Prime Minister releases set of postage stamps on Rabindranath Tagore

New Delhi, May 7(ANI): Prime Minister Dr. Manmohan Singh on Saturday released a set of two commemorative postage stamps commemorating the 150th birth anniversary of Rabindranath Tagore.

"The design of the stamps depicts: Tagore writing-background shows Upasana ghar at Santiniketan; Tagore performing in his play 'Valmiki Pratibha' and a painting by him," a Ministry of Communications and Information Technology statement said.

The fourteenth child of Maharshi Debendranath Tagore and Sarada Devi, Tagore was born on May 7, 1861, at Jorasanko, Kolkata.

His creative genius was nothing short of epic - poet, essayist, writer of fiction and drama, musician, performer, educator and builder of institutions.

His work has a universality that marks the triumph of humanism and creativity with a social purpose.

Dropping out from formal education, he set up two unique schools: Patha Bhavan and Siksa Satra and an international university Visva Bharati and Santiniketan.

He wrote his first drama 'Prithvirajer Parajey' in 1873, but today no copy exists.

The next year his poem 'Abhilasha' was published in 'Tattwabodhini Patrika' and in 1875 he made his first public appearance to recite his patriotic poem 'Hindumela Upohar'.

His writing of prose, verse, drama, and music was prolific. (ANI)