SHORT STORIES OF DR.

BHABENDRA NATH SAIKIA: A STUDY

English 2.1

Submitted by:

Jyotiringa Puzari
UID- SM0117025
BA.,LLB (Hons.) 1st Year
Semester – 2

Faculty In-Charge
Aparajita D. Hazarika

National Law University, Assam

Guwahati

1
 TABLE OF CONTENTS

Contents Page No.

1. Introduction 3-6
1.1 Literature Review
1.2 Scopes and Objectives
1.3 Research Questions
1.4 Research Methodology

2. Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia: A Biography 7-14

2.1 Career and Works
2.2 Novels
2.3 Feature Films
2.4 Children’s Books
2.5 Awards

3. Short stories in Assamese literature 15-19

3.1 Development of Assamese Short Stories over time.
3.2 Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia as a ‘short story writer’ and his contributions.

4. Appraisal and analysis of Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia’s short stories 20-23

5. Conclusion 24

Bibliography

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1. INTRODUCTION

The one name that coinsures up a feeling of warmth in every Assamese heart is that of Dr. Bhabendra Nath
Saikia. His gift to the Assamese society and in the fields of art, culture and literature has not yet been
adequately measured. A very capable student of Physics and a successful professor of Gauhati University, Dr.
Bhabendranath Saikia introduced himself into the arena of literature with a few short stories that had shaken the
very foundation of the form and style of Assamese fiction. With an eye to very minute details, he used in pen
with much precision and excellence, giving birth to a unique beauty in his literary creations. Dr. Bhabendra
Nath Saikia is a winner of many prestigious awards, including Sahitya Academy Award (1976), and Padma
Shri. Dr. Saikia started as a physic professor, and started with his pioneer works in the publication of college
textbooks in Assamese language. It was totally his literary genius and mesmerizing style that made Dr. Saikia as
a 'household name' in Assam. His works are widely appreciated by people, not only in Assam, but also from
national-international arenas. His short stories, novels, stage plays etc. erected the stature of Dr. Bhabendra
Nath Saikia in the field of Assamese literature, which people believe, is unparalleled. Dr. Saikia is believed to
have helped in taking up the standard of Assamese Literature to respectable heights. His short story works like,
‘Srinkhal','Gahbar' etc. are kept close to their hearts by the literature lovers. In a career span of 21 years, from
1977 to 1999, Saikia made 8 films, 3 novels, 11 short stories, 28 plays, 5 children's book, and authored 2
magazines and humor books each, etc.
Dr. Saikia was adept at understanding the human mind and its complexities. The characters in his works live
through the same hopes and dreams that the common man in the society faces in the struggle for his daily
existence; they are haunted by the same nightmares and soothed by the dreams that are real in life; and the
values and morals that serve as the guiding light for the characters in his works are the same that guide us in life
and stand as challenges when we are at moral crossroads in the journey of life.

As the project title gives it a way, this project shall give us a detailed study about the short story works of the
Assamese stalwart. However, keeping a broad view and objective, this project shall first give a detailed account
on the biography and contributions of Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia, throughout. Then, the subsequent chapters
shall extend to the field of Assamese literature and short stories. Here, we will discuss about the development of
‘Assamese short stories’ over time, in different stages of history, thus unpacking the historical background of
Assamese literature, per se. It will discuss about the short story works of Dr. Saikia and shower a glimpse on
some of his best-selling works. The project, in fact has a chapter that shall analyze his short story works,
considering three of his short-stories, namely-‘Gohbor’ (গহ্বৰ) [the cave]; ‘Sringkhol’ (শৃংখল) [the chain]; and

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‘Sandhya Bhraman’ (সান্ধ্য ভ্ৰমণ) [evening walk ], as reference models. This project in a way highlights the faces
of literary expressions, styles and form of human-qualities portrayed in Dr. Saikia’s short-stories.

1.1 LITERATURE REVIEW

 D.N Bezboruah, ‘The Cavern and Other Stories’, (Kindle edition)

This is an e-book that was available in the Internet. This is the English adaptation or translation of 10 short-
story works of Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia, including ‘Gahbar’. This gives an outlook to the literary
excellence of Dr.Saikia, through his short story works, which infact, translator Mr. D.N Bezbaruah
acclaims. He quotes,
“A rare glimpse of Assamese society, portrayed with deep understanding and love by a master craftsman.
The story line and character presentation in his books are so enchanting and infused with passion that the
readers can hardly take their eyes off it. Deeply insightful, immensely enjoyable, and dipped in the rich
cultural heritage and traditions of Assam, Dr. Saikia’s works are as universal as they are local. His stories
and novels appeal to the modern reader, for his insight into the universal dilemma that life is. Dr.
Bhabendra Nath Saikia can appeal as much to a reader in a village in India as he can appeal to someone in
a village in UK or US. Intuitive, perceptive, observant, sensitive… the adjectives would flow if one started
describing the genius called Bhabendra Nath Saikia.”

 ‘THE GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT OF ASSAMESE SHORT STORY’, online article

This is an online article which gives a historical backdrop to the growth and development of this literary
form in the Assamese Language over years. It discusses about the short-story writers including the pioneer,
Lakshminath Bezbaruah. This article highlights the notions that every short stories have, with vivid
description of the styles, expression and inspirations of different Assamese short-story writers, including Dr.
Bhabendra Nath Saikia.

