Speech by H.E. Ms. Bhaswati Mukherjee, Ambassador of India to the Netherlands on Commemorative events for 150th Anniversary of Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore

on Sunday 8 May 2011

at Dr. Anton Philips Hall in The Hague

* * * *

H.E. Mr. Rabin Baldewsingh, Hon’ble Deputy Mayor of The Hague,

Hon’ble Senator Paul Russell,

Distinguished colleagues from the Diplomatic Corps,

Friends from the Indian and Surinami-Hindustani Diaspora,

Ladies and Gentlemen,

Saturday 7th May marked the 150th Anniversary of Gurudev Rabindranath Tagore, India’s icon and Asia’s first Nobel Laureate, whose message is more relevant today than ever before. Many of you were present at the magnificent ceremony on 6th May ’11, organized by the Hague Municipality at the Hague Public Library to install the impressive bronze bust of India’s philosopher, poet, writer, painter and thinker. Today we commemorate his memory through his songs, dances, poetry and theatre. India’s National Anthem, which we just heard, is his own composition. In doing so we have brought together, almost by coincidence, different personalities and people, each of whom play a quintessential role in the success of these commemorative events. Let me pay tribute to all of them.

2.The events were planned through a Commemorative Committee established by the Embassy. Though formally chaired by the Ambassador, it was actually co-chaired by my dear friend and brother Deputy Mayor Rabin Baldewsingh. Today’s event would not have been possible without his encouragement, support and active assistance on all issues substantive and logistical. Through him, the Committee benefited from the participation of “Eekta Foundation” to whose President Mr. Rambaran Mishre I pay tribute. Rakesh Jagai is another colleague who has turned out to be truly “A Man For All Seasons”. Another very important contribution without which these events would not have been possible was by the Bengali Diaspora in the Netherlands, so ably represented through Kallol, the Bengali Association of Netherlands. Kallol’s President Shri Pallab Bagchi along with Shantanu Chatterjee were the Finance and Programme coordinators respectively for all these events. It was through Kallol that the inspiring performance that we will see later today of Rakta Karabi, one of Tagore’s best-known and most disturbing plays which vividly revealthe adverse impact of industrialization on the freedom and dignity of human life as played out in his beloved Bengal became possible. The Director, Shri Saumya Sengupta is very well-known and we are indeed grateful that he accepted this responsibility as we are to all the players and to Shri Ashok Bhadra for arranging the backdrop and all the effects.

3.The inspiring music that we would be hearing, the glimpses of Tagore’s films, his music and poetry, have all been put together by the Indian and the Surinami Hindustani community. It promises to be a wonderful spectacle. Let me say a special word for my dear friend the famous artist and singer from Paris Mrs. Kakoli Sengupta and members of her troupe Ms. Patnaik, dancer and Mr. Bhatt, on Tabla, who would be performing a concert with song and dance entitled “Rabindranath Thakur o tar sokol raser dhara” i.e. that Rabindranath Tagore’s music for all times, for all ages and for all tastes.

4.Let me also acknowledge the special presence of my dear friend Ambassador Yai, Ambassador and Permanent Representative of Benin to UNESCO and former Chairman of its Executive Board, who has traveled from Parisespecially for this event. As Chairman of the Executive Board and at the invitation of my Government, he traveled to India and at his request visited Shantiniketan and ViswaBharatiUniversity. On his return, he inscribed with my strong support an item on UNESCO’s agenda entitled “Contribution of Rabindranath Tagore, Pablo Neruda and Aime’ Cesarie to a Reconciled Universal”. This ensured that Tagore’s message of reconciliation, peace and sustainable development in the context of international peace and harmony would be disseminated through the UN system, juxtaposed with similar philosophers and thinkers and poets from different parts of the world, Neruda bringing to Latin America the fiery message of nationalism and Aime’ Cesarie to the black Caribbean the message taken up by Martin Luther King that “Black is Beautiful”. I pay tribute to Ambassador Yai for being such a true friend of Rabindranath Tagore.

5.That the event is being held in the Dr Anton Phillips Hall is also symbolic. The Hall is named after one of the most famous Dutch pioneers in business, Anton Philips, co-founder of Royal Philips. Philips is a household name in India.I also discovered another interesting connection. Karl Marx, who had inspired Tagore, was the first cousin of Anton Philips!

6.Tagore, a child prodigy, composed his first poem at the age of eight. During the course of an eventful life spanning eight decades, he wrote over 25 volumes of Poetry, 15 Plays, 90 Short Stories, 11 Novels, 13 volumes of Essays and composed over 2000 songs and created several pictures and sketches.

7.Rabindranath Tagore was a prolific traveler and had considerable interest in the Netherlands from the very beginning. The credit for introducing Tagore to Dutch readers goes to Fredrick van Eeden. He first translated Gitanjali in 1913 and later many other works of Tagore like the Crescent Moon, The Gardener, Home and the World etc. The other two well-known Dutch poets, who had been equally fascinated by Tagore, were Henri Borel and Raden Mas Noto Suroto.

8.Tagore’s message of human dignity, human rights, sustainable development and an enabling environment are messages to which both Netherlands and India are committed. Born into one of the most illustrious families of Bengal, Tagore was the son of Maharishi Devendranath Tagore, who had been one of the guiding spirits of the Brahmo Samaj which broke with many of the social evils of the time including treatment of widows and widow re-marriage. In Tagore’s monumental novel “Gora”, he wrote movingly of a world without any discrimination. His hero, Gora cried out,

“It is you who are my mother,

you know no hatred,

you give flesh to nothing but the good that is in all of us,

It is you who are India”.

And then Tagore, through the mouth of Gora, his hero, articulated the philosophy which was his own:

“No longer is there opposed within me, the Hindu, the Muslim and the Christian. Today all foods are my food”.

Thus, his message of mutual understanding and tolerance is directed far beyond the boundaries of India to all cultures and to all men. As Jawaharlal Nehru, India’s first Prime Minister said,

“Tagore was in truth a living link between East and West. His entire life he fought against narrow distrust of foreign cultures. He had an abiding faith in the fruitfulness of cultural intercourse and friendship.”

9.Let me share with you some wonderful news. India’s Ministry of Culture has decided that a selection of original Tagore paintings comprising one hundred works which have left India for the first time would be exhibited in Netherlands between 27th November and5th December 2011. We are actively pursuing this possibility since the paintings were earlier being exhibited only in Berlin and Paris.

10.The other news which will bring joy to all of us is that Government of India has approved the long-standing proposal of the Embassy and the Indian and Surinami-Hindustani Diaspora to establish an Indian Cultural Centre here in the Netherlands. Over the coming days, I would hold consultations with leaders of both communities to ascertain the best way to take this proposal forward.

11.Let me conclude by hoping that Tagore’s message of love and peace would act as a catalyst for bringing our two countries and our Diasporas even closer together.

Thank you,

Jai Hind.

* * * *

Page 1 of 4