seema narendran, ramnarain ruia college ananda bazaar patrika

Seema Narendran, Ramnarain Ruia College

Ananda Bazaar Patrika


• Anandabazar Patrika first appeared on March 13, 1922 — the day of Holi, as an evening daily, printed in red ink.

• Founded in 1922 by Prafulla Chandra Sarkar

who was the editor as well

• It was a four-pager, priced at two paise and had a first-day circulation of a thousand copies.


• The newspaper’s red ink led to the contemporary

English daily, The Englishman terming it a ‘danger

signal’.

• Largest circulating Bengali daily in India

• Considered by many to be one of the most popular

regional newspaper in India


• Today its concurrently published from Kolkata, New

Delhi, and Mumbai

• The newspaper brings out special festive

issues during Durga Puja

• Synonymous with the Bengali community


The origins

• A daily from 1891, Amrita Bazar Patrika by the beginning of the

20th century was recognized as a pillar of the national movement

• In 1922, generational change within the Ghosh family led to a

division

• A branch split off and started a Bengali daily Ananda Bazar

Patrika


• The two newspapers became keen rivals

• With the common the struggle against the British, they intruded on

each other's circulation base

• After independence, Ananda Bazar Patrika adapted more

successfully to the need for management and advertising

• Under A K Sarkar (1912-83), in the 1960s, it became India's

largest circulating daily published from a single centre


• With its unshakeable patriotic stance, it soon became very popular.

• Unbiased views, constructive criticism, indomitable courage and an uncompromising attitude were just a few aspects, which went on to make Anandabazar Patrika the ‘voice of Bengal’.


• Its popularity reached new heights when, in 1954, the Press Commission report declared Anandabazar Patrika to be the largest circulated newspaper in the country, published from one location.

• Over the years, Anandabazar Patrika has achieved many milestones along the way — it was the first in the east and one of the first in the country to use offset printing


• Shook the foundation of the British power in India

• Helped to enhance the spirit of nationality among the

people fighting against the colonial power

• Gained immense popularity with the masses

• 1000 copies of the newspaper were sold on the very

first day of publication


• Showed immense courage in stating the truth

and never compromised

• Always presented unbiased news

• Initially consisted of only four pages


• Other than the Kolkata edition, it has introduced editions for

other metropolitans like Mumbai and Delhi

• It is the only Bengali daily to cross 1.2 million in circulation

• Published, along with Desh, the first large-scale readership

survey in 1963, nine years before the first National

Readership Survey (NRS) research was commissioned


• Has seven district splits within West Bengal

• Also has city splits- Uttar Kolkata (North Calcutta), Dakshin

Kolkata (South Calcutta), Purbo Kolkata (Salt Lake) &

Howrah

• There is also an internet edition of Anandabazar Patrika and anandautsav.com, the puja website.


• In addition to its city split — Kolkata, it offers supplements like Patrika on Saturdays, Rabibashoriyo on Sundays, Prastuti on alternate Mondays and Kajer Bazar on Tuesdays.

• Total readership: 72,95,000 (NRS 2006)

• Readership in Calcutta: 30,61,000 (NRS 2006)


• The group, under Aveek Sarkar launched:

• The Telegraph- an English daily

• Sunday- an English weekly (now closed

down)

• Sports World- Sports magazine

• Business Standard- Daily pink paper


• 1922- Starts with four pages, becomes six soon after

• 1923- Anandabazar Patrika becomes a morning daily

• Ties up with Reuters, Associated Press and the Free Press

of India

• 1925- becomes a 16-page wonder

• First 120-page special supplement on Calcutta Congress -

sold out within two hours. Second edition printed on demand.


• 1930- Faced with a draconian Press

Ordinance, goes out of circulation for a few

months

• 1931- Starts coming out everyday

• 1932- Circulation soars


• 1941- Anandabazar Patrika was the first to

inform about Subhas Chandra Bose’s

dramatic escape

• No ads carried on the front page, the day after

Rabindranath Tagore’s demise


• 1942- Dailies not printed to protest against

regulations imposed on newspapers and the

lack of newsprint

• 1948- Mahatma Gandhi’s assassination -

landmark coverage, Lord Mountbatten calls it the

“greatest homage to the Mahatma.”


• 1960-Entertainment gets a fillip with the

Anandalok section introduced in ABP

• 1965- Colloquial Bengali in narrative prose

begins. Formal Bengali only in the editorials

now


• 1983- The first colour printing — the features

section of ABP

• 1984- News comes to a standstill as ABP faces a

51-day strike

• 1992- Does not carry a single advertisement as a

mark of tribute to Satyajit Ray, who had died the

previous day


• 1993- The district pages of the ABP are

launched

• 2000- its internet edition is launched

• 2003- A new-look Anandabazar Patrika hits

the stands.


• 2005- Reaches the one-million circulation

benchmark

• 2008- Anandabazar Patrika wins Silver for

being the best printed non-English daily at the

4th National Awards for Excellence in Printing


• The only newspaper to send a journalist to cover Amartya Sens Nobel Prize investiture ceremony

seema narendran, ramnarain ruia college ananda bazaar patrika

Documents

amrita bazar patrika

kolkata edition

city split kolkata

largest circulating

dakshin kolkata south

largest circulated newspaper

kajer bazar

mumbaithe newspaper