Hungry Bengal: War, Famine, Riots, and the End of Empire 1939-1946 By Janam Mukherjee A dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirement for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy (Anthropology and History) In the University of Michigan 2011 Doctoral Committee: Professor Barbara D. Metcalf, Chair Emeritus Professor David W. Cohen Associate Professor Stuart Kirsch Associate Professor Christi Merrill 1 "Unknown to me the wounds of the famine of 1943, the barbarities of war, the horror of the communal riots of 1946 were impinging on my style and engraving themselves on it, till there came a time when whatever I did, whether it was chiseling a piece of wood, or burning metal with acid to create a gaping hole, or cutting and tearing with no premeditated design, it would throw up innumerable wounds, bodying forth a single theme - the figures of the deprived, the destitute and the abandoned converging on us from all directions. The first chalk marks of famine that had passed from the fingers to engrave themselves on the heart persist indelibly." 2 Somnath Hore 1 Somnath Hore. "The Holocaust." Sculpture. Indian Writing, October 3, 2006. Web (http://indianwriting.blogsome.com/2006/10/03/somnath-hore/) accessed 04/19/2011. 2 Quoted in N. Sarkar, p. 32 © Janam S. Mukherjee 2011 To my father ii Acknowledgements I would like to thank first and foremost my father, Dr. Kalinath Mukherjee, without whom this work would not have been written. This project began, in fact, as a collaborative effort, which is how it also comes to conclusion. His always gentle, thoughtful and brilliant spirit has been guiding this work since his death in May of 2002 - and this is still our work. I would also like to especially thank his older brother, my Jetha, Narendra Krishna Mukherjee, who received me in Kolkata as a long lost and much beloved son. His love and respect for me changed my life and has kept me focused on this project throughout. In our many hundreds, if not thousands, of hours in sometimes heated and always lively discussion on that big bed in Hazra house, I learned an incalculable amount, not only about Kolkata, but just as importantly, I learned more about dignity, strength and perseverance from him than I have from any other individual I have met in my life. His colossal spirit has also been guiding me in this work since his death in October of 2001. I also would like to give my very heartfelt and special thanks to his wife, my Jethima, Dolly Mukherjee, without whose astounding memory for detail and active engagement in my research, this work would also not have been possible. Her sweet and gentle spirit has been guiding me in her absence since November of 2005. I would also like to thank the many men and women of this same generation, who lived through the unimaginable events that are the subject of this work, and who shared their memories and thoughts about these events with me, always graciously, conscientiously and with a sense of urgency and purpose that forms the core foundation of my own perspective towards the period under consideration. I was welcomed into each and every house of the many elderly people I interviewed with enough hospitality and warmth to last me a lifetime. It has been an inestimable privilege and honor. I would like to thank next my PhD adviser, Dr. Barbara Daly Metcalf. I could not have asked for - or even imagined - a better mentor for this work. Her faith and belief in me, and this work, have been invaluable to me for the last seven years. Barbara has been, iii throughout, unfailingly supportive, encouraging and generous with her time, insights, and knowledge. Her recognition and respect for the deep personal commitment that I bring to this work have also sustained my own focus, and have meant more to me on a human level than I can say. She has also guided me intellectually in directions that have made this work more complex and complete than I had imagined it could be. Having the privilege to work with Barbara has also given me an extremely profound and abiding faith in history - which is the most significant gift that anyone could have given me in life. I would like to also thank the other members of my dissertation committee: Dr. David William Cohen, Dr. Stuart Kirsch, and Dr. Christi Merrill. From David I learned to always look behind the curtain to discover the small man who pulls the levers, which is a central tactic employed throughout this work. Stuart has been unfailingly supportive and generous, and his encouragement and efforts, as well as his extremely helpful insights, have been a huge benefit. I have known Christi