Started in 1821

By Raja Ram Mohan Roy

Tattobodhini published in 1843

By Akhya Kumar Dutta

Samachar Chandrika, Bangadoot, Sambad Pravakar,

Vividharta Sangrah 1851, Som Parkash 1851, Masik
Patra 1854
Contribution of
Newspapers took up the cause of suppressed workers
in the indigo plantation & peasants

Bengali It Created problems for the government with their

Newspapers exposure of the exploitation of labour in plantations.

Violent denunciation of the European planters and the

government.

Newspapers also carried the message of Bengal

Renaissance

Press laws were imposed.

Newspapers reached to masses in the distant villages

provoking them to fight against injustice, racial
prejudice and maladministration
● They were 1st to demand self- government.

● Demand what was the birth right as Indian

citizens

● Bengali newspapers suffered most after the

Sepoy Mutiny

● Indian Language Press was conducted by Sir

John Campbell in 1876

● Half of the total number of 38 newspapers was

published from Kolkata

● By the end of 19th Century newspapers started

publishing from all across the country
 th
End of 19 Century
● Sulava Samachar of the Indian Reform
Association was started in 1870
● By Keshab Chandra Sen
● It had circulation of 3,500 copies
● Most popular weekly of the period

● Another journal ‘Haishakar Patrika’

● Edited by Babu Kisari Mohan Ganguly

● Basumati, 1880
● Edited by Krishna Kamal Bhattacharya
● The First Bengali Daily to adopt modern
Methods
Other Newspapers
● Bengalee
● Published by Surendranath Banerjee
● The editor had to face contempt of court
proceedings & imprisonment
● To voice against a high court judge who ordered
Hindu Idols to be produced in court as evidence
● First language newspaper to subscribe to
Reuter’s Foreign News Service

● Bande Mataram
● By Aurobindo Ghose proclaimed his philosophy
and the ‘new path’
● As an instrument of political action
Newspapers in 20th Century
● Nayak published in 1908
● By Panch Cowrie Banerjee

● Anand Bazaar Patrika published in 1922

● By Mrinal Kanti Ghosh, Prafulla Kumar Sarkar &
Suresh Kumar Majumdar
● English counterpart ‘Hindustan Standard’

● Jugantar was started in 1937

● By the management of Amrita Bazaar Patrika

● After M.K.Gandhi took over the leadership of the

national movement
● Bengalee and Nayak were the organs of the
Moderates, were suppressed by undisputed
● Congress leader C.R.Das
Post Independence
● Loksevak & Jansevak
● Both newspapers were started in 1948
● By Atulay Ghosh

● Chapala Kanta Bhattacharya

● Editor of Ananda Bazaar Patrika
● President of All India Newspaper Editors
Conference

● Circulation
● 1583 newspaper in 1983
● 1662 newspapers in 1984
● 3244 newspaper in 2007-08
5 most read Bengali
Indian Readership Survey Q2 2011

Newspapers ● Anand Bazaar Patrika 59.92 Lakhs

● Bartaman 29.63lakhs

● Sangbad Pratidin 9.58 lakhs

● Ganashakti 7.9 lakhs

● Aajkal 6.28 lakhs

Readership in Millions-2020
Ananda Bazaar Patrika
Anandabazaar
● Bengali Language daily broadsheet newspaper
published in Kolkata, New Delhi & Mumbai

Patrika ● Founded in 1922

● Suresh Chandra Majumdar, Founder

● Prafulla Kumar Sarkar, editor
● Aveek Sarkar, current editor

● Four page evening daily newspaper

● With cartoon strips

● In 1923 it became a morning daily and

● Tied up with Reuters, Associated Press and Free
Press of India

● It started Bi-weekly in other suburban cities

Anandabazaar
● In 1931 it became daily

Patrika ● In 1941 it became the first newspaper to inform

about Subhash Chandra Bose’s escape.

