Kaliprasanna Singha
Kaliprasanna Singha (; 23 February 1841 – 24 July 1870), well known by his pen name Hootum Pyancha, was a Bengali author, playwright, and philanthropist. His most famous work was the translation of the ancient Hindu epic Mahabharata into Bengali. Singha's book Hootum Pyanchar Naksha (), a compilation of satirical social sketches, is another work that is noted for reflecting Bengalee urban society of the time. He is also remembered as a philanthropist who helped several people and movements in distress. Early life 
Though the exact date of Kaliprasanna Singha's birth is debatable, on 24 February 1840, the Calcutta Courier published the news that celebrations were held on 23 February 1840 on the occasion of the birth of the son of Nandalal Singha of Jorasanko. The confusion about his year of birth is because researchers initially found his death announcement where it was stated that he died at the age of 29 in 1870. However, if the news published in Calcutta Courier, found at a later date, is taken into account, his date of birth would be somewhere near 23 February 1840. Kaliprasanna was born into the renowned  "Singha" family of Jorasanko in North Kolkata. His father, Nandalal Singha, was the son of Jayo Krishno Singha (or Jay Krishna Singha), who was one of the directors of Hindu College, Kolkata. His great grandfather Shantiram Singha (1722 - 1778) established the Jorasanko Singha Family. He left immense wealth for his sons - Pran Krishna (1764 - 1812) and Joy Krishna (1770 - 1820). Joy Krishna was childless for very long, but finally his youngest wife Shibsundari Devi gave birth to their son Nandalal in 1819. In 1846, Nandalal died of cholera when Kaliprasanna was only six years old. A judge of the lower court, Babu Hara Chandra Ghosh, the Singha family's neighbour and a son of Babu Pran Krishna Singha's friend Abhay Charan Ghosh, was appointed as his legal guardian. As tensions arose among his relatives for the family inheritance, Kaliprasanna's mother Trailokyamohini Devi had to fight legal battle against their relatives - for which Kaliprasanna had expressed sadness in Hootum Pyanchar Naksha. In his short span of life (1841–1870), Kaliprasanna was a man of unbelievable versatile qualities. It is said that he had a power to recollect anything that he would see or hear even once, and that too from a very early age. The foundation of the Vidyotsahini Sabha by him at age 14 bears testimony to the abilities of this child prodigy. Ishwarchandra Vidyasagar was astonished to see how this young boy could mingle with so many elderly associates and lead them towards recreational pursuits such as organisation of the theatres. Hootum Pyanchar Naksha is his immortal creation in which he portrayed the picture of the 19th-century babudom in Kolkata. Sunil Gangopadhyay, in his epoch making novel Sei Somoy (Those Days), recreated the same period with Kaliprasanna as the symbolic character, his name in the novel being Nabinkumar. Marriage 
Kaliprasanna married Bhubanmohini, a daughter of Loknath Basu of Bagbazar in 1854, but she died within a few days. Sometime later, Kaliprasanna married Sharatkumari, daughter of Chandranath Basu of Hatibagan, and sister of Prabhas Chandra Basu. Chandranath Basu's wife (presumably Sharatkumari's mother) was a granddaughter of Raja Prasanna Narayan Deb. Education 
Kaliprasanna was admitted to Hindu College, currently known as Presidency University. In 1857 he left college. He continued his education in English, Bengali and Sanskrit at home. He enhanced his English knowledge under the guidance of a European teacher Mr. Kirkpatrick. He had contribution in different fields as an author, editor, a publisher, a philanthropist, a social worker, and a great patron of art, literature and culture. Contributions

Vidyotsahini Sabha and contribution to Bengali Theatre 
Other than his contribution to literature, Kaliprasanna had immense contribution to Bengali theatre too. He established the Vidyotsahini Sabha (a platform for those interested in education) at the age of 15. It was established most probably in 1855. Eminent gentlemen like Kristo Das Pal, Acharya Krishna Kamal Bhattacharya, Peary Chand Mitra, and Radhanath Sikdar were associated with it. Vidyotsahini Sabha was mainly responsible for promoting Hindu theatre, and Vidyotsahini Mancha was set up in 1857 at Kaliprasanna's home. The members of this group performed Shakuntala in 1857. According to a witness, "The performance of 'Sakuntala' at Simla was, however a failure, This is not to be wondered at; for Sakuntala being a masterpiece of dramatic genius, requires versatile and consummate talent for its representation, rarely to be met with in this country." Later on Kaliprasanna enacted the play Benisanhar, which received a warm response and the performance was praised in Samvad Prabhakar. Young Kaliprasanna played the role of Bhanumati, a female character. Later in 1857 itself, Kaliprasanna himself wrote the play Vikramorvashi based on the Sanskrit composition of Kalidas. Kaliprasanna played the role of Pururava. The drama was highly eulogised including the performance of Kaliprasanna as actor. Through Vidyotsahini Sabha he felicitated Michael Madhusudan Dutt for introducing blank verse in Bengali poetry. Kaliprasanna awarded Michael Madhusudan with a certificate and a silver peg. Kaliprasanna also wrote several other plays, such as Babu (1854), Sabitri Satyaban (1858) and Malati Madhab (1856). 