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Insider Outsider: Belonging and Unbelonging in North-East India
A compelling and untold bunch of short non-fiction, essays and poems that address the issues faced by the North-Eastern states of India.
The Northeast is a complex mosaic of multiple ethnicities, languages, religions and tribes. Apart from the groups that lay claim to indigeneity, there are minorities here from communities that are majorities elsewhere in the Indian mainland. These are people who are typically viewed as outsiders in the Northeast, though they may have been living there for generations. Theirs is something of a mirror image of the experience of North-Easterners in mainland Indian cities such as Delhi, who have often had to deal with an outsider tag they did not relish, in the capital of a country against which many of the picturesque, remote hills and valleys they called home saw armed insurgencies.
These shared twin experiences of being simultaneously insiders and outsiders is the subject of this anthology. There are scholarly essays as well as personal accounts and a few poems. The result is a delightful mix that opens up a window to a part of the world that is still little-known and poorly understood, whose experiences may shed some light on global issues of migration and citizenship as embodied in the lives of ordinary people.
The Northeast is a complex mosaic of multiple ethnicities, languages, religions and tribes. Apart from the groups that lay claim to indigeneity, there are minorities here from communities that are majorities elsewhere in the Indian mainland. These are people who are typically viewed as outsiders in the Northeast, though they may have been living there for generations. Theirs is something of a mirror image of the experience of North-Easterners in mainland Indian cities such as Delhi, who have often had to deal with an outsider tag they did not relish, in the capital of a country against which many of the picturesque, remote hills and valleys they called home saw armed insurgencies.
These shared twin experiences of being simultaneously insiders and outsiders is the subject of this anthology. There are scholarly essays as well as personal accounts and a few poems. The result is a delightful mix that opens up a window to a part of the world that is still little-known and poorly understood, whose experiences may shed some light on global issues of migration and citizenship as embodied in the lives of ordinary people.
272 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2019
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July 30, 2024
Few Years back I was on a weekend Trekking trip with a diverse group who were all extremely passionate about nature and Mountains. All along the trip to the Starting point of the Trek from the Club, all of them looked excited about the trek and always spoke about how they aspire to trek along the Lush North East mountains and Specifically about Khasi and Jaintia Hills.
On the early morning after the successful completion of the trek, while we were gathered around for the Breakfast, I struck up a conversation with a Young lady who was from Bangalore. She was part of the group that was very vocal about their passion about the North East Landscape. The conversation moved along the Common interest of Nature, Books, Animals and hovered around the Pets. While Sipping the Morning Coffee, Casually she mouthed out " Our Pets are not safe from the North East people who have infested the city". To say that I was shocked would have been a gross understatement. The shock must have shown in my face. So she backed her initial claim by indignantly insisting, " They eat dogs and so they come with bags and kidnap our pets. I have seen one incident that happened in my friends house that was captured in camera. So I keep asking everyone to boycott these guys". This was followed with some not so charitable utterances of catcalls and name throwing about North East people in general. I was reeling with the gross bigotry at her outburst which was wrong at so many levels.
People from the North-Eastern states say that this is about racism, that Indians practice some of the worst forms of racism based on colour and difference in facial features, not to speak of caste, class and gender. This was not a solitary incident. Underlining the ethnic differences to ridicule and insult, name-calling to mark out the ‘other’, beatings, molestations and sexual violations have all been part of the landscape of our cities. Perhaps what is changing slowly is an increasing awareness, especially among the youth from the North-East, that they cannot ignore this, that they need to affirm their rights as Indians. They are here to stay. They come for education and jobs and they have as much of a right to be here as anyone else.
On the other hand, from college days I have seen many defending the AFSPA and few vehemently denouncing as government oppression. One could easily place both and against on the left and right of the argument.
Between the gross bigotry that people from North East state have to face here and the political divide the subject of the Governance in NE evokes, the subject seemed to exist in a limbo. The broader audience never had any idea about the Demography, history or current affairs that went with the NE states.