● In 1954 it became the largest circular

newspaper in the country published from one
location according to the Press Commission
Report

● In 1963 Anand Bazaar Patrika and Desh Jointly

publish the first large-scale readership in India
● 9 years before NRS

● 1978 Sports world was launched

● 1983 1st colour printing section was started
Anandabazaar
● 2000 Anadabazaar Patrika’s internet edition was
launched

Patrika ● 2003 New look of newsaper was launched

● 2012- ABP Group launches Ebela, a Bengali

Tabloid
Amrita Bazaar Patrika
Amrita Bazaar
● Started in 1868

Patrika ● By two brothers Sisir Kumar Ghosh and Moti Lal

Ghosh, sons of a wealthy merchant in the
Bengal province

● Magura, District Jessore

● The Family built a Bazaar named it as

Amritamoyee

●  Amrita Bazaar Patrika first started out as a

weekly newspaper

● The paper operated out of a wooden press

Amrita Bazaar
● The newspaper was fighting for indigo planters
rights

Patrika ● It also contributed for freedom struggle

● When the plague hit Amrita Bazaar, the

newspaper shifted its base to Kolkata

● 1871 it become bilingual newspaper

Amrita Bazaar ● The Patrika was very vocal in its views against

Patrika Suppression government policies that were unfair to the

common people.
● Naturally, it didn't go down well with the British
government

● Lieutenant Governor of Bengal, Sir Ashley Eden

● to contribute to the newspaper on the condition
● He will approve the final version before
publishing
● "here ought to be at least one honest journalist
in the land."
Amrita Bazaar
● In 1878 the Vernacular Press Act was
promulgated

Patrika Suppression ● By Lord Lytton, the then Viceroy of India

● This gave the police the power to confiscate any

printed material it deemed objectionable.
● Heavy fines were slapped on many newspapers
and a lot of editors were jailed.

● the act was against newspapers that published

in local languages
● Became an English newspaper overnight!
Contribution
● The newspaper opposed the partition of Bengal
in 1905.

● Announced on 20 July 1905 by Lord Curzon, the

then Viceroy of India .

● Bengal was reunited by Lord Hardinge in 1911.

● The newspaper also intervened when Subhas

Chandra Bose, along with a few other students
got expelled from Calcutta Presidency College,
and got them re-admitted to the University.
Contribution
● The newspaper left its front-page blank for three
days

● Opposing massive violence in Calcutta in 1946.

● And when freedom finally came to India

● It published an editorial that read: It is dawn,

cloudy though it is. Presently sunshine will break.

● Fearless Journalism
● Highly respected
● Also described as the Best nationalist paper in
India
Raja Ram Mohan Roy
Raja Ram Mohan
● Raja Ram Mohan Roy was a founder of the
Brahmo Samaj socio-religious reform

Roy ●
movement.
The Brahma Samaj played a major role in
reforming and modernising the Indian society.

● Ram Mohan Roy was one of the first to try to

estimate how much money was being driven out
of India and where it was going
.
● He thought that without education
socio-economic progress was not possible.
Raja Ram Mohan
● He established a number of schools to
popularize a modern system of education in

Roy India.

● He promoted Western culture with the best

features of his own country's traditions.

● He established a number of schools to

popularize a modern system replacing Sanskrit
based education with English based education.
Raja Ram Mohan ●
●
Regional Journalism Slowly evolved.
History and events slowly started shaping
Roy ●
Journalism.
Things were controlled by the British in
those days and there were many restrictions
on writing
● Government made many efforts to control
the press.
● Many rules were written down.
● He wrote against practice of Sati, Child
marriage, Idol Worship.
● Slowly the British abolished sati
RajaRam Mohan
● He wanted full freedom of expression.

Roy ● Raja Ram Mohan Roy fought with the British for
freedom of the press.

● Many other journalist joined him.

● The British ultimately realized the importance of

freedom of the press relaxed many restrictions.
Publications By
● Brahmin Magazine- , with Bengali translation.
● Bengali newspaper called Sambad Kaumudi.

Raja Ram Mohan ● A Persian paper called on Ancient Female

Rights and a book in Bengali called Answers to

Roy ●
Four Questions .
A book on the subject of the liberty of the
press.
● A book , on the subject of English education,
called "Humble Suggestions“
● and a book in Bengali called or Medicine for the
Sick,"
● An article on the different modes of worship.
Educationist
● Roy believed education important for social
reform.

● He set up the Hindu College at Calcutta.

● founded the Anglo-Hindu school, the Vedanta

College; with "modern, western curriculum.“

● He supported including of western learning into

Indian education.

● He also set up the Vedanta College.

Journalist.
● Roy published journals in English, Hindi, Persian
and Bengali.

● His most popular journal was the Sambad

Kaumudi

● It covered topics like freedom of press, including

of Indians into high ranks of service.

● When the English Company tried to suppress

the press, Ram Mohan composed two books
against this in 1829 and 1830 respectively.