Humayun Ahmed was a mere child when Sunil Gangopadhyay started writing. Today, both of them are leading Bengali writers, one from East and one from West Bengal, highly acclaimed in the world of literature. The age of reason has not blurred the very similarity of prose-writing style between the two.
Sunil, apart from regular prose and poem, created Nillohit. Readers of Bengal are well aware that Nillohit is not only a pseudo-name, used by the eminent author. Nillohit is a strange character, with some specific perceptions about this world. Nilu (his nickname) is a jobless youth of 27 years, who views world from a different perspective. Strange things happen to him. But, Nilu never gets involved with a particular job. His soul is as free as a bird, who can never be caged. So is Himu. Humayun, apart from Misir Ali, created this strange character as one of his most popular protagonist. Himu is also a jobless youth, roams here and there, gets involved with strange things and never be fixated with a particular job. Like Nilu, Himu also works for human welfare.
Nillohit has a strange place in this world to go whenever he feels worthless. Why strange? Nobody knows much about Dikshunyapur. Inhabitants say, people, who are disgusted with this mortal world, who are badly cheated, who are engrossed in deep agony, come to Dikshunyapur. They leave their each and every belonging behind. It is said that whoever come to this place, never goes back to the busy world they have left behind. It seems that they live in a different world, far from the madding crowd. Dikshunyapur is not a known place in the world beyond that. Therefore, questions arises, is this heaven? Whenever Nilu feels suffocated, he takes a train to Dikshunyapur. Where is this place? Nobody knows except Nilu, who is an inhabitant of this mortal world. So, is it a psychological journey? Author has kept this part in the domain of darkness.
Himu does not take a psychological journey. He does not have a world beyond the mortal one to go. He himself is a psychic. Not in a true sense, i.e. he does not practice black-magic, witchcraft or anything like that. He himself is a strange human being. He has a sense of premonition. Somehow like Nostradamus, he can tell fortunes. No, he does not practice fortune-telling. He is a simple, jobless youth. But he works for human welfare. He can make a human wish come true. He usually wears a yellow Punjabi which is his trademark. It is said that the sky even falls for the colour of his Punjabi! Is he blessed therefore? A son of nature? Author has kept this part in the domain of darkness too.
Both of them, (Nilu and Himu), are good liars. But, they are harmless. They lie for the well-being of their fellows. They lie because they want to see them happy. They lie because they want to tie the broken threads of human relationships. Here lies the similarity. Himu and Nilu never search for profit. Life is not a balance-sheet to them. Therefore they fell, but they stand up, start their journey towards the destined doom. They never get fixated.
Himu and Nilu are therefore two free souls from two different genres. Nobody can hold time for them. They never grow up. It is like time has stopped its journey for them. But, they belong to different ages, different genres. They are created by two different authors in two different countries. East and West Bengal have been split apart. Not the feeling that grows in the inmost core of heart.
So, native always return to home. Therefore, Himu and Nilu are very symbolic. They portray our subconscious which knows no division created by Kantatarer Bera. There is a vagabond in each and every human being, who usually keeps latent in our subconscious mind. All of us actually try to be like Himu and Nilu but mortal world creates barrier between conscious and subconscious. Humayun and Sunil have successfully blurred this division, belonging to two different genres.
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