 Stuti Goswami; ‘Conflict in the short stories of Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia- a selective reading’
This is an article by a professor in Gauhati University, Department of English. In her article, she displays
how ‘conflict’ as a social and psychological phenomenon infuses in multiple levels of societal processes, is
expressed in the short stories of Dr. Saikia, with reference to ‘Gohbor’ and ‘Sringkhol’.

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  Varma, Bishnu Prasad; ‘REPRESENTING WO(E)MAN IN SAIKIA’S EVENING WALK’
This is a research article by B.P Varma that discusses the short story of Dr. Saikia- ‘Sandhya Bhraman’,
with highlights on the aspects of woes in people’s lives, normally and a clear portrayal of the plight of
women in a male dominated society. He shows the way in which Sumitra, the protagonist is portrayed in the
short story by the author. The paper focuses on the psychological aspect of Sumitra’s pain and its depiction
in the short story in relation to woman’s predicament in society.

1.2 SCOPES AND OBJECTIVES

Following are the objectives of the project:

 To highlight the biographical sketch of the Assamese literary stalwart and discuss about his
contributions to Assamese literature and culture.
 To study about Assamese short stories and short-story writers, and its historical development over time.
 Analyze and bring out the special literary features and characteristics of the short stories of Dr. Saikia,
considering three of his short stories, as reference models.
The scope of the project lies in the area of research in life and biography of the Assamese novelist, short-story
writer, film director- Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia and a comprehensive study on his short-stories and other works
as well. This project highlights the faces of literary expressions, styles and form of human-qualities portrayed in
Dr. Saikia’s short-stories.

1.3 RESEARCH QUESTIONS

A number of research questions have been formulated, keeping in mind, the objectives of the project. They are
as follows:
 Who is Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia and what are his achievements and contributions in or towards
Assamese culture and literature?
 How did Assamese short-stories, as a literary form, evolve and develop over time?
 What are the characteristics in the short story composition of Dr. Saikia, with special references to
stories like Shandhya Bhraman, Gohbor and Sringkhol?

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1.4 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY
The researcher conducted mixed type of methodology. Study design in this paper was cross sectional where by
data were collected at one point in time. The use of library sources, journals, articles and internet sources has
greatly supplemented the research. Various books pertaining to the subject have been immensely helpful in
guiding the research.
To ensure a quality study of the subject matter, the researcher collected the Secondary type of data. Though
primary data is very valuable and precious; still the importance of the secondary data cannot be overlooked. So,
the researcher collected secondary data through various books, articles, journals and mostly from the internet
sources.

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2. DR. BHABENDRA NATH SAIKIA: A BIOGRAPHY

Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia (1932– 2003) (translated Assamese: ড˚ ভবেন্দ্ৰ নাথ শইকীযা ) was a novelist, short
story writer and film director from Assam. He is a renowned personality in the field of Assamese culture and
literature, whose literary works and plays are popular among people, even today.

Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia was born on 20th February in Nagaon, Assam. He passed his matriculation
examinations in the year 1948, his B. Sc degree with honors in Physics from Cotton College in the year 1952
and his Master’s Degree in Physics from Presidency College under Calcutta University in the year 1955-1956.
Bhabendra Nath Saikia obtained a PhD degree in Physics in the year 1961 from the London University. He
also obtained a Diploma of Imperial College of Science and Technology located in London in the year 1961.
He later worked as reader in Physics at the Gauhati University. He became a Member, Sangeet Natak
Akademi, India.
He is recognized as one of the top ranking writers and literary maestros of Assam. Many stories have been
translated into English, Bengali, Hindi, Telugu, Malayalam, Marathi, Gujarati etc. He had also written a large
number of plays for All India Radio (AIR). (The plays Kolahal, Durbhiksha and Itihaas were taken up by the
AIR as national plays).

Saikia edited the Prantik (প্ৰান্তিক), an Assamese monthly magazine, and a children's magazine named Xaphura
(সঁফুৰা), both in the Assamese language. He was also the president of the Jyoti Chitraban which was for a long
time the only film studio in Assam. He had the unique distinction of having won the National Awards for each
of his seven Assamese films. For his services to the literature, culture and cinema of Assam, Dr Saikia was
awarded the Padma Shri in 2001.1
Having spent his childhood in poverty, Dr Saikia established the Aarohan Trust in Guwahati using the money
he received from the Assam Valley Literary Award to provide free training to poor children interested in art,
theatre and music. Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia passed away on 13th August, 2003 in Guwahati. He is survived
by his wife Preeti Saikia and two Houston based daughters, Dr. Sangeeta Saikia and Rashmi Saikia. The
Assam Government has named a road in Guwahati and a state award in his honour.2

1 th
Sangeeta Boruah Pisharoty ‘The Man and His Magic’ , The Hindu, 16 August 2012
th
(http://www.thehindu.com/features/cinema/the-man-and-his-magic/article3779648.ece) last accessed on 4
April, 2018
2
(http://www.indiaonline.in/about/Personalities/WritersandPoets/Bhabendra-Nath-Saikia.html) last accessed on
th
4 April, 2018

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2.1 CAREER AND WORKS

Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia started his brilliant career as a physics teacher initially in Sibsagar College and then
shifted to Gauhati University. He was the pioneering motive behind the publication of college level textbooks
in Assamese language during his tenure as the Secretary of the CO-ordination Committee for production of
textbooks in regional languages. Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia also served as the Chairman of the Railway
Service Commission of North East Frontier Railways in the early eighties.

Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia received more popularity and recognition through his literary works. His literary
publications made him a household name in Assam. Dr Bhabendra Nath Saikia has also been actively
associated with the stage as a playwright and director. He has written many plays for the Mobile theatre of
Assam and a number of one act plays. Dr. Saikia directed eight feature films. These films has been screened at
different International Film Festivals held in various places like Cannes, Madras, Hyderabad, New Delhi,
Bangalore, Calcutta, Karlovy Vary (Czechoslovakia), Nantes (France), Valladolid (Spain), Algiers (Algeria),
Pyong Yong (North Korea), Sydney, Munich, Montreal and Toronto. He also directed one episode of a
Doordarshan series on Rabindra Nath Tagore’s stories in Hindi.
Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia's films include ‘Sandhyarag’, ‘Anirban’, ‘Agnisan’, ‘Kolahal’, ‘Sarothi’,
‘Abartan’, ‘Itihaas’ in Assamese and ‘Kalsandhya’ in Hindi. His literary collections include novels like
‘Antarip’, ‘Ramyabhumi’, ‘Atankar Shekhot’, short story collections like ‘Prahari’, ‘Sendur’, ‘Gahabar’,
‘Upakantha’, ‘Sandhya Bhraman’ ‘Akash’, children books like ‘Maramar Deuta’, ‘Tumalukor Bhal Houk’,
‘Morom’ and essay collections like ‘Xekh Pristha’. Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia also wrote plays like
‘Romyabhumi’, ‘Neelakontho’, ‘Deenabandhu’, ‘Amrapali’, ‘Monkut’ among others.

He has been actively involved with famous Assamese Mobile Theater industry most notably with Abahan
Theater. He was adjudged as one of the "Twenty one Great Assamese Persons of the twentieth century" in a
literary weekly news magazine of Assam.

Incidentally, Sringkhal (The Quiver), an Assamese film based on a short story written by Bhabendra Nath
Saikia was released on 17 October 2014. Directed by Prabin Hazarika, Sringkhal was co-produced by the
Assam State Film (Finance and Development) Corporation Limited with Preeti Saikia, Partha Pratim Bora,
Sangeeta Saikia, Dipendra Patowary and Prabin Hazarika.

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Bhabendra Nath Saikia was the founder editor of the Assamese magazine ‘Prantik’ which was published
fortnightly from Guwahati since 1981. This magazine played a vital role on the socio-political lives of the
people of Assam. Dr. Saikia was also the founder editor of the popular Assamese children’s magazine
‘Sofura’. As an editor of this magazine, he was intensely involved with the cultural growth and development of
children. During his journalism career, he broke new grounds in the field to pave a new way to future
journalism in Assam.

Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia was also instrumental in the conception and development of Sri Sankardeva
Kalakshetra, Assam and he served as its vice Chairman until August 2003. He was actively involved in the
creation, proposal, construction and planning of the Srimanta Sankardeva Kalakshetra. This cultural center
which is one of its kinds in Assam was built in the memory of the great Assamese cultural legend Shrimanta
Sankardeva.

Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia was a member of a number of reputed organizations and councils. He was the
member of Sangeet Natak Akademi and a member of the Executive and General Council of Sahitya Akademi.
He was also the member of Indian National Council for co-operation with the UNESCO and of the Academic
Council of Gauhati University.

He was the president of Jyoti Chitraban (Film Studio) Society and a member of the advisory body of the All
India Radio, Guwahati. Dr. Saikia was the Chairman of the Assam State Film (Finance and Development)
Corporation Limited. Bhabendra Nath Saikia was also the member of the governing body of the North East
Zone Cultural Center in Dimapur. Simultaneously, he was also the member one Cultural Center in Kolkata.

Bhabendra Nath Saikia also was the member of Court of Guwahati University, Assam and of the Society f the
Film and Television Institute of India in Pune.
He was also the member of the Board of Trustees of the National Book Trust of India.3

3
‘Bhabendranath Saikia- Biography’ (https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/BhabendraNathSaikia) last
th
accessed on 4 April, 2018

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2.2 NOVELS

Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia authored three novels, Antarip [অিৰীপ][ the cape], Ramyabhumi [ৰমযভূ ন্তম] [ the

