BHUBANESWAR: Jagannath Prasad Das, 90, passed away late Wednesday night at his Surya Nagar residence in Bhubaneswar. He was a former IAS officer and writer, who was recognised with high literary honours such as the Saraswati Samman and Sarala Puraskar. However, the values JP Das lived by surpassed his credentials.
As per Das’ wishes, his body was donated to AIIMS-Bhubaneswar for purposes of research and study. Das is survived by his wife, daughter and her children. Jagannath Prasad was the son of Sridhar Das, fondly remembered by old-timers as a great educationist, lexicographer, translator and textbook writer of 20th Century Odisha. JP Das was rare even among the tiny pool of scholarly bureaucrats.
He eschewed the temptations of using the trappings of high office to muscle his way into the literary and cultural world. Years before he was set to retire, Das quietly gave up a high-powered career to devote himself fully to the labours of creative and academic writing. Das found substantial joy in the versatility of the written word, producing short stories, novel, poems, translations and plays. His historical novel ‘Desha, Kala, Patra’ reconstructed Odisha’s history during the latter half of the 19th Century from the point of view of the colonized.
At a time, when the translator in Indian literary circles was nowhere regarded as an equal with the author, Das offered translator Jatindra Kumar Nayak absolute liberty to transcreate the book as well as its title. The book, translated as ‘A Time Elsewhere’ and published by Penguin, is regarded as a classic in Indian English literature. Das’s short stories were often laced with acid wit. He had authored one such short story about a book club of pornographic literature run by three adult men, who were petrified that they could be booked under obscenity laws during the Emergency.
At the same time, a master of what can be called the long short story that runs into around 15,000 words, Das produced pieces that were thoughtful, stirring and sparklingly original. Das also made significant contributions to the formal study of Odisha’s art history. He has produced deeply researched books on the painters of Puri’s Raghurajpur and the craft of palm leaf miniatures once practised in Mundamarai of Ganjam.
It is noteworthy that Das tackled these topics in the 1980s, much before they drew interest from academics and the public. As a writer, Das did not harbour wearisome fixations like lobbying for and securing unending recognitions, awards, honours, felicitations and public attention. Though an established figure in the elite cultural spaces of Delhi and Odisha, Das ignored opportunities to cultivate a loyal set of followers by distributing favours.
JP Das immersed in literature for its joy
He continued to remain just a creator, shunning the roles of literary entrepreneur or power broker. Still, people of stature found themselves drawn to him. Documents recording Das’ life show that the legendary film director Mrinal Sen had once written a letter to Das, admiring one of his paintings showcased in a solo exhibition in 1971.
In 1976, Om Puri was part of the cast of the Hindi version of Das’ play ‘Suryasta Purbaru.’ A collection of his letters show that JP Das maintained inconspicuous yet strong ties with Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Gulzar and Rabi Ghosh.
In a society where researching, reading and writing is held sacred mostly for the material gains or attention and social status they bring to one’s life, Das immersed himself in both activities purely for the varied joys they can offer the enthusiast. At a time when the line between visibility and eminence has all but blurred, Das swam against the currents always taking care not to splash around.
(Author is an independent writer and journalist)
