Literature from North East India
Encyclopedia
Literature from North East India refers to literature of Languages of North East India, and also the body of work by English-language writers from this region. North-East India
is an under-represented region in many ways. The troubled political climate, the beautiful landscape and the confluence of various ethnic groups perhaps have given rise to a body of writing that is completely different from Indian English Literature
. North-East India
was a colonial construct and continues to be one by virtue of having a historically difficult relationship with the India
n nation state.
and writings in the Bishnupriya Manipuri language
, that have long traditions of writing and stand on their own with a glorious legacy.
Many writers such as Harekrishna Deka
and Temsula Ao
have expressed discomfit with the term North-East India
and North Eastern writers, respectively. A section also strongly argue that the term is colonial and hence, an artificial construct. There is nothing called a "north-easterner" and the concept is purely geographical; it tends to homogenise an extremely heterogeneous cluster of people as there exists no common history and heritage of the people in North-East India
though formerly the current states of Arunachal Pradesh
, Mizoram
and Meghalaya
used to be constituent states of former Assam
.
Mitra Phukan
, Dhruba Hazarika
, Easterine Iralu, Temsula Ao
, Bhabananda Deka
, Mamang Dai
, Anjum Hasan
, Siddhartha Deb
, Indrani Raimedhi are some English-language writers from North East. Assamese
writer Indira Goswami is the most famous literary figure to emerge from this region.
, Siddhartha Sarma
, Nitoo Das
, Aruni Kashyap
and Uddipana Goswami
. These writers express strong political awareness by addressing issues such as identity and ethnicity; they interrogate the violence that has ravaged their home state Assam due to the tussle between the secessionist militant group ULFA and the Indian government in complex ways.
Discussing the work of the new generation of writers from North East, Preeti Gill says, "Many younger writers continue to grapple with these issues. Having grown up in the shadow of the gun, their desire to analyse the common people’s reaction to insurgency is as strong as ever. A case in point is young author Aruni Kashyap
whose soon-to-be-published first novel, The House with a Thousand Novels seeks to understand why so many educated thinking young men took to the gun. (Interestingly, a number of these are now writing novels and memoirs, like Samudra Gogoi’s A Former ULFA Member’s Memoirs.)"
Literary journal Pratilipi adumbrates the issues that concern writers from North East India in its special feature, "It is tragic that the long-running unrest, violence and terrorism in the North-East has remained a mere digression in the mainstream of the Indian nation-state – ironically, even in the mainstream arts that otherwise come across as very charged and political. The poems by Uddipana Goswami
and six poets translated by Tarun Bhartiya, along with stories by Mitra Phukan
, Srutimala Duara
and Aruni Kashyap
, serve as a reminder that the “North-East” is not a geographical, political unit, but a place of many languages and cultures."
North-East India
Northeast India refers to the easternmost region of India consisting of the contiguous Seven Sister States, Sikkim, and parts of North Bengal...
is an under-represented region in many ways. The troubled political climate, the beautiful landscape and the confluence of various ethnic groups perhaps have given rise to a body of writing that is completely different from Indian English Literature
Indian English literature
Indian English literature refers to the body of work by writers in India who write in the English language and whose native or co-native language could be one of the numerous languages of India. It is also associated with the works of members of the Indian diaspora, such as V.S...
. North-East India
North-East India
Northeast India refers to the easternmost region of India consisting of the contiguous Seven Sister States, Sikkim, and parts of North Bengal...
was a colonial construct and continues to be one by virtue of having a historically difficult relationship with the India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
n nation state.
