C.Achutha Menon Birth Anniversary

C. Achutha Menon, born on 13 January 1913, was the Chief Minister of Kerala state for two terms. The first term was from 1 November 1969 to 1 August 1970 and the second 4 October 1970 to 25 March 1977. He was instrumental in starting number of institutions and development projects in Kerala. Achutha Menon was the first politician who adorned the chief ministership of Kerala for two consecutive terms. He led the then United Front to a thumping electoral victory in Kerala when Congress party was routed in elections in other parts of India.

Fakir Mohan Senapati Birth Anniversary

Fakir Mohan Senapati, born on 13 January 1843, was an Indian writer, poet, philosopher and social reformer. He is often referred to as Utkala Byasa Kabi (Odisha’s Vyasa). He is regarded as the father of Odia nationalism and modern Odia literature. He played a leading role in establishing the distinct identity of Odia language. He is known to have introduced novel writing, short story, and autobiography genres in Odia literature. Chha Maana Atha Guntha (translating into English as ‘Six Acres and a Third’) is the first Indian novel written by him in Odia to deal with the exploitations of landless peasants by the feudal Lord. It was written much before the October revolution of Russia or much before the emerging of Marxist ideas in India. His “Rebati” (1898) is widely recognized as the first Odia short story. He wrote a long poem, Utkala Bhramanam, that first appeared in 1892.

St Knut's Day

In different cultures, the end of the Christmas and holiday season in marked with different holidays. While in some countries celebrations cease after New Year’s Day, others continue with the festivities until Epiphany or some other holiday. In Sweden and Finland, for example, the festive season ends on St. Knut’s Day, celebrated on January 13.

Canute Lavard (Knud Lavard in Danish and Knut Levard in Swedish) was a chivalrous and popular Danish prince and the first Duke of Schleswig. He was assassinated by his cousin Magnus (who would later be crowned King Magnus I of Sweden) who wanted to usurp the Danish throne. Canute’s death provoked a civil war which was won by Canute’s posthumous son Valdemar, who was crowned King Valdemar I of Denmark.

Canute’s fate and his son’s triumph led to his canonization in 1170. The day of his death, January 7, became St. Knut’s Day. As St. Knut’s feast day roughly coincided with Epiphany celebrated on January 6, the two holidays became conflated to some degree. To prevent further conflation, St. Knut’s Day was moved to January 13 in 1680.

Although Canute Lavard was a Danish prince, St. Knut’s Day is mostly celebrated in Sweden and Finland. In Sweden, the holiday is referred to as “Twentieth Day Yule” (Tjugondag jul) and marks the end of the holiday season. It is celebrated by taking down Christmas tree and organizing the so-called Knut’s parties.

A Knut’s party or Knut’s dance is a Swedish tradition when the Christmas tree is stripped of decorations and taken out so that children can dance around the tree and eat the cookies and candies that decorated it. It has been observed since the end of the 19th century. In Swedish, the tradition is called Julgransplundring (“Christmas tree plundering”) or Julgransskakning (“Christmas tree shaking”).

Knut’s parties are held mainly for children, both in private homes and in schools, kindergartens, churches, and other places. Activities include singing and dancing around the Christmas tree, stripping it of decorations, opening Christmas crackers, eating the gingerbread house, partaking in treasure hunts and various games. In many towns, outdoor Knut’s parties are held for the community near the public Christmas tree.

During the 20th century, many people literally threw Christmas trees out of the window and onto the street once they had been stripped of ornaments. In recent years, local authorities have designated areas for dumping the trees, but illegal dumping still remains a problem.

In Finland, St. Knut’s Day is known as Nuutinpäivä. Its most popular tradition, Nuuttipukki, is a type of mummers’ play. It originally involved young men dressed in inverted fur jackets and horned masks who went from house to house and demanded food and leftover alcoholic beverages from the household. Unlike Santa Claus, Nuutipukki was a scary character somewhat similar to Krampus. Today, the Nuuttipukki tradition is still preserved in some parts of Finland but it mostly involves children, reminding of Halloween trick-or-treating.

Rakesh Sharma Birth Anniversary

Wing Commander Rakesh Sharma, AC, Hero of the Soviet Union, born 13 January 1949, who flew aboard Soyuz T-11 as part of the Intercosmos program. Sharma was the first Indian to travel in space. Sharma joined the Indian Air Force in 1970 as a pilot officer after joining the NDA as an IAF cadet in 1966. During the 1971 War, Sharma flew missions in his MiG aircraft with considerable success. He was a squadron leader with the Indian Air Force, when he flew into space in 1984 as part of a joint programme between the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the Soviet Intercosmos space program. He spent eight days in space on board the Salyut 7 space station.