Few years back I happened to Read Samrat Choudhary's travelogue "The Braided River: A Journey Along the Brahmaputra" which offered a rare view into the Life and History along the lands of Brahmaputra river.
Following that, this book, "Insider Outsider: Belonging and Unbelonging in North-East India" offers a peek into the myriad of the issues that exist in the North east States, ranging from Assam to Arunachal.
It speaks of how the Diverse Population came about after the British, how they created the line that separates the outsiders Vs the insiders and how and why the Bengali's in General, both Hindus and Muslims, are treated as unwanted outsiders by the "Indigenous" and are the at the receiving end of the Violence and Bigotry.
"The Bengali Hindu population of Shillong is the only community in India to have suffered double displacement on communal grounds, twice within a generation."
"In the majoritarian spectrum, if Kashmiri Pandits are the acne of secular India, the Bengali Hindu of Shillong is the genital wart. Nobody knows you have one. Also, unlike Kashmiri Pandits, the Bengali Hindus didn’t stand on the right side of land ownership. There was no legitimacy in our fight. For most Indians, we are part of a majority that had rightfully moved to ‘our country’. In a country like India, ‘minority and majority status’ are not a national standard as they are conveniently made to be but a state variable."
"There is a tendency among regional chauvinists to view the entire Bengali community in North-East India as Bangladeshis. This is unfair, since there were Bengali populations in these lands long before Bangladesh came into existence."
It explains how after the independence the compulsion of political necessity, the state Lines were redrawn multiple times that made the separation of tribal and Non Tribal Groups rigid and thereby drive the fault lines stronger.
In the states of the North-East, widespread anxieties about being reduced to a minority in one’s own ‘homeland’ are often fuelled by politicians and vested interests, and the simmering anger and suspicion is directed at the ‘outsider’. The Bihari labourers, the Punjabi or Marwari traders and shopkeepers, the Bengali clerks or petty officials are easy targets. This is reflected in slogans like ‘Outsiders Go Home’ or derogatory names like ‘vai’ in Mizoram or ‘dkhar’ in Meghalaya. And intermarriage with an outsider, a plains person is seen as one of the worst social offences.
It speaks in the Native voice how the Indian Union treats North East States and how the successive governments have run a reign of Terror after Independence and trample Individual Groups as if they were no citizens of Indian Union allegedly to stop the fault line that was created by the administration in first place.
It also speaks how the Single-minded Oppressive Regimes that successive Congress ran and how the current Regime that in the name of righting the wrongs is further creating the divides ignoring the ground reality that exists.
This question resurfaced strongly in recent times due to the efforts to draw up a National Register of Citizens and debates over the controversial draft Citizenship (Amendment) Bill. The Supreme Court has refused to clarify on this matter of original inhabitants, but the question has not gone away from the public imagination or political life.
The Book is in no way is a conclusive one on the Issue. However, it offers a rare view into the Complex issue that is twisted at both ends.
"The danger in any tale of victimhood is the obverse: victims on the one hand and villains on the other. This is a dangerous and, with rare exceptions, an untrue binary. In order to avoid such a false binary, we have looked at these powerful human stories in a wider context of insider/outsider."
On the early morning after the successful completion of the trek, while we were gathered around for the Breakfast, I struck up a conversation with a Young lady who was from Bangalore. She was part of the group that was very vocal about their passion about the North East Landscape. The conversation moved along the Common interest of Nature, Books, Animals and hovered around the Pets. While Sipping the Morning Coffee, Casually she mouthed out " Our Pets are not safe from the North East people who have infested the city". To say that I was shocked would have been a gross understatement. The shock must have shown in my face. So she backed her initial claim by indignantly insisting, " They eat dogs and so they come with bags and kidnap our pets. I have seen one incident that happened in my friends house that was captured in camera. So I keep asking everyone to boycott these guys". This was followed with some not so charitable utterances of catcalls and name throwing about North East people in general. I was reeling with the gross bigotry at her outburst which was wrong at so many levels.
