News
 International
   Global Views
   Asia-Pacific
   America
   Europe
   Middle East & Africa
 National
 Embassy News
 Arts & Living
 Business
 Travel & Hotel
 Medical Tourism New
 Taekwondo
 Media
 Letters to Editor
 Photo Gallery
 News Media Link
 TV Schedule Link
 News English
 Life
 Hospitals & Clinics
 Flea Market
 Moving & Packaging
 Religious Service
 Korean Classes
 Korean Weather
 Housing
 Real Estate
 Home Stay
 Room Mate
 Job
 English Teaching
 Translation/Writing
 Job Offered/Wanted
 Business
 Hotel Lounge
 Foreign Exchanges
 Korean Stock
 Business Center
 PR & Ads
 Entertainment
 Arts & Performances
 Restaurants & Bars
 Tour & Travel
 Shopping Guide
 Community
 Foreign Missions
 Community Groups
 PenPal/Friendship
 Volunteers
 Foreign Workers
 Useful Services
 ST Banner Exchange
  Asia-Pacific
Letters from India
Pandemic-Hit Book Publishers Eye for Openings
By Nava Thakuria
Special Correspondent
Mr. Nava Thakuria (left), the special correspondent for The Seoul Times, attends the 33rd Guwahati Book Fair held recently in India.

It was an intriguing discussion at a special session of prestigious 33rd Guwahati Book Fair, where a number of book publishers, writers, journalists and conscious readers assembled to introspect over various challenges faced by the book (publication) industry during the Covid-19 pandemic inducing national lockdown in India and also arousing new possibilities in the post-corona era.

The participants were in unanimous that the pandemic had severely affected the publication industry including the physical newspapers but at the same time it helped to increase the number of committed readers precisely among the new generation. They opined that the process of publication and marketing of Assamese books also reemerged with new approaches to the technology driven profession for the interest of valued readers.

Inaugurating the session, Assam based senior publisher Nabin Baruah thoroughly described the hardship faced by the publication houses as the corona-pandemic hit the country in early March. He however opined that the disaster helped everyone to redefine his life in a tricky and isolated ambience. Many people could regain their habit of reading and many others join the group of committed readers irrespective of the paper-printed books or digital outlets, stated Baruah.

The 33rd Guwahati Book Fair held recently in India

The session was addressed by some young publishers including Pritima Kaushik Barua, Manish Hazarika, Dhiraj Lahkar, Amrit Upadhaya, Farhan Javed, Buljit Buragohain along with award winning Assamese author Bipul Deuri. They observed that various modern technological tools for publication, promotion and marketing would finally bring a better deal for quality publishers around the world.

Participating in the discussion, literary magazine editor Mihir Deuri, senior journalist Dixit Sarma, prolific writers Geetali Borah, Nabajyoti Pathak with Rupam Dutta, Jintu Thakuria, Nripen Dutta etc expressed concerns over the shrinkage of valued readers in various regional languages across India but opined with confidences that it¡¯s time to promote Assamese as an internet-savvy language as well to reach millions of readers living in different parts of the globe.

As a moderator of the session, I also drew the attention of everyone to the severe crisis in front of the print media as most of the readers still evade taking the newspapers inside their residences.

The 33rd Guwahati Book Fair held recently in India


First, it was the rumour that newspapers carry the corona-virus which discouraged senior citizens to read their favourite papers and secondly most of the newsy contents now remain available in digital platforms on the previous day itself. Editors may have to change the approach to news for the survival of newspapers, was my observation.

Guwahati Granthamela (30 December 2020 to 10 January 2021) attracted thousands of book lovers every day with its over 125 stalls where the entry was made free by the organizer, Asom Prakasan Parisad.

The State-run publication board had to postpone the book fair because of political unrests in 2019 and also the pandemic in early this year. A number of literary discussions, book release functions and spectacular cultural evenings made the ambience enthralling.

