Maladhar Basu

Maladhar Basu (Bengali: মালাধর বসু) (c. 15th century) was a Bengali poet. He wrote Sri Krishna Vijaya (শ্রীকৃষ্ণবিজয়, Triumph of Lord Krishna), the earliest Bengali narrative poem that can be assigned to a definite date.[1] It is also the oldest Bengali narrative poem of Krishna legend.[1] It was composed between 1473 and 1480.[2] The long poem is a translation of the 10th and 11th cantos of the Bhagavata Purana; a part of Vishnu Purana and the story of Ramayana is also incorporated here.[1]

In the poem written in an early Bangla, Maladhar focuses on Krishna's divine life, with the 10th canto relating the legends of Krishna as a child, and his divine play with the gopis in Vrindavana. He was honoured by Rukunuddin Barbak Shah with the title 'Gunaraj Khan'.[3]

Maladhar Basu was born at Kulingram village of modern-day Purba Bardhaman district, Paschimbanga (West Bengal) to Bhagirath Basu and Indumati Devi. Maladhar Basu was a scholar of Sanskrit literature and Vaishnava theology. He translated the famous Sanskrit work Bhagavata into Bengali language, under the patronage of Nusrat Shah, then ruler of Bengal.