In Search of Freedom: An Unfinished Journey

In Search of Freedom: An Unfinished Journey
ISBN-10
8185604266
ISBN-13
9788185604268
Series
In Search of Freedom
Category
Biography & Autobiography / Political
Pages
310
Language
English
Published
2001
Publisher
Stree
Author
Maṇikuntalā Sena

Description

Manikuntala Sen's memoir 'Shediner Katha', which appeared in Bengali nearly two decades ago, has been translated for the first time into English so that a wider readership may know about the life of a remarkable woman. Coming from a conservative upper caste, middle class family, she broke free of familial and social bonds to reach out to a cause. As she says, 'The dream of socialism was in the air and the young shared it'. That dream was to propel her to play a significant role in the tumultuous history of her time, the 1930s to the early 1960s. Beginning her political journey as a young college student, she soon became a full-time member of the Communist Party at a time when 'party membership was not granted easily', lived on a stipend of Rs 20 a month that increased to Rs 60 in the early sixties. She rose to become the deputy leader of the Opposition in the West Bengal Legislative Assembly with Jyoti Basu as the leader. Manikuntala recounts a story of fervour and sacrifice, of bitter feuds and ultimate self-imposed exile when the Communist Party split and she could not accept either faction. As a young student she left the district town of Barishal, now in Bangladesh, to come to Calcutta and work for the Party. She travelled extensively throughout Bengal, mobilising women in the towns and villages, helping to shape the women's movement of her time. Setting up mahila samitis or women's groups and societies, she aided many women to articulate their needs, learn marketable skills and take part in momentous struggles like the Tebhaga.

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