accoland], Atankar Shekhot [আতৃংকৰ শশষত] [ at the end of the panic].4

Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia’s Assamese novel “Antoreep” has been translated into English as “The Hour
Before Dawn” by Maitreyee Siddhanta Chakravarty and also there is the movie adaption of the first part of the
novel as “Agnisnan” directed by the writer himself.5 The title ‘Antoreep’ literally translates into ‘a cape’, a
pointed piece of land that extends out into a sea, ocean, lake or river.
The present novel “Antoreep” (1986) was first serialized in two magazines, ‘Ramdhenu’ and ‘Prantik’
respectively from 1979 to 1984. It came out in book form for the first time in 1986 from the publication house
‘Jyoti Prakashan’. The novel tells the story of an aristocratic Assamese family during the last two decades of
British colonization of India. Though the general atmosphere of the time might have been politically charged,
the novelist only provides glimpses of it in this family drama. Menoka is an aristocratic house wife and a
happy mother of four children who is well respected in the society and also treated as a goddess by her family
members. But when it comes to her conjugal life all these façades drop down to reflect the real servitude of a
helpless married woman, who did not know how to protest against her circumstances or rather she did not
know she should protest, until another woman comes to the equation. Her husband Mohikanto’s second
marriage with a much younger girl Kiron shakes Menoka from her complacent attitude towards her marriage.
Her initial stoicism turns into her desire to be equal to her husband in their relationship. I quote from the novel
where an older Menoka says, “Everything should be equal__ be it peace of mind or suffering.” She avoided
further physical relationship with her husband after his second marriage and developed an intimate relationship
with the sympathetic village thief and outcaste Modon and gave birth to his child Dhruva. She rendered
Mohikanto helpless and fuming by her insolence, and though he knew that it was not his child; societal
ignominy forced his mouth shut. The internal conflict and tensions gradually mounts as the narrative
progresses and we can see repetitions of these socially accepted-unaccepted relationship equations throughout,
even in the lives of the next generation which centers round Menoka’s eldest and introspective son Indro. The

4
‘Wikipedia, Dr Bhabendra Nath Saikia’ (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bhabendra_Nath_Saikia#cite_note-
thehindu-2) last accessed on 4th April, 2018
5
Pallabi Konwar, ’ The Hour Before Dawn” and “Agnisnan”: A critical response’
(http://indianreview.in/nonfiction/the-hour-before-dawn-and-agnisnan-a-critical-response-by-pallabi-konwar/)
th
last accessed on 4 April, 2018

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novel is not merely a tale of a rebellious woman, it explores so many facets of human psyche, the complex
ideas of love, loyalty and revenge, it questions our ideas of justice and right or wrong.6

‘Ramyabhumi (ৰমযভূ ন্তম)’ is another novel of Bhabendra Nath Saikia. Here, Saikia picks up the same pallet of
his first novel, the same timeline and tells a completely different story. It is about a man and his two wives, and
their children, who struggles amd fights to dominate a small town. It reminds us of the Mahabharata, as the
comparision is apt. Through this novel, Saikia creates an epic of our time.7

Atankar Shekhot [আতৃংকৰ শশষত] [ at the end of the panic] is a work of ‘suspense cum mystery thriller’
published in the year 1952. Mr. Saikia describes a state of disharmony, suspense and chaos, which revoloves
around the life of the protagonist ; a rich, millionaire businessman named Amrendra Chaliha. ‘Nirvana Sutra
Publications,Assam’ has a beautiful narrative description on this work, as------
“২৬ তান্তৰখব া ন্তিমাবন ওচৰ চান্তপ আন্তিন্তিল, নগৰৰ অন্তিোসীসকলৰ মনৰ উৎকণ্ঠা ন্তসমাবন োন্ত়ি গগন্তিল। শ ক্সি, োি আন্তি
সকবলাবত আবৰািীৰ মুবখ মুবখ িসুয অমলৰ সঁচা-ন্তমিা ন্তমিন্তল অতীত কীন্তত ি আৰু আগত ২৬ তান্তৰখৰ সম্ভান্তিত কতকািতা
ি
ো অকতকািতাৰ
ি নানা িৰণৰ মিেয শুনা গগন্তিল। ি’শত িুজন শলাক লগ লান্তগন্তিল, তাবতই িসুয অমলৰ কান্তিনী ওলাইন্তিল।
ৰাস্তা ঘা ৰ মানুিৰ আবলাচনা ন্তেবশষ অস্বাভান্তিকতাৰ ঘৰলল এক প্ৰকাৰ শিািা নান্তিল, ন্তকন্তু সািাৰণ শেণীৰ মন্তিলা মিলৰ
অমল সম্ববন্ধ্ আবলাচনাবোৰ েৰ উপবভাগয গিন্তিল। প্ৰবতযক সৃংোি পত্রৰ প্ৰথম পষ্ঠাবত ২৬ তান্তৰখ সম্ববন্ধ্ উৎকণ্ঠাপূণ ি
মিেয প্ৰকান্তশত ি’েলল িন্তৰবল।……… ঠিক োৰ েজাৰ পৰাই ন্ততন্তন ডজন সশস্ত্র পুন্তলবি চন্তলিা প্ৰাসািৰ ন্তেন্তভন্ন িাইত তীক্ষ্ণ িঠি
ৰান্তখ িল ন্তিেলল িন্তৰবল। প্ৰাসািৰ সন্মুখৰ শগ েন্ধ্ কন্তৰ উপিপন্ত
ি ৰ ন্ততন্তন া তলা লগাই ন্তিযা ি’ল। চান্তৰজন পুন্তলবচ ৰাইফল
িাবতবৰ শগ ৰ ওচৰত অিা-শিািা কন্তৰেলল িন্তৰবল। প্ৰাসািৰ ন্তপিফালৰ োগানৰ সকবলা সবেিজনক িাইবতই পুন্তলি ন্তনিুক্ত
কৰা ি’ল। প্ৰথম তলাৰ পৰা িুই তলালল আৰু িুই তলাৰ পৰা ন্ততন্তন তলালল উিা খ ্ খঠ ৰ গুন্তৰত িুজনলক শক্সক্তশালী পুন্তলি ৰখা
ি’ল।…………
ন্তেখযাত িনী, শকাঠ পন্তত, অমবৰন্দ্ৰ চন্তলিাৰ ন্তক ৰিসয লুকাই আবি? িসুয অমল শকান৷ ন্তকয িসুয অমবল চন্তলিাৰ পৰা শসই
অমূলয সম্পি উদ্ধাৰ কন্তৰে শখাবজ? ন্তক এই সম্পি?”8

