Dawn

by Arupa Patangia Kalita, Ranjita Biswas (translator)

Set in the heady years preceding independence, this is the story of young Binapani growing up in a small Assamese town. Headstrong, stubborn and high-spirited, Binapani is confronted with a world full of confusing why are girls not allowed to study? Why is the nationalist hero, Bullet Kaka hidden away in her grandmother’s shed? Why does Mahendra Barua’s family suffer such humiliation and indignity? Why is the rich Haitha Sarai feted and fawned upon? Why is his daughter tied up and starved in a dark room? Why is the Christian boy, Ratan, an outcaste? Her young mind grapples with countless questions and through it all is the abiding relationship she shares with her old grandmother, Jashodha. Married off to the rich Chaliha whom she has always hated, the ebullient young Bina turns inwards, seeking an inner strength and calm and makes her home ‘an abode of peace’.

366 pages, Kindle Edition

Published June 17, 2024

About the author

Arupa Kalita Patangia (aka Arupa Patangia Kalita, Assamese: অৰূপা কলিতা পতংগীয়া) is an Assamese novelists and short story writer and known for her fiction writing in Assamese. Her literary awards include: the Bharatiya Bhasha Parishad award, the Katha Prize and the Prabina Saikia Award. In 2014, she received the prestigious Sahitya Akademi Award for her short stories book named Mariam Austin Othoba Hira Barua.

Arupa completed her Ph.D. from Gauhati University on Pearl S. Buck’s women characters. Arupa Patangia Kalita teaches English at Tangla College, Darrang, Assam.

(from Wikipedia)

Reviews

[Panna Priyam Das · Rating 4 out of 5]

Authentic. Rooted. Beautiful.