People from the North-Eastern states say that this is about racism, that Indians practice some of the worst forms of racism based on colour and difference in facial features, not to speak of caste, class and gender. This was not a solitary incident. Underlining the ethnic differences to ridicule and insult, name-calling to mark out the ‘other’, beatings, molestations and sexual violations have all been part of the landscape of our cities. Perhaps what is changing slowly is an increasing awareness, especially among the youth from the North-East, that they cannot ignore this, that they need to affirm their rights as Indians. They are here to stay. They come for education and jobs and they have as much of a right to be here as anyone else.
On the other hand, from college days I have seen many defending the AFSPA and few vehemently denouncing as government oppression. One could easily place both and against on the left and right of the argument.
Between the gross bigotry that people from North East state have to face here and the political divide the subject of the Governance in NE evokes, the subject seemed to exist in a limbo. The broader audience never had any idea about the Demography, history or current affairs that went with the NE states.
Few years back I happened to Read Samrat Choudhary's travelogue "The Braided River: A Journey Along the Brahmaputra" which offered a rare view into the Life and History along the lands of Brahmaputra river.
Following that, this book, "Insider Outsider: Belonging and Unbelonging in North-East India" offers a peek into the myriad of the issues that exist in the North east States, ranging from Assam to Arunachal.
It speaks of how the Diverse Population came about after the British, how they created the line that separates the outsiders Vs the insiders and how and why the Bengali's in General, both Hindus and Muslims, are treated as unwanted outsiders by the "Indigenous" and are the at the receiving end of the Violence and Bigotry.
"The Bengali Hindu population of Shillong is the only community in India to have suffered double displacement on communal grounds, twice within a generation."
"In the majoritarian spectrum, if Kashmiri Pandits are the acne of secular India, the Bengali Hindu of Shillong is the genital wart. Nobody knows you have one. Also, unlike Kashmiri Pandits, the Bengali Hindus didn’t stand on the right side of land ownership. There was no legitimacy in our fight. For most Indians, we are part of a majority that had rightfully moved to ‘our country’. In a country like India, ‘minority and majority status’ are not a national standard as they are conveniently made to be but a state variable."
"There is a tendency among regional chauvinists to view the entire Bengali community in North-East India as Bangladeshis. This is unfair, since there were Bengali populations in these lands long before Bangladesh came into existence."
It explains how after the independence the compulsion of political necessity, the state Lines were redrawn multiple times that made the separation of tribal and Non Tribal Groups rigid and thereby drive the fault lines stronger.
In the states of the North-East, widespread anxieties about being reduced to a minority in one’s own ‘homeland’ are often fuelled by politicians and vested interests, and the simmering anger and suspicion is directed at the ‘outsider’. The Bihari labourers, the Punjabi or Marwari traders and shopkeepers, the Bengali clerks or petty officials are easy targets. This is reflected in slogans like ‘Outsiders Go Home’ or derogatory names like ‘vai’ in Mizoram or ‘dkhar’ in Meghalaya. And intermarriage with an outsider, a plains person is seen as one of the worst social offences.
It speaks in the Native voice how the Indian Union treats North East States and how the successive governments have run a reign of Terror after Independence and trample Individual Groups as if they were no citizens of Indian Union allegedly to stop the fault line that was created by the administration in first place.
It also speaks how the Single-minded Oppressive Regimes that successive Congress ran and how the current Regime that in the name of righting the wrongs is further creating the divides ignoring the ground reality that exists.
This question resurfaced strongly in recent times due to the efforts to draw up a National Register of Citizens and debates over the controversial draft Citizenship (Amendment) Bill. The Supreme Court has refused to clarify on this matter of original inhabitants, but the question has not gone away from the public imagination or political life.
The Book is in no way is a conclusive one on the Issue. However, it offers a rare view into the Complex issue that is twisted at both ends.
"The danger in any tale of victimhood is the obverse: victims on the one hand and villains on the other. This is a dangerous and, with rare exceptions, an untrue binary. In order to avoid such a false binary, we have looked at these powerful human stories in a wider context of insider/outsider."
April 22, 2019
Are you looking out for a realistic nonfiction read that'll open up your eyes to what's going on in the north eastern part of India?Well then read on because this post is exclusively you.