6
Saikia, Dr. Bhabendra, Nath. The Hour Before Dawn. Trans. Maitreyee S. C. New Delhi 110 017, India : Penguin
Books India, 2009. Print
7
(https://archive.li/PR5el)

(AssamKart.com), Dr. Bhabendranath Saikia, ‘আতৃংকৰ শশষত (Aatankar Sheshat)’ (Nirvana Sutra Publications)
8

(http://www.assamkart.com/new-releases/243/2/assamese/-
%E0%A6%86%E0%A6%A4%E0%A6%82%E0%A6%95%E0%A7%B0-
th
%E0%A6%B6%E0%A7%87%E0%A6%B7%E0%A6%A4-(Aatankar-Sheshat)-detail), last accessed on 15 April,2018

11
2.3 FEATURE FILMS

Assamese cinema, though not a very visible category in most of the works of film historians and critics, started
with a note of nationalistic sentiment in the early half of the twentieth century. In subsequent times, amidst the
commercially driven Assamese entertainment movies which were more numerous, a number of Assamese
directors were successful in creating a ‘serious’ genre of Assamese cinema. Bhabendra Nath Saikia was one of
the prolific directors of the latter category during the last three decades of the twentieth century. Dr. Saikia’s
outstanding creations, be in celluloid or in the stage, have as yet achieved a landmark. They have given
audiences a taste of the media and people have learnt to appreciate a good film or a good play.
He made seven Assamese films and for each of his films he won the National Awards. He was awarded Rajat
Kamal Award of the Government of India for his Assamese feature film-
Sandhyaraag in 1978, Anirban [অন্তনোন
ি ] in 1981, Agnisnan [অন্তিস্নান] in 1985, Kolahal [শকালািল] in 1988,
Sarothi [সাৰন্তথ] in 1992, Abartan [আিতিন] in 1994, Itihaas [ইন্ততিাস] in 1996.9

In Assam, the ‘Best Feature Film in Assamese’ award was first introduced in 1977 and was presented to Dr.
Bhabendra Nath Saikia for the movie ‘Sandhyaraag [Evening Melody]’. This 159 minutes Assamese movie
featured actors like Runu Devi, Chetana Das, Arati Baruah, Mridula Baruah, Ajit Baishya, Karuna Bannerjee,
Hemen Barman, Jayansta Das, Ishaan Baruah, Raju Bordoloi and more.10
Sandhya Raag is the story of Putali, a widow living in the village, and her two daughters. The daughters are
sent to the city to work as domestic help in two different household, and live under different circumstances.
While the elder, Charu, is accepted as a part of the family she works for and gets accustomed to the life in the
city; the younger, Taru, is not so lucky and has to keep warding off the advances of the lecherous son of her
master. When the sisters are of marriageable age, they have to return to the village. However after all the years
spent in an urban setup, they find it difficult to adjust to the restricted life of the village. Seeking a way out,
Charu agrees to marry her former employer’s driver even though he is impotent. After her marriage, Putali and
Taru join her in the city.11

9
G Vinayak, ‘The man who put Assamese cinema on the world map’(August 26, 2003),
th
(http://www.rediff.com/movies/2003/aug/26saikia.htm), last accessed on 20 April,2018
10 th
‘ASSAMS.INFO’, (http://www.assams.info/movies/sandhya-raag-1977), last accessed on 20 April,2018.
11
Puru, ‘Art House Cinema’ (Sandhyaraag 1977), (https://www.arthousecinema.in/2014/03/sandhya-raag-1977/) ,
th
last accessed on 20 April, 2018

12
After Sandhyaraag, the filmmaker delivered eight outstanding and thought-provoking films and proved it was
possible to make good films even without a conducive environment or proper infrastructure.

All his films bagged the prestigious Rajat Kamal Award for ‘Best Regional Films’. Dr. Saikia’s films had
received not only rave reviews but also mass recognition in our country and abroad. Such achievements have
done us proud.

2.4 CHILDREN’S BOOKS

Dr. Saikia gave a new direction to children writing in Assam through ‘Sofura’, a monthly magazine that he
launched in 1982. While he indulged a wide variety of children’s literature ranging from short stories to plays
and poems, some of his works are available in the form of books, namely ‘Asha Karo Tomalok Bhale Asa’,
‘Moromor Deuta’ (মৰমৰ শিউতা) [Dear Father], ‘Morom’ (মৰম) [Love], and ‘Shanta-Shista Hrista-Pusta

Maha-Dusta’ (শাি-ন্তশি হৃি-পুি মিািুি)[The quiet one, the physically fit one, and the immensely notorious
one.], the last being a play serialized by All India Radio, Guwahati.