Debates surrounding the term North East
However, there is no single definition of the phrase Literature from North East India as the diversity of this region defies easy definition. Broadly, this phrase refers mostly to English writing but may also include Assamese LiteratureAssamese literature
Assamese literature is the entire corpus of poetry, novels, short stories, documents and other writings in the Assamese language. It also includes popular ballads in the older forms of the language during its evolution to the contemporary form. The literary heritage of the Assamese language can...
and writings in the Bishnupriya Manipuri language
Bishnupriya Manipuri language
The Bishnupriya or Bishnupriya Manipuri is an Indo-Aryan language spoken in parts of the Indian states of Assam, Tripura, Manipur and others, as well as in Bangladesh, Burma, and other countries.-History and development:...
, that have long traditions of writing and stand on their own with a glorious legacy.
Many writers such as Harekrishna Deka
Harekrishna Deka
Harekrishna Deka was formerly a member of the Indian Police Service before taking writing full time. He was the Director General of Police for Assam ....
and Temsula Ao
Temsula Ao
Temsula Ao is a poet, short story writer and ethnographer. She is a retired Professor of English in North Eastern Hill University , where she has taught since 1975.-Biography:...
have expressed discomfit with the term North-East India
North-East India
Northeast India refers to the easternmost region of India consisting of the contiguous Seven Sister States, Sikkim, and parts of North Bengal...
and North Eastern writers, respectively. A section also strongly argue that the term is colonial and hence, an artificial construct. There is nothing called a "north-easterner" and the concept is purely geographical; it tends to homogenise an extremely heterogeneous cluster of people as there exists no common history and heritage of the people in North-East India
North-East India
Northeast India refers to the easternmost region of India consisting of the contiguous Seven Sister States, Sikkim, and parts of North Bengal...
though formerly the current states of Arunachal Pradesh
Arunachal Pradesh
Arunachal Pradesh is a state of India, located in the far northeast. It borders the states of Assam and Nagaland to the south, and shares international borders with Burma in the east, Bhutan in the west, and the People's Republic of China in the north. The majority of the territory is claimed by...
, Mizoram
Mizoram
Mizoram is one of the Seven Sister States in North Eastern India, sharing borders with the states of Tripura, Assam, Manipur and with the neighbouring countries of Bangladesh and Burma. Mizoram became the 23rd state of India on 20 February 1987. Its capital is Aizawl. Mizoram is located in the...
and Meghalaya
Meghalaya
Meghalaya is a state in north-eastern India. The word "Meghalaya" literally means the Abode of Clouds in Sanskrit and other Indic languages. Meghalaya is a hilly strip in the eastern part of the country about 300 km long and 100 km wide, with a total area of about 8,700 sq mi . The...
used to be constituent states of former Assam
Assam
Assam , also, rarely, Assam Valley and formerly the Assam Province , is a northeastern state of India and is one of the most culturally and geographically distinct regions of the country...
.
Recent interest in Literature from North East India
Since 2008, national magazines and journals have taken unprecedented amount of interest in writings from this region. Several national news magazines have featured special issues on writers from North East. The profusion of literature from North East has also generated immense interest within and outside the nation.Mitra Phukan
Mitra Phukan
Mitra Phukan is an Indian author who writes in English. She is also a translator and columnist. She is the author of The Collector's Wife , a novel set against the Assam Agitation of the 1970s and 80s. The Collector's Wife was the one of the first generation novels in English written by an...
, Dhruba Hazarika
Dhruba Hazarika
Dhruba Hazarika is an Indian novelist who writes in English and hails from Assam. He is the author of A Bow String Winter. He lives in Guwahati.-Early life and education:...
, Easterine Iralu, Temsula Ao
Temsula Ao
Temsula Ao is a poet, short story writer and ethnographer. She is a retired Professor of English in North Eastern Hill University , where she has taught since 1975.-Biography:...
, Bhabananda Deka
Bhabananda Deka
Prof Bhabananda Deka , is a multi-faceted writer of one hundred twelve books, textbooks on economics, literature and political science, and articles from Assam, a state in the north-eastern part of India.-Biography:...