Today's book review is Entitled INSIDER OUTSIDER by preeti Gill and samrat choudhary.
OVERVIEW:
I had a fairly amazing time reading this book. Firstly the concept around which it revolves is very unique and is executed very well.
Kudos to the authors for writing about it & bringing up this issue.
It's a nonfiction read that speaks about the imjust treatment that's done with the people of north eastern India.
It doesn't matter where we belong, we are humans and here we are all Indians who deserve to be treated equally.
The stories in it are based on true incidents and it's really an eye-opening scene when you read all of them, my heart literally bleeds after I read all those stories. On the otherhand it was really nice to read about the culture and the life of North eastern India.
The book was interesting right from page 1, With it's stories and poems it keeps the reader engaged in reading it.
It's a very well researched book, it's something that's going to make you ponder over the troubles that are faced by these people.
The writing style was good, there is a really good use of vocabulary done in this book, yet keeping the language simple and lucid.
The cover and the title are appropriately chosen keeping in mind the interest and curiosity of a reader.
The blurd did do justice to the content inside.
The plot was fresh and strong, however the only drawback of it is that the story takes a slow pace in the between.
This will definitely compel you to get put of your comfort zone and make a better tomorrow for them.
Overall, this was a very interesting and an insightful read. Definitely recommended
Today's book review is Entitled INSIDER OUTSIDER by preeti Gill and samrat choudhary.
OVERVIEW:
I had a fairly amazing time reading this book. Firstly the concept around which it revolves is very unique and is executed very well.
Kudos to the authors for writing about it & bringing up this issue.
It's a nonfiction read that speaks about the imjust treatment that's done with the people of north eastern India.
It doesn't matter where we belong, we are humans and here we are all Indians who deserve to be treated equally.
The stories in it are based on true incidents and it's really an eye-opening scene when you read all of them, my heart literally bleeds after I read all those stories. On the otherhand it was really nice to read about the culture and the life of North eastern India.
The book was interesting right from page 1, With it's stories and poems it keeps the reader engaged in reading it.
It's a very well researched book, it's something that's going to make you ponder over the troubles that are faced by these people.
The writing style was good, there is a really good use of vocabulary done in this book, yet keeping the language simple and lucid.
The cover and the title are appropriately chosen keeping in mind the interest and curiosity of a reader.
The blurd did do justice to the content inside.
The plot was fresh and strong, however the only drawback of it is that the story takes a slow pace in the between.
This will definitely compel you to get put of your comfort zone and make a better tomorrow for them.
Overall, this was a very interesting and an insightful read. Definitely recommended
September 2, 2019
"The Bengali Hindu population of Shillong is the only community in India to have suffered double displacement on communal grounds, twice within a generation. We inherited the collective fate of the Punjabi Hindus of West Pakistan and the Kashmiri Pandits."
The book is a collection of short non fictions. The snippet like nonfictions are stories of partition-migration and continued alienation, and further migration of some of the lesser known communities of India. What makes the read an eye opener is that fact that, the stories of these communities often went unreported in the mainstream. Perhaps, 'nobody' want(s/ed) to side with state minorities who are also the national majority?
Some of the snippets refer to materials/informations, along with references, about the region ( N.E. India in general and Shillong in particular) which are not easily accessible, thus IMO, making it a book to look up to!
The book is a collection of short non fictions. The snippet like nonfictions are stories of partition-migration and continued alienation, and further migration of some of the lesser known communities of India. What makes the read an eye opener is that fact that, the stories of these communities often went unreported in the mainstream. Perhaps, 'nobody' want(s/ed) to side with state minorities who are also the national majority?
Some of the snippets refer to materials/informations, along with references, about the region ( N.E. India in general and Shillong in particular) which are not easily accessible, thus IMO, making it a book to look up to!
November 16, 2021
Insider Outsider proved to be something of a history text book for me. For me, this was an initiation into the history and the politics of the north eastern states of India. I had no clue, for instance, that 220 languages are spoken in the north-eastern states alone.
