Suresh Biswas

Suresh Biswas (1861 – 22 September 1905) was a 19th-century adventurer from India. He also gained high acclaim as a ringmaster, showing his prowess with big cats such as lions and tigers. He also came to be known for his military exploits in the Battle of Niterói. family engaged mostly in agriculture to Girish Chandra Biswas, Suresh spent a wild childhood, fighting feral cats and dogs, fishing, joining in hunts, and risking life and limb in every conceivable way.

Career and adventures After working for a short while at Calcutta's Spence's hotel as a kind of tourist guide, Suresh decided to stow away on a ship for Rangoon, and worked as a timber camp care taker in the Taungoo forest for a while. Biswas had travelled to England as a stowaway at the age of seventeen. After he arrived in England he drifted through several occupations, before becoming an animal trainer in a circus in Kent. He travelled with the circus to Hamburg. After that, he migrated first to United States in 1885. From there he moved to South America with the tiger and two lions which he had received from Karl Hagenbeck, an animal expert from Hamburg, Germany. Firstly, to Argentina and then finally, to Brazil, being the first Bengali to do so.

He was invited by "The Carlo Brothers’ Equestrian Company and Zoological Marvel" of Argentina to perform with the tiger and lions.

Biswas's career ended in the most abrupt way as he died at only age of 44 on 22 September 1905 in Rio de Janeiro.

Though there is little evidence on Biswas's life — only six letters that he wrote to his uncle, Kailash Chandra and some recently excavated circus posters and social records — Suresh Biswas has been the subject of a renewed interest as evidenced by the reprint of his 1899 biography in 2018. It includes an essay by Maria Barrera-Agarwal which provides evidence that validate Biswas's claims. A research-driven biopic-screenplay by Indranil Chakravarty has been published from Australia. A detailed discussion of Biswas' context, and an examination of the biographical sources has been published from New Zealand. Chakravarty presents Biswas's life-narrative "as a non-Western, non-elite 19th century cosmopolitan, thereby constructing a counter-narrative to the dominant discourse of cosmopolitanism as a matter of exclusive Western, elite privilege".

References in later culture Biswas was mentioned in Satyajit Ray's novel "Chhinnamastar Abhishap" (Trans: The Curse of the Goddess), featuring the fictional detective, Feluda and also in "Du Chakay Duniya" by first Indian globe trotter Bimal Mukherjee. Bengali Comics strip creator Mayukh Chowdhury created a Bengali comics named 'Bangadesher Ranga' on him featuring him in the midst of the jungles in Brazil. Satyajit Ray also, mentions him in one other short story, "Anko Sir, Golapi Babu ar Tipu". Colonel Suresh Biswas's name was also referred in the short story "Biswas Moshai" by Banaful (Balai Chand Mukhopadhyay). Also,‌ he was mentioned in writer Hemendra Kumar Roy's story "Surjo Nogorir Gupotodhon", which belongs to Hemendra Kumar's Bimal-Kumar series.

Suresh Biswas is also mentioned in Subhas Chandra Bose autobiography.