FEAR AND LOATHING IN UPPER ASSAM
In these stories set in the villages of the region, ordinary people try to live normal lives while sandwiched between the state and insurgents
individual lives upended or damaged by strife, but multiple perspectives strung together — stories of human suffering that transcend cultural identity. Fear and loss treat all as equals, their ethnic affiliation notwithstanding.
In The Relief Grant, the lives of Runa and her parents (who are Santhals) are thrown in turmoil when years after the losses incurred in the ethnic clashes of 1997, the villagers finally get compensation from the state. The village headmen refuse to pay a chunk of it to the militants and find themselves in jail under false charges. For Runa, it means giving up school and making long, endless journeys to see her father in prison.
Urmila, a middle-aged artisan, and her brother’s family, of the Rabha tribe, deal with a personal tragedy in The Stranger while still recovering from the physical and emotional trauma they suffered during the BodoSanthal riots of the 1990s. The story stands out not just for its unexpected ending, but also for the relatable family at its core — bound together by past grudges and filial ties. Surprisingly, its subject matter does not weigh down this collection or make it a depressing read. Peace Has Come allows the reader to experience the kind of the delight that comes from reading about places and cultures she might not know well, and accessing experiences that can only be felt by losing herself and her prejudices in a story well told.
Supriya Sharma is an independent journalist