Gagan Harkara

• Name — Gaganchandra Dash • Native Name — গগনচন্দ্র দাস • Birth Name — Gaganchandra Dash • Born — c. 1845 • Birthplace — Commercolly, Bengal, British India • Died — 12 August 1910 • Place of death — Kushtia, Bengal, British India • Occupation — * Poet • composer • postman

Gagan Harkara resided in Kasba village of Kumarkhali Upazila in Kushtia, located in present-day Bangladesh. Employed as a postman at the Shelaidaha Post Office in Kumarkhali, he became popularly known as "Harkara"—a Bengali term that translates to "postman." During Rabindranath Tagore’s extended stays in Shelaidaha, Gagan regularly delivered and collected correspondence on his behalf. Tagore frequently mentioned Gagan in his letters, many of which were later compiled in Chinnapatra, addressed to his niece Indira Devi (Tagore, Chinnapatra).[4] Rabindranath Tagore was also instrumental in introducing Gagan’s work to a broader audience. He first published one of Gagan’s songs in Prabashi Patra, a literary magazine, in the Bengali year 1322 (1915 CE) (Tagore, Prabashi Patra).[2] Furthermore, Tagore’s niece, Sarala Devi Chaudhurani, contributed an essay entitled Lalon Fakir and Gagan to Bharati, a journal affiliated with the Tagore family. In this piece, she included two of Gagan’s notable songs: Ami Kothai Pabo Tare and (O Mon) Asar Mayai Bhule Robe.[2] Tagore is known to have collected Gagan’s songs as early as 1889.