We know that Dr Ambedkar is the father of the Indian Constitution but how many of us know that this huge constitution is handwritten. No instrument was used to write the whole constitution. Prem Bihari Narayan Rayzada, a resident of Delhi, wrote this huge book - the entire constitution - in italic style, with his own hands.
Prem Bihari was a famous calligraphy writer of that time. He was born on 16 Dec 1901 in the family of a renowned handwriting researcher in Delhi. He lost his parents at a young age. His grandfather Ram Prasad was a calligrapher, who was a scholar of Persian and English. He taught Persian to high-ranking officials of the British government.
The grandfather used to teach calligraphy art to Prem Bihari from an early age to acquire beautiful handwriting. After graduating from St Stephen's College, Delhi, Prem Bihari started practicing calligraphy art, learnt from his grandfather. Gradually, he began to be known for his beautiful handwriting. When the constitution was ready for printing, the then PM of India, Jawaharlal Nehru summoned Prem Bihari. Nehru wanted the constitution to be in handwritten calligraphy, in italic letters.
When asked as to how much he required as payment for the work, his reply to the PM was, "Not a single penny. By the grace of God, I have all the things and I am quite happy with my life". And then he made a request to the PM, "I have one request - that on every page of the constitution I will write my name and on the last page, I will write my name along with my grandfather's name". The PM accepted his request. He was provided with an accommodation while writing the constitution.
On 29 Nov 1949, before beginning to write, Prem Bihari went to Santhiniketan to discuss the details about the manner in filling up each page with the famous painter, Nandalal Basu. Without obscuring the contents, the gaps in each page have been filled with impeccable imagery that encompassed a pictorial representation of the history and geography of India - according to the content and paragraphs of the constitution! Prem Bihari needed 432 pen holders and nib number 303. The nibs were brought from England and Czechoslovakia. 251 pages of parchment paper were used to write the constitution and he took six long months in a room in the Constitution Hall of India, to finish his work. The weight of the constitution is 3 kg 650 gm. The document is 22 inches long and 16 inches wide.
Prem Bihari died on 17 Feb 1986. The original book of the Indian Constitution is now preserved in the library of the Parliament House, Delhi. Later, a few books were published in print under the supervision of the Survey of India, Dehradun.
Tailpiece.
Got up around a half past 6, the chores and was ready by a 10' to 10. It was a thoroughly wet day during the entire forenoon.
It turned out to be bright and sunny from the lunchtime onward but we'd to go through the misery of a long power interruption.
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