A hundred years of Anandabazar Patrika: In black and white and red

A voice of protest, of struggles and aspirations, Anandabazar Patrika embodied the spirit of a nation in the making, writes Rudrangshu Mukherjee

Legacies are difficult to create, easy to obliterate. Newspapers, usually read over the morning cup of tea, have short memories and are remembered even less by their readers. Thus, the fact that Anandabazar Patrika is one hundred years old is a significant, if overlooked, milestone in the world of Indian journalism and the culture of Bengal.
 
The first edition of this daily appeared on March 13, 1922, which that year was Dol Purnima (Holi in north India). As if to mark the auspiciousness of the day, the first edition was printed in red. The significance of the choice of