Manoranjan Byapari is the author of the notable memoir, Itibritte Chandal Jiban. He spent his childhood in refugee camps, ran away from poverty-stricken home at the age of 16, and his experience around India was strained with abuse and exploitation. On his return to the Calcutta of 1970s he got involved in the Naxal movement and political killings. While in prison, at the age of 24 he was taught Bengali. On being released, he worked as a rickshawala and ferried author Mahasweta Devi, who helped and inspired him to become a writer.