, Mamang Dai
Mamang Dai
Mamang Dai is an Indian journalist, author, poet, and former civil servant based in Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh.-Literary career:Mamang Dai's first collection of poetry, River Poems, introduced by Keki Daruwalla established her as a major voice in Indian English Literature and Literature from...
, Anjum Hasan
Anjum Hasan
Anjum Hasan is an Indian poet and novelist. She was born in Shillong, Meghalaya and currently lives in Bangalore, Karnataka, India.Street on the Hill was her debut collection of poems. Her debut novel Lunatic in my Head was shortlisted for the Crossword Book Award 2007...
, Siddhartha Deb
Siddhartha Deb
Siddhartha Deb is an Indian author who was born in Meghalaya and grew up in Shillong in northeastern India. He was educated in India and at Columbia University, USA. His first novel, The Point of Return, is semi-autobiographical in nature and is set in a fictional hill-station that closely...
, Indrani Raimedhi are some English-language writers from North East. Assamese
Assamese people
The Assamese people are a well-defined subgroup of People of Assam. Though sometimes they are defined as the Assamese-speaking Indo-Aryans of the Brahmaputra valley,, this definition is not legally binding...
writer Indira Goswami is the most famous literary figure to emerge from this region.
Critical Responses
The younger generation of English-language writers From North-East India include Jahnavi BaruaJahnavi Barua
Jahnavi Barua is an Indian author from Assam. She is the author of Next Door, a critically acclaimed collection of short stories set in Assam with insurgency as the background.She lives in Bangalore, and is a doctor....
, Siddhartha Sarma
Siddhartha Sarma
Siddhartha Sarma is an Indian English novelist and journalist from Assam.Sarma is the author of the young adult novel The Grasshopper's Run It has been set against the Second World War and is set in Assam and Nagaland and follows the friendship between a Naga and Assamese boy. It won the 2009...
, Nitoo Das
Nitoo Das
Nitoo Das is an Indian English poet from Assam and lives in Delhi. She teaches literature at Indraprashtha College for Women, University of Delhi....
, Aruni Kashyap
Aruni Kashyap
Aruni Kashyap is an Indian English writer. He grew up in Guwahati and studied at St. Stephen's College, Delhi. He works as the Assistant Editor of Yaatra : The Journal of Assamese Literature and Culture. An excerpt from his forthcoming novel set against the secret-killings of Assam was published...
and Uddipana Goswami
Uddipana Goswami
Uddipana Goswami is an Indian poet, academic, editor, author and media consultant. She is from Assam, India.She is the author of the poetry collection We Called the River Read : Poems from a Violent Homeland...
. These writers express strong political awareness by addressing issues such as identity and ethnicity; they interrogate the violence that has ravaged their home state Assam due to the tussle between the secessionist militant group ULFA and the Indian government in complex ways.
Discussing the work of the new generation of writers from North East, Preeti Gill says, "Many younger writers continue to grapple with these issues. Having grown up in the shadow of the gun, their desire to analyse the common people’s reaction to insurgency is as strong as ever. A case in point is young author Aruni Kashyap
Aruni Kashyap
Aruni Kashyap is an Indian English writer. He grew up in Guwahati and studied at St. Stephen's College, Delhi. He works as the Assistant Editor of Yaatra : The Journal of Assamese Literature and Culture. An excerpt from his forthcoming novel set against the secret-killings of Assam was published...
whose soon-to-be-published first novel, The House with a Thousand Novels seeks to understand why so many educated thinking young men took to the gun. (Interestingly, a number of these are now writing novels and memoirs, like Samudra Gogoi’s A Former ULFA Member’s Memoirs.)"
