Chirag Paswan pays tribute to Rashtra Kavi Maithili Sharan Gupt
Synopsis
Union Food Processing Minister Chirag Paswan marked the birth anniversary of Rashtra Kavi Maithili Sharan Gupt, honouring the Padma Bhushan-winning Hindi poet whose work on patriotism and Indian culture made him a defining voice of the nationalist literary era.
Key Takeaways
Union Food Processing Minister Chirag Paswan paid tribute to Maithili Sharan Gupt on his birth anniversary on August 3 .
Gupt, born August 3, 1886 in Chirgaon, Uttar Pradesh , is celebrated as the Rashtra Kavi (National Poet) of India.
His landmark work Bharat-Bharati (1912) blended nationalist sentiment with India's classical epics and was considered seditious by British authorities.
The title Rashtra Kavi was conferred on him by Mahatma Gandhi .
He was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1954 and passed away in 1964 .
A keeper of India's literary conscience, Maithili Sharan Gupt gave the nation verses that outlasted empires — and on his birth anniversary, Union Food Processing Minister Chirag Paswan joined the country in remembering him.
Posting on Monday, August 3, Paswan offered a tribute in Hindi: 'शत्-शत् नमन' — a hundred salutations — to the poet he described as an 'priceless gem of Hindi literature' who kindled the flame of patriotism, culture, and human values through his immortal works.
The poet who gave India its literary nationalism
Born on August 3, 1886, in Chirgaon, Uttar Pradesh, Maithili Sharan Gupt rose to become the defining voice of Hindi literature's nationalist era. His landmark work Bharat-Bharati (1912) was a searing meditation on India's civilisational glory and its colonial humiliation — a text that galvanised readers at a time when the independence movement was finding its moral vocabulary. The British administration reportedly found the work seditious enough to warrant attention. Gupt's poetry was not merely political; it drew deeply from the Ramayana and Mahabharata, weaving dharma and human dignity into verse that ordinary Indians could recite and feel. That combination — accessible language, epic moral weight, nationalist fire — earned him the title Rashtra Kavi, the National Poet, conferred by Mahatma Gandhi himself. In 1954, the Government of India recognised his contribution with the Padma Bhushan. He passed away in 1964, leaving behind a body of work that remains a cornerstone of the Hindi literary canon.Why ministers mark this day
The ritual of political tributes to pre-independence literary figures is a fixture of Indian public life — but Gupt's anniversary carries particular resonance. His work sits at the intersection of language pride, cultural nationalism, and the Hindi heartland's sense of identity, making him a figure both literary scholars and political leaders across the spectrum invoke with genuine reverence. For a minister whose party draws its base from Bihar and the Hindi-speaking belt, the tribute also speaks to a shared cultural inheritance.Point of View
Making such tributes politically legible as well as genuinely reverential. The post carries no policy signal, but it reinforces the LJP (Ram Vilas) brand as a custodian of the Hindi heartland's cultural memory. In an era when language and identity politics are increasingly salient, invoking Gupt is a quiet but deliberate act of positioning.
NationPress
3 Aug 2026
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Maithili Sharan Gupt?
Maithili Sharan Gupt (1886–1964) was a Hindi poet from Chirgaon, Uttar Pradesh, widely regarded as the Rashtra Kavi or National Poet of India. His work, especially Bharat-Bharati , blended patriotism, Indian cultural values, and themes from classical epics.
Why is Maithili Sharan Gupt called Rashtra Kavi?
The title Rashtra Kavi, meaning National Poet, was conferred on Maithili Sharan Gupt by Mahatma Gandhi in recognition of his poetry's role in inspiring nationalist sentiment and cultural pride during the independence movement.
What is Bharat-Bharati by Maithili Sharan Gupt?
Bharat-Bharati (1912) is Maithili Sharan Gupt's most celebrated work — a long poem reflecting on India's ancient civilisational glory and its condition under colonial rule. It was considered seditious by British authorities and became a touchstone of Hindi nationalist literature.
What award did Maithili Sharan Gupt receive?
Maithili Sharan Gupt was awarded the Padma Bhushan by the Government of India in 1954 , one of the country's highest civilian honours, in recognition of his contribution to Hindi literature.
Why did Chirag Paswan post a tribute to Maithili Sharan Gupt?
Union Food Processing Minister Chirag Paswan posted the tribute on August 3 to mark Maithili Sharan Gupt's birth anniversary, describing him as a priceless gem of Hindi literature who inspired patriotism, culture, and human values through his poetry.
