Ram Chandra Chatterjee
Encyclopedia
Ram Chandra Chatterjee was an Indian acrobat
, gymnast
, balloonist, parachutist and patriot
. He was the first Indian to fly in a balloon and land in a parachute. He was also the first Indian to take up ballooning as a profession. His daring acts with the balloon and the parachute made him an immortal hero of the nation.
, the founder of Hindu Mela. He was a flying trapeze
player. Later he became the director of Great United Indian Circus Company. He also worked as teacher of gymnastics in the Government Normal School.
.
The flight was reported in all the local newspapers and he was heralded as the first Indian aeronaut. Chatterjee was sponsored by Gopal Chandra Mukherjee, the maternal grandson of Jatindramohan Tagore
, the landlord of Pathuriaghata
and M. Mullick. After the successful flight Chatterjee announced his intention to run a balloon of his own and to make an extensive tour of India.
. The account of the trip was published in The Bengalee on 11 May.
. A capacity crowd of 10,000 had gathered to witness the spectacular event. But due to insufficient filling or poor quality of the gas, the balloon failed to take off, even when all the ballasts were completely removed from the basket. As a true professional, he decided not to dishearten the crowd. He, therefore, detached the basket and clung to the steel hoof and made the ascent. It was a daring act, as without the basket the descent was extremely treacherous, but with his courage and pluck he was able to land with ease.
and Yogindranath Sarkar. After the successful descent in a parachute, Chatterjee was given a public reception.
In November 1890, he made an ascent from Tis Hazari in Delhi
and descended in the parachute, which earned him a prestigious reward from Nawab Jalal-ud-Dowlah Muhammad Mumtiaz Ali Khan. He repeated his feat on 8 March 1891 in Lahore
and then in Rawalpindi
. At his next stop in Indore
he performed his feat on November, 1891 at the request of the Maharaja of Indore in presence of the Viceroy. He followed it up in Agra
on February, 1892 and Varanasi
on April, 1892.
The third Indian balloonist happened to be Jogesh Chandra Chaudhuri, the famous barrister, professor at the Metropolitan College and son-in-law of Surendranath Banerjee. He was the first Indian to make an ascent for scientific purposes.
Major Harry Hobbs, a long-time resident of Kolkata has mentioned in his memoirs that Ram Chandra Chatterjee's daughter was also as plucky as her father and she also flew balloons several times.
Acrobatics
Acrobatics is the performance of extraordinary feats of balance, agility and motor coordination. It can be found in many of the performing arts, as well as many sports...
, gymnast
Gymnastics
Gymnastics is a sport involving performance of exercises requiring physical strength, flexibility, agility, coordination, and balance. Internationally, all of the gymnastic sports are governed by the Fédération Internationale de Gymnastique with each country having its own national governing body...
, balloonist, parachutist and patriot
Patriotism
Patriotism is a devotion to one's country, excluding differences caused by the dependencies of the term's meaning upon context, geography and philosophy...
. He was the first Indian to fly in a balloon and land in a parachute. He was also the first Indian to take up ballooning as a profession. His daring acts with the balloon and the parachute made him an immortal hero of the nation.
Early life
Ram Chandra Chatterjee was a resident of Kansaripara, in the locality of Shimulia in North Kolkata. He started his career as an acrobat in the National Circus Company of Nabagopal MitraNabagopal Mitra
Nabagopal Mitra was an Indian playwright, poet, essayist, patriot and one of the founding fathers of Hindu nationalism. Along with Rishi Rajnarayan Basu he founded the Hindu Mela, the pioneer institution behind the genesis of Hindu nationalism...
, the founder of Hindu Mela. He was a flying trapeze
Trapeze
A trapeze is a short horizontal bar hung by ropes or metal straps from a support. It is an aerial apparatus commonly found in circus performances...
player. Later he became the director of Great United Indian Circus Company. He also worked as teacher of gymnastics in the Government Normal School.
Interest in Ballooning
When Percival Spencer, a British balloonist arrived in Kolkata for his show, Chatterjee requested him to teach the art of ballooning. Spencer complied and Chatterjee had to pay him five hundred rupees for that.First Flight
He took the first flight with Percival Spencer on 10 April 1889, in the balloon named 'The Viceroy'. The Viceroy was filled with 20,000 cu.ft. of coal gas from a 6 inch gas main under the supervision of D. Coats Niven, the director of the gas company. The balloon took off at 3-30 PM and after an hour's journey they descended at the village of Palpakira-Kazipara, three miles away from BarasatBarasat
Barasat is a city in the outskirts of Kolkata, West Bengal India and is the district head quarter of the district North 24 Parganas. It is a part of the area covered by Kolkata Metropolitan Development Authority. The town is an important railway and roadway junction...
.
The flight was reported in all the local newspapers and he was heralded as the first Indian aeronaut. Chatterjee was sponsored by Gopal Chandra Mukherjee, the maternal grandson of Jatindramohan Tagore
Jatindramohan Tagore
See Tagore for disambiguationJatindramohan Tagore, , Maharaja Bahadur, , was a theatre enthusiast, art-lover, and philanthropist.-Early life:...
, the landlord of Pathuriaghata
Pathuriaghata
Pathuriaghata is a neighbourhood in north Kolkata, earlier known as Calcutta, in the Indian state of West Bengal. It is one of the oldest residential areas in what was Sutanuti. Once the abode of the Bengali rich, the neighbourhood and its surrounding areas are now dominated by Marwaris...
and M. Mullick. After the successful flight Chatterjee announced his intention to run a balloon of his own and to make an extensive tour of India.