‘SOFURA’ is the most popular Assamese Children Magazine, at present. The magazine was launched from
Bani Prakash, Guwahati in 1982, and the Chief-pioneer in introducing this magazine was Mr. Ambika Pada
Choudhury, a noted Assamese writer. Dr. Bhabendranath Saikia, the famous literateur, playwright and film
producer was the founder editor of this magazine. It is said that the publication of 'SOFURA' was a milestone
in the history of Assamese Children Magazine. Previously, it was published as a 'monthly magazine', but later
on, due to various reasons it was published as a bi-monthly. After the demise of Dr. Bhabendranath Saikia in
2003, Mr. Kumud Goswami was entrusted the responsibility and he became the editor of the magazine.
The unique characteristic of 'SOFURA' is its cover-design. It is filled with the colorful drawings and paintings
of children and the name of the artist also appears at the back page of the contents. This has indeed created a
great interest among the children. In the editorial, 'Hope you are well', the editor gives inspiring messages and
advises the young generation. Various articles, poems, stories, news items, jokes, letter to the editor etc. are
published in this magazine. The children can learn amazing facts of science in the science stories.12

‘Maramar Deuta’ is a novel written in Assamese by renowned Assamese literature and film director
Dr.Bhabendra Nath Saikia. It was first published serially in several episodes in children's magazine Xophura
also edited by then Dr.Bhabendra Nath Saikia. Although Bhabendra Nath Saikia said that the novel was meant
12 th
‘SOFURA- a Monthly Magazine’, (http://sofura.org/#aboutus), last accessed on 20 April, 2018.

13
for especially teenagers, it is still popular among all age group of readers. The novel was later translated into
English by National Book Trust. Translation was done by Ashok Bhagawati and the name of the English
version is ‘Dear Father’.13

2.5 AWARDS

Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia was the recipient of a number of prestigious awards. Dr. Saikia was honored with
the Sahitya Academy (India) Award in the year 1976, the Publication Board Assam Award in the inaugural
year 1973 and the Sahityik Hara Nath Ghosh Medal in 1981 which was given by Bangiya Sahitya Parishad in
Calcutta. He also received the Assam Valley Literary Award in the inaugural year 1990 which was instituted
by the Magor Education Trust. He received the Surendra Nath Paul Award for lifetime achievement which was
awarded by the Tea festival of Calcutta in the year 1999. Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia was honored with the
Srimanta Sankardeva Award in the year 1998. This is the highest award instituted by the Assam Government
in the state. He received the Kamal Kumari National Award for the year 2000. In the year 2001, the Dibrugarh
University conferred him with the Degree of D. Litt, honoris Causa in recognitions for his outstanding
contribution to the fields of cinema and literature. Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia was awarded the Padma Shri by
the Indian Government in the year 2001. The films directed by Bhabendra Nath Saikia were all awarded the
‘Rajat Kamal’ award as the best regional films in India. He received this Rajat Kamal Award for his film
Sandhyaraag in the year 1978, for Anirban in 1981, Agnisnaan in 1985, Kolahal in 1988, Sarothi in 1992,
Abartan in 1994 and for Itihaas in 1996 respectively. He also won the prestigious National Award for the best
screenplay for his film ‘Agnisnaan’. Dr. Saikia’s films have been included in the Indian Panorama section of
the Indian Film Festival and have been screened at many international film festivals. Dr. Bhabendra Nath
Saikia was adjudged as one of the ‘Twenty-One Greatest Assamese Persons of the Twentieth Century’. Dr.
Bhabendra Nath Saikia was posthumously honored with the naming of few awards and cultural centers.
He was honored posthumously with the naming of the Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia road in Guwahati and by
naming a children’s amusement park in Srimanta Sankardeva Kalakshetra after him. He was also honored
posthumously with naming of Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia library at the Srimanta Sankardeva Kalakshetra in
Guwahati. A cultural award named the Bhabendra Nath Saikia Cultural Award was also posthumously named
after him. The first recipient of this award was film maker Jahnu Barua in the year 2010.14

13
World Heritage Encyclopedia, ‘Maramar Deuta’, (http://www.worldlibrary.org/articles/moromor_deuta), last
th
accessed on 20 April, 2018.
14
‘INDIAONLINE.IN, Bhabendranath Saikia (1932-2003)’
(http://www.indiaonline.in/about/Personalities/WritersandPoets/Bhabendra-Nath-Saikia.html), last accessed on
4th April, 2018

14
3. SHORT STORIES IN ASSAMESE LITERATURE

3.1 DEVELOPMENT OF ASSAMESE SHORT STORIES OVER TIME

The short story in Assamese, like short story in other literatures was born in the pages of the journal. It was
Lakshminath Bezbaroa who gave birth to the Assamese short story in the pages of Jonaki. With the writings of
Bezbaroa and his contemporaries, short story as a branch of literature had established itself in Assamese. The
scope and technique of the Assamese short story, however, expanded after the publication of Avahan
(Invocation, 1929), another monthly journal that created an era. Avahan, in fact, contributed greatly towards the
development of the Assamese short story. During the period from Jonaki to the advent of Avahan various
experiments were made on Assamese short story and in the page of Avahan in which a band of writers made
their debut, short story emerged as the distinguished and the most popular composition. Our writers came into
contact with other short story writers of the world. As a result of this, the scope of short story expanded with
broader outlook and novelty of expression15.