since I set foot at the University of Michigan in 2002, and our conversations, and her support and input, have been an extremely important part of this project from day one. I am fortunate indeed to have found such a group of mentors! In Kolkata there are too many people who have helped me, guided me and inspired me to count, and it is not possible to give them all their due thanks. I would, however, like to give special thanks to Rita Banerjee, who always kept me fed and laughing, her husband Dipak Banerjee, with whom I spent countless evenings in fabulous (and subversive) discussion, Chandana Mukherjee, my compatriot and friend through many good times (and bad), Baby Das, whose love and generosity have made my life so much more complete, and Samik Mukherjee, who was always on my side - through all sorts of weather. Thanks also to Supratim Mukherjee for his love and support, in both Kolkata and abroad. Many thanks also to my brother, Md. Samiullah Khan for his love, support, and help with my work. I would also like to thank Kakali Das, for her assistance in conducting interviews and networking people to interview, without her help it would not have been possible, and also Sirpa Tenhunen, for sharing her vast knowledge of all things Bengali and the great conversation about life, culture and cheese. Special thanks also to P.K. Bhattacharya, the greatest book sleuth in all of Kolkata, without whom my library on Kolkata would be one tenth the size. I would also like to thank Mark Jackson iv for the friendship and good times we had at the Ramakrishna Mission Institute, and also Shanti Mukherjee, for teaching me the rudiments of Bengali. My appreciations also go to the Center for Studies in Social Science in Kolkata for sponsoring me as a Fulbright Fellow in 2008, and at the Center, I would like to give special thanks to Dr. Gautam Bhadra, whose generosity with his truly encyclopedic knowledge is extremely rare and has been of tremendous help to me. Thanks also go to Kaliprosad Bose for his friendship and assistance in the archives at the Center. At the West Bengal State Archives, I would like to thank Director, Ananda Bhattacharya, and also, at the Writer's Building, Jhumur Sen Gupta. My gratitude, also, to Ashis Bose and Nirmal Ganguly at the Statesman House archives, where I spent many happy hours. Many, many thanks in London and Kolkata, also, to Bhaskar Mukhopadhyay who was always so generous with his time and associations, and with whom I have had many inspiring (and subversive) conversations. In London, my most heartfelt thanks go out to David Hannah who made my stay in Old Blighty one of the best times of my life, and his wife Jo, for keeping me fed, and to their two beautiful children, Cam and Yaz, for keeping me laughing. I would also like to thank the staff at the British Library for their endless help, and Julia Franklin for trips to the coast. In Ann Arbor there are, again, too many people to thank, but special thanks to my Anthro/History cohort in the Doctoral Program in Anthropology and History; Danna Agmon, Daniel Birchok, Robert Chedester, Joshua Coenne, Federico Helfgott, and last, but not least, my good friend, Purvi Mehta. I would also like to thank Professor Thomas Trautmann, as a mentor and inspiration. Thanks also to Fernando Coronil and Julie Skurski, who, along with David Cohen, are Anthro/History to me. Thanks also to Victor Lieberman, whose professionalism and support have been extremely meaningful to me. And many thanks also to Mandira Bhaduri, who has not only been a good friend, but is also the best language teacher I've ever had (and there have been a few.) Also thanks to Miranda Brown, who has always had my back, and has always given me great advice, and also Nancy Florida, whose work and understanding made my transition to academic life in 2002 bearable. Special thanks, also, to Diana Denney, without whom I surely would have missed countless deadlines and eventually been run out of town. Thanks to v Diana, also, for reading my work and always giving me the encouragement I needed at the right time. Personal thanks are due to my friend, confidant, and life-line, Dr. Alex Scheinman - nothing at all would be possible without him. Many, many heartfelt thanks also to the Hootsters in Laingsburg, Michigan, above all, Mike and Susan Bohannon, if I didn't have that sweet space to sing with dear friends every Friday night, I would have never made it. Many thanks also to the Little Manistee river for flowing past my door. Thanks also to my sisters, Joia Mukherjee and Maia Mukherjee, whose faith and love have kept me going since I could stand on my own.