Literary journal Pratilipi adumbrates the issues that concern writers from North East India in its special feature, "It is tragic that the long-running unrest, violence and terrorism in the North-East has remained a mere digression in the mainstream of the Indian nation-state – ironically, even in the mainstream arts that otherwise come across as very charged and political. The poems by Uddipana Goswami
Uddipana Goswami
Uddipana Goswami is an Indian poet, academic, editor, author and media consultant. She is from Assam, India.She is the author of the poetry collection We Called the River Read : Poems from a Violent Homeland...
and six poets translated by Tarun Bhartiya, along with stories by Mitra Phukan
Mitra Phukan
Mitra Phukan is an Indian author who writes in English. She is also a translator and columnist. She is the author of The Collector's Wife , a novel set against the Assam Agitation of the 1970s and 80s. The Collector's Wife was the one of the first generation novels in English written by an...
, Srutimala Duara
Srutimala Duara
Srutimala Duara is a bilingual writer from Assam, India. She writes in English and Assamese.The Sunset and Other Stories , Waiting for the Last Breath , The Jhoolan Evening are her short story collections in English.Traveling with Dreams , Maya's Party and Ashes in the...
and Aruni Kashyap
Aruni Kashyap
Aruni Kashyap is an Indian English writer. He grew up in Guwahati and studied at St. Stephen's College, Delhi. He works as the Assistant Editor of Yaatra : The Journal of Assamese Literature and Culture. An excerpt from his forthcoming novel set against the secret-killings of Assam was published...
, serve as a reminder that the “North-East” is not a geographical, political unit, but a place of many languages and cultures."
List of writers from North-East India
- Anuradha Sharma PujariAnuradha Sharma PujariAnuradha Sharma Pujari is an influential Assamese journalist and author. She is the editor or Sadin and Satsori. Her contributions to Assamese literature include fiction and essays. She is editor of the Assamese monthly magazine Satsari and the highest circulated Assamese weekly SAADIN . She lives...
- Arjun ChoudhuriArjun ChoudhuriArjun Choudhuri is a poet, translator and researcher from Silchar, Assam . He was born in 1984 at Silchar to Arup Choudhuri and Swarnali Choudhuri and even now lives there with his family....
- Anjum HasanAnjum HasanAnjum Hasan is an Indian poet and novelist. She was born in Shillong, Meghalaya and currently lives in Bangalore, Karnataka, India.Street on the Hill was her debut collection of poems. Her debut novel Lunatic in my Head was shortlisted for the Crossword Book Award 2007...
- Aruni KashyapAruni KashyapAruni Kashyap is an Indian English writer. He grew up in Guwahati and studied at St. Stephen's College, Delhi. He works as the Assistant Editor of Yaatra : The Journal of Assamese Literature and Culture. An excerpt from his forthcoming novel set against the secret-killings of Assam was published...
- Arupa Kalita PatangiaArupa Kalita PatangiaArupa Kalita Patangia is a popular Assamese novelist and an English literature teacher based in Darrang, Assam, India. She completed her graduation with English Honors from Debraj Roy College, Golaghat under Dibrugarh University. She is the author of over several novels and more than half a dozen...
- Amulya BaruaAmulya BaruaAmulya Barua was a pioneer of modern Assamese poetry. He was born at Jorhat on June 30, 1922. In 1941, he passed matriculation examination from Jorhat Govt High School with letter marks in Assamese and in 1945 he passed his B.A. examination from Jagannath Barooah College, Jorhat. Then he went to...
- Atul Chandra HazarikaAtul Chandra HazarikaAtul Chandra Hazarika was a prominent Assamese litterateur from Assam. He excelled as a poet, dramatist, children story writer and translator...
- Banikanta KakatiBanikanta KakatiBanikanta Kakati was a prominent literary figure, critic and scholar in Assamese language with his immense contribution to the language in terms of literature, linguistics, cultural anthropology and comparative religion.-Biography:...
- Bhabananda DekaBhabananda DekaProf Bhabananda Deka , is a multi-faceted writer of one hundred twelve books, textbooks on economics, literature and political science, and articles from Assam, a state in the north-eastern part of India.-Biography:...