The popularity of Avahan led to the increasing popularity of the Assamese short story. The scope of the short
story came to be wider. Instead of expressing the ideas through satire and sarcasm a tendency for expressing the
hopes and aspirations, happiness and sadness, laughter and tears of the human heart developed. Certain stories
of this period are just simple narratives and some of them merely expression of a poetic mood or feeling.
Minutely observing collected works of Bezbaroa's short stories; Dr. Satyendra Nath Sarma, the eminent critic,
opines that they include some comic scenes, characters without stories and folk-tales.

Most of the writers of the Avahan age created characters from various levels of life and collected diverse
materials as their subject-matter. Many writers tried hard to develop the plot in its natural atmosphere. The
stories evoked a sense of liberty and distinctiveness of imagination. The writers threw away the dangerous
reticence of formality in language and by introducing new words and skill made their language powerful.
By this time the national movement had reached a critical period. The impact of nationalism was strongly felt
even in Assam. The Assamese writers were fired by a nationalistic zeal and this manifested itself in several
ways in 1iterature. Western writers provided these writers with models of literary creation. Foremost among
them were writers like Maupassant and Chekhov. From the Maupassant, they learnt to infuse realism into their
writings. He also taught them the minute analysis of characters. Chekhov's stories had an admirable aesthetic

15
Bharali, Sailen, ‘Adhunik Asamiya Sahitya’ ; Duti taranga, p,63.

15
beauty. His stories do not display any spectacular event. He aims more to concentrate on characterization and
Psychology. He too came to exercise a powerful influence upon the Assamese short story writers.16
Lakshmidhar Sarma perhaps is the most powerful writer of this period. He is the first writer who attempted to
satisfy the intellectual thirst of the modern man. His stories show a strong social awareness and are often
expression of revolt against the social order.

The age is undoubtedly under the charming influence of the journal the Awahon but, besides this journal there
appeared time to time, some other magazine like the Chetana, the Banhi and the Jayanti etc, which too had an
important role to play in fostering the development of Assamese short story till the publication of the Ramdhenu
literary magazine bringing the wave of modernity to Assamese short story. A few writers like Tirthanath Sarma,
Tilak Kakati, Ananda Chandra Barua, Daiba Chandra Talukdar, Kumar Kishor, Mahendra Saharia, Golokeswar
Barua, etc. have solidly paved the way for the later post writers of the modern outlook. Realism, which made a
faint appearance during the Awahon period, acquired a definite form in the writings of the modern writers of the
post-war period. Thus this age of Awahon can be considered as a great prelude to the modern period of short
stories.

The short stories of the post-war era are remarkable for their technical excellence. The Assamese writers of this
period were influenced greatly by different foreign writers. Some of them on account of their scientific bent of
mind produced stories which were markedly complex. It is, however, queer to note that even during this time of
high technical development, the style of Lakhminath Bezbaroa, the pioneer of Assamese short story and some
other traditional writers still hold good, especially in the matter of satire and sarcasm. All the other writers of
this period barring only a few, like Saurabh Kumar Chaliha, Homen Borgohain, Nagen Saikia, Apurba
Sarma etc. are just traditional story teller.

After the Ramdhenu age, a band of writer came into prominence. This group of writers displays some
peculiarities in their form and contents of their stories. Some prominent are- Sayed Abdul Malik, Birendra
Kumar Bhattacharya,Jogesh Das,Saurabh Kumar Chaliha and Bhabendra Nath Saikia.

16
‘The Growth and Development of Assamese Short Story’
th
(http://shodhganga.inflibnet.ac.in/bitstream/10603/67763/9/09_chapter%205.pdf), last accessed on 15
April,2018.

16
3.2 DR. BHABENDRA NATH SAIKIA AS A ‘SHORT STORY WRITER’ AND HIS CONTRIBUTIONS

Bhabendranath Saikia is another remarkable writer of this period, the Ramdhenu time. He deals largely with
the problems of lower middle class but the note of challenges against social injustice is not so persistent in his
stories. He is to some extent romantic in his outlook. In some of his stories he penetrates deep into the human
heart and unfolds the miseries in a very fascinating way. Though he is a man of science, the scientific bent of
mind is less evident than his artistic outlook. He has written certain beautiful love stories and these are
excellent specimen of romantic love.

Bhabendranath Saikia is an acute observer and like Maupassant and Chekhov. He takes a keen interest in
depicting the ‘realism’ of day to day life. Though his method is basically traditional yet he has added certain
new elements to it as a result of which, his style betrays a marked departure from the traditional method of
story-telling. His language though simple, is full of suggestiveness. His descriptions are both realistic and
accurate. Although he does not propogate any scientific idea yet his treatment is highly logical and scientific.
His main indebtedness is to Chekhov, the great master craftsman of the short story, but the abrupt ending of his
stories have a strong resemblance to the style of O. Henry. A pleasant and agreeable tone of humor enlivens
most of his stories. His short-story collections are Prahari (প্ৰিৰী) [the watchman], Gahbar (গহ্বৰ) [the cave],