The aim of this anthology is laudable: ‘to look at the “outsider” and the circumstances under which they also become an “insider” and vice versa’. It is a familiar conundrum in India, where each state is different from the other in its food, rituals, language, customs, but in theory (and largely in practise), movement across states is not restricted. My parents came to one of India’s large metros in search of jobs. They stayed on, married, and had kids. They retain a fond nostalgia for the land of their birth but call this big city their home. As their child, I am not sure where I belong: this city where people identify me as a ‘South Indian’ or my parents’ birthplace where I am a big city oddity who doesn’t speak the language like a local. This is where the similarities end, though.
For the people whose memoirs and stories are captured in this anthology, that question of belonging and otherness has resulted in violence: arson, assault, rape, murder. What makes it worse is the impunity with which the armed forces operate in these states, exacerbating the struggles of the local people.
I found this a necessary and thought-provoking anthology with some memorable pieces. Two of the pieces I found absolutely lovely were the ones by Jahnavi Barua and Mahua Sen, both of which are lyrical and atmospheric and engendered a strange longing for ‘home’ (something amorphous and tangible all at once).
However, it was a little disturbing to read sentences like the ‘fair colouring inherited from Brahmin ancestors’ and the same gentleman’s ‘aristocratic bearing’ in another essay. Caste is firmly entrenched in our subconscious apparently. The anthology is also not representative of all the states in the north east of India. There are a lot of essays that focus on Shillong, so much so that it gets a little repetitive, since the larger socio-political context for different individual stories remains the same. There is also only one narrative that looks at being a Muslim in this region. In that sense, this is a good starting point, but definitely not a comprehensive text.
The anthology also was a little despair-inducing, because as we witness greater resource scarcity, it seems likely that these divisions of insider and outsider will only become sharper and more violent. I tend to agree with Paramjit Bakshi who notes in the essay I, Dkhar, ‘Apart from large metros, the proverbial India of “unity in diversity” is a piece of fiction.’ Unfortunately, even in large metros, religion and caste and belonging are becoming criteria for strife. In that sense, a solution seems far away.
The aim of this anthology is laudable: ‘to look at the “outsider” and the circumstances under which they also become an “insider” and vice versa’. It is a familiar conundrum in India, where each state is different from the other in its food, rituals, language, customs, but in theory (and largely in practise), movement across states is not restricted. My parents came to one of India’s large metros in search of jobs. They stayed on, married, and had kids. They retain a fond nostalgia for the land of their birth but call this big city their home. As their child, I am not sure where I belong: this city where people identify me as a ‘South Indian’ or my parents’ birthplace where I am a big city oddity who doesn’t speak the language like a local. This is where the similarities end, though.
For the people whose memoirs and stories are captured in this anthology, that question of belonging and otherness has resulted in violence: arson, assault, rape, murder. What makes it worse is the impunity with which the armed forces operate in these states, exacerbating the struggles of the local people.
I found this a necessary and thought-provoking anthology with some memorable pieces. Two of the pieces I found absolutely lovely were the ones by Jahnavi Barua and Mahua Sen, both of which are lyrical and atmospheric and engendered a strange longing for ‘home’ (something amorphous and tangible all at once).
However, it was a little disturbing to read sentences like the ‘fair colouring inherited from Brahmin ancestors’ and the same gentleman’s ‘aristocratic bearing’ in another essay. Caste is firmly entrenched in our subconscious apparently. The anthology is also not representative of all the states in the north east of India. There are a lot of essays that focus on Shillong, so much so that it gets a little repetitive, since the larger socio-political context for different individual stories remains the same. There is also only one narrative that looks at being a Muslim in this region. In that sense, this is a good starting point, but definitely not a comprehensive text.
The anthology also was a little despair-inducing, because as we witness greater resource scarcity, it seems likely that these divisions of insider and outsider will only become sharper and more violent. I tend to agree with Paramjit Bakshi who notes in the essay I, Dkhar, ‘Apart from large metros, the proverbial India of “unity in diversity” is a piece of fiction.’ Unfortunately, even in large metros, religion and caste and belonging are becoming criteria for strife. In that sense, a solution seems far away.