Formally inaugurated by Assam chief minister Sarbananda Sonowal¡¯s media adviser Hrishikesh Goswami in presence of noted intellectual Tathagata Roy, renowned litterateur Yeshe Dorjee Thongshi with other dignitaries the book fair brought desired reliefs to the publishers and delights to bookworms.

The festival venue at Assam Engineering Institute playground in Chandmari locality of the city maintained necessary health protocols related to the corona-crisis. Representing CM Sonowal in the function, Goswami conveyed the goodwill to everyone commenting that books are the oasis in deserts which nurtures the intellectual and creative capacities of human beings. He also conferred Prakasan Parisad¡¯s lifetime achievement award for 2019 carrying a citation, corsets, two lakh rupees check, etc on eminent Assamese scholar Dr Thaneswar Sarma in presence of all dignitaries.

Former Governor of Tripura, Meghalaya & Arunachal Pradesh, Roy in his speech termed Assamese as a sweet language and expressed hope that the bonhomie between Assamese and Bengali people would continue in future too. A resident of West Bengal but familiar with the Assamese society, the outspoken author observed that the National Education Policy 2020 should immensely help in highlightinthe regional languages and their literature.

Padmashri Thongshi, who is a resident of neighbouring Arunachal Pradesh, described various challenges surfaced due to the corona-pandemic. The Sahitya Academy awardee derived a positive note out of the pandemic with the increase of quality readers across the world. Thongshi expressed happiness that a collection of literary pieces including novels, short stories, folk tales, etc written in both Assamese and English by another Arunachali litterateur Lumber Dai was released in the function.

A stall dedicated to the Bangladesh literature and another showcasing the Tibetan culture add colours to the book fair. The freedom movement led by exile Tibetans against the Communist regime in Beijing also comes alive in the stall which was opened by Tibetan support group leader RK Khrimey and managed by Buddha enthusiast Soumyadeep Datta.

Its highlights included the message of Tibet being India¡¯s real neighbour (not China) and probable devastations in the Brahmaputra with Beijing¡¯s environmental intervention in the mineral rich land. Among various books, the creative pieces penned by young writers received satisfactory responses from the visitors at Granthamela.

A number of reprinted Assamese books by Prakasan Parisad also enjoyed visible demands. Two important translation-works related to Prime Minister Narendra Modi were sold in large numbers. The Assamese version of Modi¡¯s popular letters to his mother titled ¡®Aailoi Chithi¡¯ along with the translations of PM¡¯s weekly radio program titled ¡®Mon Ki Baat¡¯ as ¡®Mor Priya Deshbasi¡¯ drew instant attentions of book lovers.

¡°We are happy to witness the massive gathering of visitors at the book fair venue. The participating stalls have sold books for crores of rupees,¡± said Pramod Kalita, secretary to the publication board, which launched the book fair movement in early eighties initially in collaboration with National Book Trust of India, adding that the appreciation of book lovers encouraged the publication board to reprint many rare pieces as well as new creations involving the established as well as promising authors.



