Bhikhari Thakur : Angarh Hira

At the second session of the All India Bhojpuri Conference in 1974, Rahul Sankrityayan, in his presidential address, mentioned Bhikhari Thakur, saying, You see how powerful and sharp our dialect is in Bhikhari Thakurs plays. Why do people like Bhikhari Thakurs plays? Why do crowds of ten, fifteen, or even fifteen thousand people gather to see them? It seems that these plays are what people find most interesting! Anything that brings pleasure is poetry. If someone has a big nose and only finds faults... what can be said about them? Im not saying that Bhikhari Thakurs plays are without flaws. If there are flaws, the reason isnt Bhikhari Thakur, but the reason is the educated people. If those people showed affection to their dialect, watched Bhikhari Thakurs plays, and suggested something, all these flaws would disappear. Bhikhari Thakur is our uncut diamond. He possesses all the qualities, just needs a little polishing here and there. This book examines the work of that unpolished diamond in its entirety. It would not be inappropriate to mention here that the author of this book, by making Bhikhari Thakur the subject of his PhD, drew the academic worlds attention to this extraordinary Bhojpuri playwright and poet. Today, Bhikhari Thakurs name is no stranger to literature and culture, and Tayyab Hussains role in this cannot be denied. In this book, he attempts to unravel not only the personality and work of Bhikhari, but also the socio-cultural complexities of Bhojpuri society and, in its context, of North Indian society, which is certainly worthy of consideration and debate.