Dona Gazi Chowdhury

Dona Gazi Chowdhury one of the major medieval Bangla poets. The autobiographical reference in one of his poems mentions his home as 'Dollai', the present Dolai in the Indian state of Tripura.

Dona Gazi was primarily a poet of romantic love stories. His Saifulmuluk Badiuzzamal is a long narrative love poem, based on a persian version of the arabic Alif-Laila wa Laila. A number of Indian poets had written earlier versions of Saifulmuluk Badiuzzamal, with Mahfil composing a version in Persian. Dona Gazi is believed to have based his version on the Persian text. alaol, as well as Ibrahim and Male Muhammad, also composed poems on the same subject, but Dona Gazi is believed to be the first Bengali poet to have done so.

Dona Gazi described his poem as a 'punthi of separated lovers', but the separation of the lovers is temporary. Though the lovers face several obstacles and though they suffer the pangs of separation, they are finally united. [Wakil Ahmed]