Related Articles
    When Sarsanghchalak Emphasises on Nature ...
    Worshiping Motherland as a Deity: An Indian ...
    Durga Puja sans Idols at Kamakhya Temple
    Searching for Roots through a Literature ...
    Welcome to Pragjyotishpur Literature Festival
    Questioning Credibility of Editors Guild of ...
    When 177 Global Leaders Stand behind Prof. ...
    Manifesting Patriotism on I-Day
    Raising Demand for a Media Grievance Cell
    India: Rhetoric Boycott Call by Separatist ...
    Banning Polygamy with Consensus
    No End to NRC Controversy
    Protecting Rhinos in Manas National Park
    When Scribes Face Corruption Charges and ...
    Complainant to Re-approach Court on NRC Assam ...
    My Unforeseen Journey as a Scribe
    Converting Profit Hungry APDCL to Consumer ...
    Dreaming of a World with Three Zeros
    After Two Years of Military Coup Myanmar Heads ...
    When India¡¯s Highest Court Faces an Unwanted ...
    Riding City Buses in Guwahati
    When Rumour Kills a Mainstream Newspaper!
    Dissecting Assam NRC for Better Understanding
    Vehicular Speed That Kills Millions of Indians ...
    Intriguing Debate on Automobile Mishap
    Projecting Guwahati as a Krira Prangan
    New York Times: Editions, Visibility, ...
    Northeast Celebrates I-Day with Full Patriotic ...
    Marching Ahead with the Spirit of Swatantra ...
    Time for Journalists to Be Cautious, Authentic ...
    Prakash: Throwing Light on Tibetan Literature ...
    When Repeated FIRs Lodged against an IAS ...
    Developing Guwahati as a people-friendly city
    Negating PSO Culture among Media Persons
    Losing Public Goodwill: Assam Media's Way
    Global Award to Journalist Nava Thakuria
    India¡¯s Restive Region Sets to End 2021 ...
    RSS Condemns Islamist Attacks on Hindu ...
    When RSS Chief Bhagwat Articulates Agendas
    Let¡¯s Talk about Self-Reform and Financial ...
    'Self-reform and Financial Transparency in ...
    Tibet Sympathizers to Lodge Protest against ...
    Prof. Yunus Receives Laurel, Bangladesh Adds ...
    India Practices Secularism, Democracy and ...
    Needed a Scientific Probe into Bamunipahar ...
    India: Persisting Vulnerability to Scribes
    Bharat: Nurturing Nationalism with National ...
    POK Editor Bats for More Exchanges
    Cries Mounted for Reviving Nabin Chandra ...
    Scam, Media Outburst and Its Aftermath
    Amidst Chinese Threat Dalai Lama Concludes ...
    Asserting Media Person¡¯s Rights in India
    China¡¯s Myanmar Bonanza Sans Responsibility
    Manufacturing Misguided Protests in Assam
    Assam Forum Bats for Work Permits to ...
    Bhupen-da Came alive with Dhola-Sadiya Bridge ...
    Remembering My Principal Sir!
    Saluting Tricolour to Defy Militants¡¯ Diktat ...
    Underlining India¡¯s Productive Engagement in ...
    A Conservator Constitutional Head in Northeast ...
    Young Journalist Killed in India, ...
    Unpaid Media Employees of Northeast India
    Journalist Body Urges Political Parties to ...
    Saving the Tigers from Extinction
    Glorious Tribute to Bhupenda
    Burmese Students Term New Government Bogus
    Burma Turns Hostile to Indian Separatist Groups
    Northeast India Rediscovers Tricolour
    Indian People¡¯s Win Inspires Burmese Activists
    Nobel Support for a Noble Cause
    Activists Condemn India¡¯s Arm Deal with Burma
    Protest Note from Guwahati Press Club
    Journalists¡¯ Killings: Justice Eludes in ...
    Games Gogoi Played In Assam Polls
    Remembering Parag: Assam¡¯s Way
    Helicopter Missing from Northeast Indian Sky
    Allegations Poured on Indian Premier
    Allegations Fired at Indian Premier
    Rising Resentment against Corruption in India
    Satellite News Channel Launched in Northeast ...
    Looking at Burma's Forthcoming General ...
    Burma Election, Refugees and Media¡¯s Role
    When British Newspaper Tenders Apology to ...
    TST Contributor Honored with Excellence Award