August 22, 2025
Profoundly eye opening for someone agnostic to the North East Indian issues. Emotionally draining to read lived experiences of people who feel both deeply rooted and persistently displaced.
April 10, 2020
This is a collection of somewhat badly written but extremely pertinent essays (hence, the 4.0 rating.) I was appalled to discover how little I knew about the North-East and its history. It truly is frustrating how mainland Indian narratives barely address the presence of the North-Eastern region, much less its complexity. The book reveals how mainland India has historically viewed the violence surrounding questions of citizenship, belonging and identity in the North-East, as a fringe issue. That these questions have started taking center stage in mainland India is almost ironic now.
Like I mentioned these essays aren't all well-written but there are a few I'd definitely recommend reading -
- "In Search of Lost Time" by Anindita Dasgupta and Neeta Singh - A brief primer to the ongoing conflict between the native Assamese and the Assamese Bengalis
- "Phenomenon of Impunity" by Thounoujam Brinda - A discussion of Manipur's forced accession into India, the role of AFSPA in creating a hostile land, and the death of Thangjam Manorama by the Assam Rifles - a paramilitary unit that continues to operate with little accountability.
- "Chronicles of a Death Untold" by Mahua Sen - A reflection on how mainstream media and intelligentsia have promoted a narrative of secularism that is hypocritical and exclusive. ("Why does the liberal reasoning that swings in favour of Azad Kashmir despise the average Marathi Shiv Sainik for demanding Bombay for Marathis?" / "Why don't targeted Hindu communities with minority status (in the North East) receive any consideration in the liberal narrative?")
- "How We Got Here" by Samrat - A short history on how the linguistic, religious, ethnic diversity in the North-East has been violently streamlined through multiple conquests and fake historical narratives.
- "Insiders, Outsiders and Those in Between" by Sanjoy Hazarika - Memoir on the slipperiness of identity.
- "Growing up Miyah" by Shalim Hussain - Memoir on the forms of discrimination faced and perpetuated by a Bengali Muslim (Miyahs) who are frequently labeled as "illegal immigrants".
- "Outsiders in Their Own Land" by Suhas Chakma - An introduction to the Chakmas, a Buddhist ethnic tribe, that continues to face discrimination from the Indian State, the state governments and other North-Eastern ethnic groups. (Although the Chakmas have historically lived in the Chhitagong Hills Tract, they have and continue to be denied Indian citizenship.)
Also, worth noting that this book doesn't have all the information you'd need but is definitely a good starting point for an education on the North-East.
Like I mentioned these essays aren't all well-written but there are a few I'd definitely recommend reading -
- "In Search of Lost Time" by Anindita Dasgupta and Neeta Singh - A brief primer to the ongoing conflict between the native Assamese and the Assamese Bengalis
- "Phenomenon of Impunity" by Thounoujam Brinda - A discussion of Manipur's forced accession into India, the role of AFSPA in creating a hostile land, and the death of Thangjam Manorama by the Assam Rifles - a paramilitary unit that continues to operate with little accountability.
- "Chronicles of a Death Untold" by Mahua Sen - A reflection on how mainstream media and intelligentsia have promoted a narrative of secularism that is hypocritical and exclusive. ("Why does the liberal reasoning that swings in favour of Azad Kashmir despise the average Marathi Shiv Sainik for demanding Bombay for Marathis?" / "Why don't targeted Hindu communities with minority status (in the North East) receive any consideration in the liberal narrative?")
- "How We Got Here" by Samrat - A short history on how the linguistic, religious, ethnic diversity in the North-East has been violently streamlined through multiple conquests and fake historical narratives.
- "Insiders, Outsiders and Those in Between" by Sanjoy Hazarika - Memoir on the slipperiness of identity.
- "Growing up Miyah" by Shalim Hussain - Memoir on the forms of discrimination faced and perpetuated by a Bengali Muslim (Miyahs) who are frequently labeled as "illegal immigrants".
