Mihaela Gligor, co-editor with Elisabetta Marino of Tagore Beyond Borders, a new compendium of essays that attempts to corral international scholars who study Tagore, was in Kolkata this week to launch her book at The Bengal Club, Kolkata, and present her views on crafting such an ambitious project. Julie Mehta caught up with Mihaela Gligor in Kolkata
A girl from Romania. How did you first encounter Rabindranath Tagore? How did you get so keenly inspired by him?
I came in touch with India through Mircea Eliade’s novel, Maitreyi (in Romanian), Bengali Nights, as it is known to Westerners and Indian readers. I was in high school when I first read this novel and it changed my life as I decided to go and study Philosophy, as Mircea Eliade did, thinking that, maybe, one day, I will get the chance to visit India.
At that time I only knew that Rabindranath Tagore was a Nobel Laureate and a very loved writer. What I knew about him was what the great scholar Mircea Eliade wrote in his journals. But I had the great fortune to learn from the best professors and to visit Jorasanko and Santiniketan and, step by step, I could figure out and recognise his true universal value as an educator, poet, writer, composer, painter [and] philosopher. I could understand and get a full picture of him. I think he was one of the most beautiful minds in the world!
What did your family say and think about this interest in an Indian poet?
I come from a humble family. I was the first in my family to pursue a PhD and to travel so far away from home. They are happy and proud. To be honest, all I do related to India, I do in my free time. I work in a history institute. My main field of research is interwar intellectual history, memory studies and post-Holocaust. These subjects are far away from Tagore and India, but India is my passion. So, in my free time, I read voraciously about Indian culture and history, and this became like my second area of expertise, especially after 2014, when I founded Cluj Center for Indian Studies at Babes-Bolyai University in Cluj-Napoca.
Which teachers encouraged you? Would you tell us about your Indian study experience on Tagore in Jadavpur [University]?
At Jadavpur University, I worked under the supervision of professor Madhumita Chattopadhyay. She was incredible and helped me in understanding so many things about Tagore’s life and work. I also benefited from the help of professor Amita Chatterjee and professor Atashee Chatterjee Sinha. Then I met professor Uma Dasgupta and others. I only visited Santiniketan.
Did you learn Bengali to do your research and publication on Tagore?
No, I don’t know Bengali. I only understand a few words. So I can find my way around the city. But I think Bengali is the sweetest language in the world! I just love the sound of it. Ever since 2011, I started to publish small articles and book chapters, mostly in Romanian, about Tagore. I tried to explain to the Romanian public why he was so important, and how his legacy lives on.
How did you think of putting together this anthology Tagore: Beyond Borders — do you think it was an ambitious project? What did you learn by working with all your other colleagues on Tagore?
At the beginning of the pandemic, in March 2020, after I just returned home from a visit to Calcutta, I thought “Why not?” and I got in touch with Elisabetta Marino, from Rome, and proposed to her a collection of essays on Tagore’s relevance in today’s world. She said “yes”, and we began to invite our friends with interests in Indian culture to join us in this endeavour. After we received some good proposals, we began to look for a publisher. I sent many emails to many publishers. Some of them never replied. But one day, I received a message from one and the news was good. They were interested in such a volume. So our journey began.
What were the biggest challenges in getting together this volume?
The contributors are from different parts of the world, from Asia and Europe. And the perception of Tagore is a little different in their own countries. But, even the contributors worked on their chapters not knowing who is writing for this volume and on what. The result was amazing because each chapter complements the others and all of them draw a full portrait of Rabindranath Tagore. And this is truly remarkable.
Julie Banerjee Mehta is the author of Dance of Life and co-author of the bestselling biography Strongman: The Extraordinary Life of Hun Sen. She has a PhD in English and South Asian Studies from the University of Toronto, where she taught World Literature and Postcolonial Literature for many years. She currently lives in Kolkata and teaches Masters English at Loreto College.