    Burning Rhino Horns: Creating Controversy
    Condemning Military Election in Burma
    Protest against Military Election in Burma
    Burmese Demonstrates Anger against Junta
    Assam: A Pretending Warrior and Peace ...
    Southeastern Bangladesh Erupts in Violence
    Grim Picture of Human Rights in India
    Burma on Radar as New Delhi Prepares for ...
    Assam: Where People Defy Militant's Diktat
    Bangladesh Readies to Hang Bangabandhu Killers
    International Film Festival Begins in Guwahati
    RK Pachauri under Attack from British Media
    Selling News Space Culture in India: Concerns ...
    Asian MPs Insist on a Free & Fair 2010 Burma ...
    Guwahati Festival to Highlight Terrorism
    Assam: Brutal Armed Group, Incompetent ...
    Without Suu Kyi, 2010 Polls Have No Meaning
    Beijing Eyes Northeast India !
    Bumpy Road to Copenhagen
    Nava Thakuria Elected Assistant Gen. Sec. of ...
    Northeast India: People Defy Militant¡¯s ...
    Northeast India: Waiting for Justice for 18 ...
    Northeast India : Where Protector Turns Killer
    Raising Support for Democracy in Burma
    Indian Muslims Raise Voices for Uighurs
    Will Captive Breeding of Vultures Work?
    Northeast India: Trailing a Notorious Rebel
    Is Burma Junta Learning from Cyclone Nargis!
    Is a Nepali Fugitive Winning Indian Election?
    When Politician Uses Scribe for Vested Interest
    Assam Editor Killing: Protest Continues
    Freedom under Chinese Boot in Tibet
    Pride and Poverty: India's Amazing Blending
    Sri Lankan Crisis: Shelling on Hospital ...
    Northeast India Defies Militant's Diktat:
    Woman Journalist Killed in Nepal
    Urging for Insurance Coverage to Media Persons
    Bangladesh: Waiting for a Stable Democratic ...
    ULFA Leader Appeals UNHCR for Political Asylum
    Assam Mourns Death of Mumbai Terror Attack
    When an Assamese Magazine Rejects ...
    Bangladesh Polls: Apprehension on Final Outcome
    Manipur Asks for CBI Probe into Scribe's ...
    Scribe's Killing in Northeast: Demand for ...
    'Suspend Burma from BIMSTEC'
    Guwahati Citizens Meet to Discuss Terrorism
    Group Clashes Shock Northeast India
    When Media Distorts Facts to Manufacture News
    Where Editors Swindle Reporters
    Calling upon Comprehensive Packages for ...
    Highlighting Media's Challenge and ...
    Media on Media' Glitch: An Exercise of ...
    An Ignited Assam Baffles ULFA
    Assam Defies Militant's Diktat to Celebrate ...
    Journalists Dare to Defy Militants' Diktat
    When Bangladeshi Influx Ignites Assam
    Nepal Can Expect a Consensus of Government Soon
    Victorious Maoists Lose Battle for Kathmandu
    India: Assam Party Waits for an Opportunity
    Burma after Nargis: Devastated, Depressed and ...
    When a Disastrous Regime Continues
    Exposing Corrupt Journalists of Our Time
    Nepal Waits a Republic Regime: Diasporas Don't ...
    Waiting for Consensus on Government in Nepal
    Condemnation Pours on Burmese Junta as Suu ...
    American-Assamese Preparing White Paper on ...
    Assam Government Bows Down to Public Outrages
    Shaky Start to Druk Democracy
    India and Burma Push Joint Project
    Bhutan Turns Democratic
    Disregarding Public Outcry: Assam Government's ...
    Army, Police Heads Become Governors in North ...
    Rhinos Dwindle as Poaching Thrives in India
    Taste of Democracy in Bhutan Is Not for ...


Nava Thakuria, who serves as a special correspondent for The Seoul Times, is based in Guwahati of Northeast India. He also contributes articles for many media outlets based in different parts of the glove, and can be contacted at navathakuria@gmail.com

 

back

 

 

 

The Seoul Times, Shinheung-ro 36ga-gil 24-4, Yongsan-gu, Seoul, Korea 04337 (ZC)
Office: 82-10-6606-6188 Email:seoultimes@gmail.com Publisher & Editor: Joseph Joh
Copyrights 2000 The Seoul Times Company  ST Banner Exchange