- "Outsiders in Their Own Land" by Suhas Chakma - An introduction to the Chakmas, a Buddhist ethnic tribe, that continues to face discrimination from the Indian State, the state governments and other North-Eastern ethnic groups. (Although the Chakmas have historically lived in the Chhitagong Hills Tract, they have and continue to be denied Indian citizenship.)
Also, worth noting that this book doesn't have all the information you'd need but is definitely a good starting point for an education on the North-East.
January 21, 2023
Great Reading.
This is a tough collection to write about. As the title suggests, it covers the concept of otherness and belonging in one of India's more troubled regions - the North-East.
Let me begin by saying that it'll take a lot more than reading a handful of short non-fiction works for anyone, and certainty for me, to understand the various complexities and sensitivities of the area, but this book is probably one of the better places to begin.
The reason I say this is multifold. For starters, it very clearly doesn't homogenize the whole of the NE but shines light not only on each state but on the different communities within each of the Seven Sisters. The editors self-admitedly missed out of voices from some states such as Mizoram and Nagaland, but I can understand why.
Another, and more important reason, I recommend this book is that it doesn't focus on only one perspective. It features contributors who are ethnically from the NE as well as those who have (or in many cases their forefathers have) settled there, the oft-abused "others" in the NE. Collectively, their stories represent both sides.
It's incredibly sad that even in today's world, it's so easy for many of us to fling around racially abusive epithets - it is indeed vile how easily terms like "chinki" come to our lips without understanding the deeper ramifications, and on the flip side how "dkhar", "vai", or even "IBI" seem to be used so callously in the NE for those who look different.
I've learnt a lot reading this collection - my knowldge stopped short of the Assam Accords and the NRC; I was woefully unaware of the Sylhet region and the issues the people from there had around Partition, the Chakmas, the Nellie Massacare, the list goes on.
Kudos to the editors for putting this together, I very much doubt this was an easy task.
This is a tough collection to write about. As the title suggests, it covers the concept of otherness and belonging in one of India's more troubled regions - the North-East.
Let me begin by saying that it'll take a lot more than reading a handful of short non-fiction works for anyone, and certainty for me, to understand the various complexities and sensitivities of the area, but this book is probably one of the better places to begin.
The reason I say this is multifold. For starters, it very clearly doesn't homogenize the whole of the NE but shines light not only on each state but on the different communities within each of the Seven Sisters. The editors self-admitedly missed out of voices from some states such as Mizoram and Nagaland, but I can understand why.
Another, and more important reason, I recommend this book is that it doesn't focus on only one perspective. It features contributors who are ethnically from the NE as well as those who have (or in many cases their forefathers have) settled there, the oft-abused "others" in the NE. Collectively, their stories represent both sides.
It's incredibly sad that even in today's world, it's so easy for many of us to fling around racially abusive epithets - it is indeed vile how easily terms like "chinki" come to our lips without understanding the deeper ramifications, and on the flip side how "dkhar", "vai", or even "IBI" seem to be used so callously in the NE for those who look different.
I've learnt a lot reading this collection - my knowldge stopped short of the Assam Accords and the NRC; I was woefully unaware of the Sylhet region and the issues the people from there had around Partition, the Chakmas, the Nellie Massacare, the list goes on.
Kudos to the editors for putting this together, I very much doubt this was an easy task.
November 15, 2023
I actually loved this book. This book brings forward a collection of essays, short stories and poems from writers from the northeast. These are voices and narratives that are rarely voiced or paid attention to.
'What is called the North-East is not a homogenous entity.'
People from the northeast are rarely heard and often discriminated against in "mainland" India. These are stories from people from the region who inspite of decades of staying there/ their contribution face the same treatment in northeast. Even though it's a story about the northeast here, I think these issues are a problem to a greater or lesser extent almost everywhere.
'We are all travellers. It's just that some of us have a keener sense of this than others.'