Kumar Gandharva Death Anniversary

 

One of the most celebrated exponents of Indian classical music, Kumar Gandharva, who passed away on 12 January 1992, has left an indelible impression in the hearts of music lovers across India and abroad. The Hindustani classical music stalwart not only introduced many new ragas and compositions but also trained a new generation of singers and musicians. Born as Shivaputra Siddharamayya Komkalimath, Kumar Gandharva was lauded as a musical prodigy since his childhood.

Well-known for his unique vocal style, Kumar Gandharva dared to create new ragas, new compositions and an entirely new tradition in Indian classical music during his active years.

The illustrious singer, known for his innovative style and penchant for creating new ragas, had been honoured with the Padma Bhushan, Padma Vibhushan, and the Kalidas Samma.

Jijabai Birth Anniversary

Jijabai Shahaji Bhosale, born on 12 January 1598, in the town of Sindhkhed in Maharashtra, was the mother of Shivaji, the Maratha king who established one of the largest empires in the history of India. Herself a fierce warrior and administrator, she was instrumental in Shivaji’s quests to establish the Maratha Empire. She served as the queen regent in her son’s kingdom for which she is commonly known as Rajmata Jijabai. A champion of Hind Swaraj who stood against the Mughal Empire, the lady is one of the most inspirational historical figures of the country.

Jijabai was married at a very young age to Shahaji Bhosle, son of Maloji Shiledar. Her husband also served the Nizam Shah. They had eight children, including six daughters and two sons. One of them was Shivaji.

Jijabai’s prayers were answered as Shivaji became an independent ruler of the Maratha clan. She, who served as his advisor, had a major role in his accomplishments.

She encouraged Shivaji to avenge the death of her eldest son Sambhaji at the hands of Afzal Khan, which Shivaji fulfilled.

Jijabai was known for her virtue, valour and foresight, traits which she passed down to her son Shivaji. She was also a skilled horse rider and had a way with swords that would put decent fighters to shame.

As the queen regent, she managed her husband’s jagir in Poona and saw to its development. She established the Kasbapeth Ganpati temple and renovated the Keverreshwar temple and Tambdi Jogeshwari temple.

She championed the cause of Swaraj or freedom from the Mughal rulers and helped Shivaji unite the Maratha factions and establish the ‘Hindavi Swaraj’.

Affectionately known as 'Rajmata', Jijabai passed away in 1674 in the village of Pachad near Fort Rajgad, a mere twelve days after Shivaji's coronation. Her death brought great sorrow to the entire kingdom and more on Shivaji who mourned so deeply. Today, the region of Raigad is regarded sacred, and its several statues of the Mother Jijau with the boy Shivaji, makes it reminiscent of the maternal bonding between two great inspirational of Indian history. 

Agatha Christie Death Anniversary

 

Dame Agatha Mary Clarissa Christie, Lady Mallowan, DBE (née Miller), who passed away on 12 January 1976, was an English writer. She is known for her 66 detective novels and 14 short story collections, particularly those revolving around her fictional detectives Hercule Poirot and Miss Marple. Christie also wrote the world's longest-running play, a murder mystery, The Mousetrap, and, under the pen name Mary Westmacott, six romances. In 1971 she was appointed a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire (DBE) for her contribution to literature.

She was initially an unsuccessful writer with six consecutive rejections, but this changed when The Mysterious Affair at Styles, featuring Hercule Poirot, was published in 1920. During the Second World War, she worked as a pharmacy assistant at University College Hospital, London, acquiring a good knowledge of poisons which feature in many of her novels.

Guinness World Records lists Christie as the best-selling novelist of all time. Her novels have sold roughly 2 billion copies, and her estate claims that her works come third in the rankings of the world's most-widely published books, behind only Shakespeare's works and the Bible. According to Index Translationum, she remains the most-translated individual author, having been translated into at least 103 languages. And Then There Were None is Christie's best-selling novel, with 100 million sales to date, making it the world's best-selling mystery ever, and one of the best-selling books of all time. Christie's stage play The Mousetrap holds the world record for longest initial run. It opened at the Ambassadors Theatre in the West End on 25 November 1952, and as of April 2019 is still running after more than 27,000 performances.

In 1955, Christie was the first recipient of the Mystery Writers of America's highest honour, the Grand Master Award. Later the same year, Witness for the Prosecution received an Edgar Award by the MWA for Best Play. In 2013, The Murder of Roger Ackroyd was voted the best crime novel ever by 600 fellow writers of the Crime Writers' Association. On 15 September 2015, coinciding with her 125th birthday, And Then There Were None was named the "World's Favourite Christie" in a vote sponsored by the author's estate. Most of her books and short stories have been adapted for television, radio, video games and comics, and more than thirty feature films have been based on her work.