Putul Nacher Itikatha (The Story of the Puppet Dance) is arguably the greatest novel by Manik Bandopadhya (19 May 1908 – 3 December 1956). It deals with dense and inner psychological world of human beings. Kusum, Sashi Doctor and other characters tells us a complex story of never-ending quests of human desires.

Set in rural Bengal, this novel is rich with tonalities and textures familiar to that kind of settings. Based on the sensitive political situation of the post war period, Putul Nacher Itikatha is not the story of a single individual, as a victim of the contemporary situation. Rather Putul Nacher Itikatha delineates the condition of different individual, depicting the variety of life in rural Bengal. Not even the individuals, the savage hypocrisy and the dark alleyways of human psychology stands as a protagonist of the novel, Putul Nacher Itikatha. The touchy topic of hypocrisy in the village, where an elderly couple is consecrated as saints after committing morphine induced suicide. Hypocrisy was more intensified when a village girl was married to an affluent businessman, who treats him as a kept woman. To satisfy her husband, she attired herself in the robe of a "keep" and has developed the habit of drinking. Being completely used by her husband when she came back to her village home, to find out a shadow of her former self she had to endure the comments of the pretentious villagers inflicting her as corrupted women.(less)

Manik Bandopadhyay's writing was inspired by both Marxian philosophy and Freudian philosophy - which are quite contrasting in nature. His writing stands in stark contrast to that of other contemporary luminaries like Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay who portrayed life in rural Bengal in a gentle, lyrical light

Manik Bandopadhyay's writing was inspired by both Marxian philosophy and Freudian philosophy - which are quite contrasting in nature. His writing stands in stark contrast to that of other contemporary luminaries like Bibhutibhushan Bandopadhyay who portrayed life in rural Bengal in a gentle, lyrical light

Shortly after making his debut in the world of fiction in 1935 through a short story titled Atshi Mami, Manik Bandopadhay embarked upon writing novels. Publication of Diba-Ratrir Kabya in 1935 and Padma Nadir Majhi and Putul Nacher Itikotha in 1936 established him as the most notable novelist Bengali literature since Bankimchandra, Rabindranath and Saratchandra. He distinguished himself with focus on the life of ordinary rural and urban people, with colloquial language and with a neat narrative. He was a great storyteller who perfected his fiction with insight into human mind. In the earlier works he took a Freudian approach. In the later life, he showed influence of Marxist theory. His treatment of human sexuality in Chatushkone is path-breaking.