'On whom, then, should we lay blame for the transition from a world where, in the words of historian David Ludden, "Geographies of nature, land use, markets and culture had no strict boundaries; they remained open to limitless mixing and mobility", to a world where both land and cultural identities are marked by sharp boundaries?... Diverse territories with rainbows of cultures were reduced to monochrome representations...'
This collection opens one's eyes to the complex history of what we call "northeast India", something about which I have found few good books. I was also happy to find some good writers from the northeast.
They have tried to have diversity in this collection so of course I liked some essays better than the rest. I especially liked the writing by Samrat, Anindita Dasgupta and Neeta Singh and Sanjoy Hazarika, to name a few.
This is a book that I highly recommend to gain a new perspective about the northeast.
'What is called the North-East is not a homogenous entity.'
People from the northeast are rarely heard and often discriminated against in "mainland" India. These are stories from people from the region who inspite of decades of staying there/ their contribution face the same treatment in northeast. Even though it's a story about the northeast here, I think these issues are a problem to a greater or lesser extent almost everywhere.
'We are all travellers. It's just that some of us have a keener sense of this than others.'
'On whom, then, should we lay blame for the transition from a world where, in the words of historian David Ludden, "Geographies of nature, land use, markets and culture had no strict boundaries; they remained open to limitless mixing and mobility", to a world where both land and cultural identities are marked by sharp boundaries?... Diverse territories with rainbows of cultures were reduced to monochrome representations...'
This collection opens one's eyes to the complex history of what we call "northeast India", something about which I have found few good books. I was also happy to find some good writers from the northeast.
They have tried to have diversity in this collection so of course I liked some essays better than the rest. I especially liked the writing by Samrat, Anindita Dasgupta and Neeta Singh and Sanjoy Hazarika, to name a few.
This is a book that I highly recommend to gain a new perspective about the northeast.
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April 28, 2021This book is an anthology written by people who have their origins in the Northeast of India. While they themselves might be living in the metros of the country or even abroad as they pursue their respective careers, they trace their accounts back to the times of their great-grandfathers, grandfathers, and/or fathers and give a glimpse of how they, even today, do not possess (and are denied) sufficient identifications in paper and hence do not have a place or house to point to when they say "home", but sure do "feel" their origins in that place.
From the book: "Apart from large metros, the proverbial India of 'unity and diversity' is a piece of fiction."
Being an anthology, every author presents their story in their own way, so the connect a reader establishes with the author of a book is missing. Also, not all writing styles seem to reach out well to the reader and there is the repetition of the same incidents by multiple authors.
The book sure gives one a fair idea of the not-so-fair life in some parts of the Northeast.
From the book: "Apart from large metros, the proverbial India of 'unity and diversity' is a piece of fiction."
Being an anthology, every author presents their story in their own way, so the connect a reader establishes with the author of a book is missing. Also, not all writing styles seem to reach out well to the reader and there is the repetition of the same incidents by multiple authors.
The book sure gives one a fair idea of the not-so-fair life in some parts of the Northeast.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 13, 2020
This is an excellent book. It is very much worth reading. The essays, stories and poems do not preach, but they do give a real flavour of the culture, problems and issues that prevail in the North-Eastern part of India.
I have travelled to the North-East of India. I made my journeys at a time when the conflict was raging. While I love this part of India, I was not fully aware of the issues that plague the people.
“Insider Outsider” has given me a flavour of the North-East. The book has made me aware of what is happening and what has happened.
The authors have written the stories and essays in an engaging style. I like the book.
I have travelled to the North-East of India. I made my journeys at a time when the conflict was raging. While I love this part of India, I was not fully aware of the issues that plague the people.
“Insider Outsider” has given me a flavour of the North-East. The book has made me aware of what is happening and what has happened.
The authors have written the stories and essays in an engaging style. I like the book.
June 8, 2026
A good introduction to the continued reality of insider outsider and belongings in North East India.I think the insider outsider debate is pertinent and a reality in all the the states of NER.However ,it's Shillong who gets the most space in this book and majority of the author has some connections to Shillong and that is why it is focused most.However ,articles about the other states is somewhat not represented well in the book.Othewise ,it's a good addition to the writings about North East .
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