About Akshay Kumar Datta

Akshay Kumar Datta (also spelt Akshay Kumar Dutta) (Bengali: অক্ষয় কুমার দত্ত), (15 July 1820 - 18 May 1886) was born in Chupi in Bardhaman. Son of Pitamber Dutta, he was one of the initiators of the Bengal Renaissance. After studying in the Oriental Seminary under the special care of Hardman Jeffroy, he had to give up studies because of the untimely death of his father and go job-seeking. However, that could not put an end to his yearning for learning. At the Sovabazar Rajbari library, he studied and mastered Calculus and Geometry. He had learnt Sanskrit and Persian, and read the Hindu scriptures at school. He acquired proficiency in French, German and various Indian languages. He composed the poetry-book Anangamohan at the age of 14. While a youngster he used to translate news items and features for Iswar Chandra Gupta’s Sambad Prabhakar. He even