- Bhabendra Nath SaikiaBhabendra Nath SaikiaDr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia was a novelist, short story writer and film director from Assam. He had a PhD in Nuclear Physics from the University of London and later taught at Gauhati University. He won many literary awards, including Sahitya Academy , and was also recognised with the Padma...
- Birendra Kumar BhattacharyaBirendra Kumar BhattacharyaDr. Birendra Kumar Bhattacharya was a famous Indian writer and one of the pioneers of modern Assamese Literature. He was first ever recipient of the Jnanpith Award given to an Assamese writer, in the year 1979 for his novel Mrityunjay...
- Brajanath SarmaBrajanath SarmaBrajanath Sarma was a playwright, actor and a pioneer of Mobile Theater of Assam, India.-Biography:Brajanath Sarma, also called Natyacharjya was born in the village Shila in the Bajali Area of current Barpeta District of Assam. His father was Padmanath and mother, Nareswari...
- Daisy HasanDaisy HasanDaisy Hasan is an Indian-English author from Shillong, Meghalaya and is the author of The To-Let House. It was longlisted for the Man Asian Literary Prize 2008....
- Dhrubajyoti BoraDhrubajyoti BoraDhrubajyoti Bora is an Assamese writer based in Guwahati and is a doctor by profession. A literary career spanning around three decades, he has published many critically acclaimed works of non-fiction and fiction. He also write travelogue.-Career:He is one of the most powerful voices in...
- Dhruba HazarikaDhruba HazarikaDhruba Hazarika is an Indian novelist who writes in English and hails from Assam. He is the author of A Bow String Winter. He lives in Guwahati.-Early life and education:...
- Dimbeswar Neog
- Easterine Iralu
- Harekrishna DekaHarekrishna DekaHarekrishna Deka was formerly a member of the Indian Police Service before taking writing full time. He was the Director General of Police for Assam ....
- Homen BorgohainHomen BorgohainHomen Borgohain is an Indian writer, poet, critic, columnist and editor in the Assamese language. He was awarded the 1978 Sahitya Akademi Award in Assamese language for his novel, Pita Putra....
- Indrani Raimedhi
- Irom Chanu SharmilaIrom Chanu SharmilaIrom Sharmila Chanu , also known as the "Iron Lady of Manipur" or "Menghoubi" is a civil rights activist, political activist, and poet from the Indian state of Manipur...
- Jahnavi BaruaJahnavi BaruaJahnavi Barua is an Indian author from Assam. She is the author of Next Door, a critically acclaimed collection of short stories set in Assam with insurgency as the background.She lives in Bangalore, and is a doctor....
- Jogesh DasJogesh DasJogesh Das is an eminent short-story writer as well as a novelist from Assam. He was born in 1927. He won the Sahitya Akademi Award for his book Prithivir Oxukh...
- Jyoti Prasad AgarwalaJyoti Prasad AgarwalaJyoti Prasad Agarwala was a great Assamese playwright, songwriter, poet, writer and film maker from Assam. He was considered as Assamese cultural icon, deeply revered for his creative vision and output and is popularly called the Rupkonwar of Assamese culture...
- Krishna Kanta HandiqueKrishna Kanta HandiqueKrishna Kanta Handique was a Sanskrit scholar, an Indologist and philanthropist from Assam.-Biography:...
- Kaberi Rajkhowa
- Laxminath BezbaruaLaxminath BezbaruaLakshminath Bezbaruah was a great Assamese personality in Assamese literature. He gave a new impetus to the Assamese literature that had stagnated for some time and enriched it through his essays, plays, fiction and poetry. As a sensitive artist he responded to the influences of social environment...
- Mamang DaiMamang DaiMamang Dai is an Indian journalist, author, poet, and former civil servant based in Itanagar, Arunachal Pradesh.-Literary career:Mamang Dai's first collection of poetry, River Poems, introduced by Keki Daruwalla established her as a major voice in Indian English Literature and Literature from...