First Solo Flight
Thereafter, Chatterjee purchased 'The Viceroy' from Spencer and christened it 'The City of Calcutta'. He also floated the Calcutta Balloonists Company and announced his intention to make the first solo ascent on 27 April 1889. However, due to bad weather the flight was postponed till 4 May. A week later arrived the D-Day. A capacity crowd of 8,000 gathered to witness the spectacular event at the gas works grounds in Narkeldanga. J. Reid, the assistant manager of the gas company supervised the filling of the balloon. Clad in a light suit, with a binocular around his neck Chatterjee waved his cap as the balloon took off at 5-10 PM. After flying for 40 minutes in the northerly direction, he descended at Natagore, a village two miles from SodepurSodepur
Sodepur is a small town yet very fast growing upmarket residencial suburb located about 15 km from Kolkata, which is one of the major Indian cities. Sodepur is a part of the Panihati Municipality under Barrackpore sub-division and North 24 Parganas district of the state of West Bengal...
. The account of the trip was published in The Bengalee on 11 May.
Professional Ballooning
Very soon, Chatterjee decided to embark upon the career of a professional balloonist and launched the Chatterjee's Ballooning Company for the purpose. He made himself open to engagements at any place where gas was available. He intended to visit Allahabad, Lahore, Jaipur, Lucknow, Dhaka and Kashmir.Second Solo Flight
On 27 June 1889, Chatterjee made his second solo ascent in 'The City of Calcutta' from Khusrobagh in AllahabadAllahabad
Allahabad , or Settled by God in Persian, is a major city of India and is one of the main holy cities of Hinduism. It was renamed by the Mughals from the ancient name of Prayaga , and is by some accounts the second-oldest city in India. It is located in the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh,...
. A capacity crowd of 10,000 had gathered to witness the spectacular event. But due to insufficient filling or poor quality of the gas, the balloon failed to take off, even when all the ballasts were completely removed from the basket. As a true professional, he decided not to dishearten the crowd. He, therefore, detached the basket and clung to the steel hoof and made the ascent. It was a daring act, as without the basket the descent was extremely treacherous, but with his courage and pluck he was able to land with ease.
First Parachute Descent
On 22 March 1890, Chatterjee set off in 'The Empress of India', fitted with a parachute from the Tivoli Gardens, near Minto Park in Kolkata at 5-30PM. And then arrived the moment he made history, when he leaped from an altitude of 3,500 ft and land on the parachute. The event was attended by His Excellency, the Amban, the Chinese Ambassador, Percival Spencer, Abanindranath TagoreAbanindranath Tagore
Abanindranath Tagore was the principal artist of the Bengal school and the first major exponent of swadeshi values in Indian art. He was also a noted writer, particularly for children...
and Yogindranath Sarkar. After the successful descent in a parachute, Chatterjee was given a public reception.
Tour of India
The City of Calcutta was not meant for parachuting and Chatterjee therefore procured one for the purpose. He renamed it 'Star of India'.In November 1890, he made an ascent from Tis Hazari in Delhi
Delhi
Delhi , officially National Capital Territory of Delhi , is the largest metropolis by area and the second-largest by population in India, next to Mumbai. It is the eighth largest metropolis in the world by population with 16,753,265 inhabitants in the Territory at the 2011 Census...
and descended in the parachute, which earned him a prestigious reward from Nawab Jalal-ud-Dowlah Muhammad Mumtiaz Ali Khan. He repeated his feat on 8 March 1891 in Lahore
Lahore
Lahore is the capital of the Pakistani province of Punjab and the second largest city in the country. With a rich and fabulous history dating back to over a thousand years ago, Lahore is no doubt Pakistan's cultural capital. One of the most densely populated cities in the world, Lahore remains a...
and then in Rawalpindi
Rawalpindi
Rawalpindi , locally known as Pindi, is a city in the Pothohar region of Pakistan near Pakistan's capital city of Islamabad, in the province of Punjab. Rawalpindi is the fourth largest city in Pakistan after Karachi, Lahore and Faisalabad...
. At his next stop in Indore
Indore
Indore is one of the major city in India, the largest city and commercial center of the state of Madhya Pradesh in central India. Indore is located 190 km west of the state capital Bhopal. According to the 2011 Indian census, Indore city has a population of 1,960,631...
he performed his feat on November, 1891 at the request of the Maharaja of Indore in presence of the Viceroy. He followed it up in Agra
Agra
Agra a.k.a. Akbarabad is a city on the banks of the river Yamuna in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, India, west of state capital, Lucknow and south from national capital New Delhi. With a population of 1,686,976 , it is one of the most populous cities in Uttar Pradesh and the 19th most...
on February, 1892 and Varanasi
Varanasi
-Etymology:The name Varanasi has its origin possibly from the names of the two rivers Varuna and Assi, for the old city lies in the north shores of the Ganga bounded by its two tributaries, the Varuna and the Asi, with the Ganges being to its south...
on April, 1892.
Fatal Accident
He met with a serious accident while performing the show in a native state, when his balloon collided with a hill. He was rushed to Kolkata, where he breathed his last in Gopal Chandra Mukherjee's garden house on 9 August 1892.Legacy
Chatterjee's remarkable feats inspired his compatriots into embracing the new adventure game. Prabodh Chandra Laha ascended the sky alongside Spencer in 'The City of York' on 15 February 1890 from Kolkata. He followed it up with a solo ascent on 8 March in 'The Viceroy of India' which he subsequently purchased from Spencer. Laha made another successful attempt from Kanpur in March 1892.The third Indian balloonist happened to be Jogesh Chandra Chaudhuri, the famous barrister, professor at the Metropolitan College and son-in-law of Surendranath Banerjee. He was the first Indian to make an ascent for scientific purposes.
Major Harry Hobbs, a long-time resident of Kolkata has mentioned in his memoirs that Ram Chandra Chatterjee's daughter was also as plucky as her father and she also flew balloons several times.