Writer Mahasweta Devi inherited a quarterly journal from her father that published poetry and essays — a well-meaning publication in the ‘Bhadralok’ register. In her hands, Bortika (meaning ‘light’) metamorphosed into the voice of the dispossessed: seeking writing from rickshaw-pullers, shift workers, Adivasi school-teachers and well-informed village residents.
Baby Halder’s life was not an ordinary one. Leaving behind a husband and decades of violence, she was thrust into the uncertainty and loneliness of a new city, about which she has spoken of many times over the years.
At the beginning of 2022, I was still a student. Just along the fag end of that identity. At the end of 2022, I was a teacher. On a lot of days, I feel a bit trivial.
Meena, Annie and Nayantara–‘the three girls from St. Agnes’–feel that they rule the world. They are dancers, they light cities on fire travelling from festival to festival, they revel in each other, and oh that glory–friendships.
