Early life and education
Anil Kumar Dutta was born in Sahanagar district of south Kolkata to a family hailing from Barisal. He was 4th of 7 brothers born to Jnan Ranjan and Parul Bala Dutta. He lost both his parents within a span of six months when he was 7, his youngest brother was 3. He and his brothers were then raised by their grandmother.
Kolkatakol-KUT-ə is the capital of the Indian state of West Bengal. Located on the east bank of the Hooghly River approximately 75 kilometres (47 mi) west of the border with Bangladesh, it is the principal commercial, cultural, and educational centre of East India, while the Port of Kolkata is India's oldest operating port and its sole major riverine port. The city is widely regarded as the "cultural capital" of India, and is also nicknamed the "City of Joy". According to the 2011 Indian census, it is the seventh most populous city; the city had a population of 4.5 million, while the suburb population brought the total to 14.1 million, making it the third-most populous metropolitan area in India. Recent estimates of Kolkata Metropolitan Area's economy have ranged from $60 to $150 billion making it third most-productive metropolitan area in India, after Mumbai and Delhi.
Barisal, officially known as Barishal, is a major city that lies on the bank of Kirtankhola river in south-central Bangladesh. It is the largest city and the administrative headquarter of both Barisal district and Barisal Division. It is one of the oldest municipalities and river ports of the country. Barisal municipality was established in the year 1876 during the British Raj and upgraded to City Corporation on 25 July 2002. The city consists of 30 wards and 50 mahallas with a population of 328,278 according to the 2011 national census. The area of the city is 58 km².
From an early age, he was drawing, painting and writing poetry. He started publishing a hand written literary magazine that was passed along in the neighbourhood. When in high school, he and his friends started a Baroari Durga Puja and he made the idols for the first Puja there. A special feature of this Puja was that the Pandal was a veritable wall magazine. This in time became the Tarun Sangha Puja of Sahanagar which continues to this day.
After completing the Matriculation from Sahanagar High School, he entered Government Art College, Kolkata but had to discontinue due to financial difficulties.
The following year, he enrolled at the Calcutta Art School (later to be known as Calcutta Art College) and graduated First Class First, winning the Gold Medal in 1955. His classmates tell the story that he was known amongst the students as Kabi (meaning poet) and it was widely expected that he would top the class.
He started a business on graphic design in 1956 named D G Press and Publicity Syndicate.
Graphic design is the process of visual communication and problem-solving through the use of typography, photography, and illustration. The field is considered a subset of visual communication and communication design, but sometimes the term "graphic design" is used synonymously. Graphic designers create and combine symbols, images and text to form visual representations of ideas and messages. They use typography, visual arts, and page layout techniques to create visual compositions. Common uses of graphic design include corporate design, editorial design, wayfinding or environmental design, advertising, web design, communication design, product packaging, and signage.
Literary
In 1977, he started a literary magazine, originally titled Mukto Patra. Later, he started a publishing business, naming that Mukto Patra Publications and renamed the magazine Shilpo O Sahitya. As editor, he was always seeking out new and lesser known poets, authors and artists.
In 1986, he started the annual Shilpo O Sahitya awards for little magazines. All Bengali little magazines published anywhere in the country were encouraged to enter and prizes were awarded in 5 categories, best poem, best short story, best non-fiction, best cover design, best editing.
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Barowari refers to the public organisation of a religious or other festival, mainly in West Bengal. This is extensively used for Durga Puja. The word "Barowari" came from the words "baro", which means 12, and "yari". Much earlier in 1790, 12 Brahmin friends in Guptipara, Hooghly, had decided to institute Community Puja. Subscriptions were raised from neighbours. Thus started baro-yari or Barowari Puja in Bengal which gained popularity. Initially, Durga Puja was an occasion for the rich Babus of Kolkata, later individual initiatives declined as collective enterprises came to replace it.
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