- Mamoni Raisom GoswamiMamoni Raisom GoswamiIndira Goswami , known by her pen name Mamoni Raisom Goswami and popularly as Mamoni Baideo, was an Assamese editor, poet, professor, scholar and writer....
- Mithinga DaimaryMithinga DaimaryMithinga Daimary was the Central Publicity Secretary of the banned outfit ULFA since the previous publicity secretary Siddhartha Phukan's surrender in 1992. He was born in Barama village in Nalbari district of Assam on May 17, 1967 with the birth name Jatin Das.-Education:Daimary joined B Barooah...
- Mitra PhukanMitra PhukanMitra Phukan is an Indian author who writes in English. She is also a translator and columnist. She is the author of The Collector's Wife , a novel set against the Assam Agitation of the 1970s and 80s. The Collector's Wife was the one of the first generation novels in English written by an...
- Nitoo DasNitoo DasNitoo Das is an Indian English poet from Assam and lives in Delhi. She teaches literature at Indraprashtha College for Women, University of Delhi....
- Padmanath Gohain BaruahPadmanath Gohain BaruahPadmanath Gohain Baruah was the first president of Axom Xahitya Xabha and a prominent name in the early part of modern Assamese literature.-See also:* Assamese literature* Mahapurusha Srimanta Sankardeva* Jyoti Prasad Agarwala...
- Phani SarmaPhani SarmaPhani Sarma was an Assamese theatre actor, playwright, film actor and director. Beginning as a stage actor, he appeared in the first film ever made in Assamese cinema, Joymati...
- Rita ChowdhuryRita ChowdhuryDr. Rita Chowdhury is an established poet, novelist and also Sahitya Akademi Award recipient in the world of Assamese literature. She is presently working as a Senior Lecturer in Cotton College, Guwahati, Assam in Political Science Department...
- Srutimala DuaraSrutimala DuaraSrutimala Duara is a bilingual writer from Assam, India. She writes in English and Assamese.The Sunset and Other Stories , Waiting for the Last Breath , The Jhoolan Evening are her short story collections in English.Traveling with Dreams , Maya's Party and Ashes in the...
- Siddhartha SarmaSiddhartha SarmaSiddhartha Sarma is an Indian English novelist and journalist from Assam.Sarma is the author of the young adult novel The Grasshopper's Run It has been set against the Second World War and is set in Assam and Nagaland and follows the friendship between a Naga and Assamese boy. It won the 2009...
- Srutimala DuaraSrutimala DuaraSrutimala Duara is a bilingual writer from Assam, India. She writes in English and Assamese.The Sunset and Other Stories , Waiting for the Last Breath , The Jhoolan Evening are her short story collections in English.Traveling with Dreams , Maya's Party and Ashes in the...
- Dilip Kumar Bhattacharya
See also
- Indian LiteratureIndian literatureIndian literature refers to the literature produced on the Indian subcontinent until 1947 and in the Republic of India thereafter. The Republic of India has 22 officially recognized languages....
- Indian English LiteratureIndian English literatureIndian English literature refers to the body of work by writers in India who write in the English language and whose native or co-native language could be one of the numerous languages of India. It is also associated with the works of members of the Indian diaspora, such as V.S...
- Stephanian School of LiteratureStephanian School of LiteratureStephanian School of Literature refers to a body of fictional works written in English, mostly novels written by the alumni of St. Stephen's College, Delhi....
- Insurgency in Northeast India
- Bhabananda DekaBhabananda DekaProf Bhabananda Deka , is a multi-faceted writer of one hundred twelve books, textbooks on economics, literature and political science, and articles from Assam, a state in the north-eastern part of India.-Biography:...
- Irom Chanu SharmilaIrom Chanu SharmilaIrom Sharmila Chanu , also known as the "Iron Lady of Manipur" or "Menghoubi" is a civil rights activist, political activist, and poet from the Indian state of Manipur...
- ULFA