A sample speech on the occasion of Rabindra Jayanti is presented below. Interested readers are encouraged to use this as inspiration and craft their own speeches in their own words. This lesson is a part of our “Speech” section under the ‘Language and Education’ category.
Respected Chairperson, Honourable Guests,
“On the twenty-fifth of Boishakh, he called out to the ever new.”
Today marks one of the most sacred, memorable, and emotionally significant days in the life of the Bengali nation—the 25th of Boishakh. We all know that on this very day in the Bengali year 1268, Rabindranath Tagore was born. For the next eighty years, he enriched the Bengali consciousness with his emotions, thoughts, and sensitivities.
Rabindranath is inextricably interwoven with our culture, our literature, our music, and with every beautiful emotion of our lives. To us, he is not merely an individual; he is the embodiment of a nation’s entire soul. The first four decades of the last century in Bengali life are widely recognised as the Rabindra Era.
Dear guests,
Tagore’s literary brilliance emerged in his early childhood and continued to blossom until his final days. Such a sustained outpouring of creativity throughout a lifetime is rare, even among the world’s greatest minds. His literary pursuits took myriad forms and manifested profound richness. The poetry collection Gitanjali is but a droplet from his vast ocean of work.
When the English translation of Gitanjali was published, it astounded and captivated the literary world of Europe. This very work brought home to Bengal the garland of global recognition — the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1913. His thoughts were deeply connected with the changing times and society. Be it short stories, novels, plays, or essays, he excelled in every form.
The musical soul of modern Bengal is a gift from him. Just as one cannot hold the sea in a cup, or clasp the sky in a fist, so too is it impossible to encompass Tagore’s genius in a single gathering. Until an even greater mind appears in the future, he remains the highest beacon of Bengali intellect.
Dear audience,
Rabindranath helped us break free from narrow regionalism and embrace a broader, international outlook. Civilisation, he believed, is not the property of one nation—it belongs to all of humanity. Though he loved his motherland deeply, he was a citizen of the world. Nothing pained him more than narrow thinking, blind beliefs, and petty prejudices.
In the hearts of Bengalis, and in the realm of our literature and culture, this extraordinary soul holds an eternal place. As Bengalis, it is our great fortune and immense pride to call him our own. Therefore, the observance of Rabindra Jayanti is not merely a remembrance of the poet—it is a call to awaken our inner consciousness, to move towards humanity, and to be inspired by universal values.
Because the man born on this day was not just a poet—he was a lover of humankind, a lover of the world—the universally adored, sovereign poet: Rabindranath Tagore.
Thank you, everyone.