Sendur (শসেুৰ) [Sindur], Srinkhal (শৃংখল) [the chain], Taranga (তৰৃংগ) [ wave ], Upakantha (উপকন্থ)[
nearby place], Ai bandaror abeli (এই েেৰৰ আবেন্তল) [Afternoon of this port ], Sandhya Bhraman (সান্ধ্য

ভ্ৰমণ) [evening walk ] etc. Prahari and Sendur were his best-selling short stories.17

Many of his short stories are translated into English by eminent journalist, writer and the founder editor of The
Sentinel, a Guwahati-based English language daily, the first translation titled as, ‘The Cavern and Other
stories’ , which is later compiled into e-book. This first e-book of Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia includes some of
his best short stories including “Endur,” “Gahbar” etc. There is an another translation by Mrs. Gayatri
Bhattacharrya, titled as “The Mistake and Other stories”, available as an e-book as well.

"Enduur" is a story about families so poor that, surrounded by warehouses full of food, mothers sent their sons
to sweep out the beds of the food trucks to glean a few bits of grain. The fathers had all left the town, since
there was no work for them. It was a dangerous environment just waiting for a real tragedy to happen.

17 th
‘THE GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT OF ASSAMESE SHORT STORY’, online article, last accessed on 15 April,
2018.

17
In "The Sinful One," a man tries to convince a friend that he has no feelings left for a former lover who may be
dying, but his actions betray him.

Sandhya Bhraman (Evening Walk) is a short story collection by Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia. It was the last
collection of Saikia's short story collection in his lifetime. It was first published in 1998. The stories those were
included in the book are: "Sandhya Bhraman", "Prabhat" "Mukhamukhi" "Khadyapran" "Pakhanda" etc.18

The title story, "The Cavern," was written in 1968, a year after South African surgeon Dr. Christiaan Barnard
performed the world's first heart transplant. The story follows a fictional character who has received a new
heart. It was a compelling story that examined the emotional conflicts that can occur when medicine intersects
with racism.
‘The planting of a vitally essential organ from someone’s body inside his own, was a great wonder—a
spectacular, epoch-making event……” These lines from Bhabendranath Saikia’s famous short story Cavern
(Gahabar) inculcate a feeling of inquisitiveness in the reader’s mind. The plot and the characters throb in every
line and phrase of the story.19

Dr. Saikia was awarded the one of the highest civilian awards of India, the Padma Shri, in 2001. The Sahitya
Akademi award was presented to Dr Saikia in 1976 for his short story collection Srinkhal (The Chain). This
award is a literary honor in India, and it is conferred by the Sahitya Akademi, India’s National Academy of
Letters. Dr. Saikia’s ‘Sringkhal’ has a movie adaptation titled as same. It is directed by Prabin Hazarika, in
2014. The film was co-produced by Assam State Film (Finance & Development) Corporation Limited and
Silverline Production, and stars Adil Hussain and Jaya Seal Ghosh in the lead roles.

The plot is based against a rural backdrop. Dayaram (Badal Das), an old man, in the hope to see a family
flowering, had allowed Nilakanta (Saurav Hazarika) to settle down. Kalidas (Adil Hussain), a friend of
Nilakanta, who had fallen for Ambika (Jaya Seal Ghosh) had informed Nilakanta that cupid had indeed struck.
When Nilakanta informs Kalidas that he will soon be marrying Ambika, the gentleman in Kalidas ensures that
he does not complicate matters and moves away on business. But after her husband passes away, Ambika,
struggles for survival and brings up her children and an infant doing the odd menial work in the village. Once,
on her way back home, she captures timid four pigeons which make Ambika shed some of her timidity.

18
‘Sandhya Bhraman’
(https://ipfs.io/ipfs/QmXoypizjW3WknFiJnKLwHCnL72vedxjQkDDP1mXWo6uco/wiki/Sandhya_Bhraman.html), last
th
accessed on 15 April,2018.
19
Mr. D.N Bezboruah, ‘The Cavern and Other Stories’, (Kindle edition)

18
Kalidas returns after long years to frequently spend long hours in Dayaram’s courtyard. Dayaram dreams that
Ambika hunger ends soon. He wants to play cupid this time. Ambika too is aware of Dayaram’s intentions.
One day when Kalidas asks "Were you aware that my mother had gone over to your place to scout for you as
my bride?" Ambika is dumb struck. Dayaram weaves Ambika baskets to take the pigeons to the market. He
ensures Kalidas accompanies her. Dusk falls. The pigeons remain unsold. Ambika does not disagree to
Kalidas’s proposal to buy the pigeons for a meal in her household. The flickers of the market lamps light up
her face.20

Dr. Saikia was adept at understanding the human mind and its complexities. The characters in his works live
through the same hopes and dreams that the common man in the society faces in the struggle for his daily
existence; they are haunted by the same nightmares and soothed by the dreams that are real in life; and the
values and morals that serve as the guiding light for the characters in his works are the same that guide us in
life and stand as challenges when we are at moral crossroads in the journey of life.

Rarely does an author come by, whose pen speaks a regional tongue, but his language remains universal. Not
very often does one read a piece of literature set in a distant, far-flung land — amidst people who barely make
it to the lower rungs of the society — which tugs at your heart for the pervasive human emotions it touches. It
is Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia’s keen sense of observation and his ability to raise the mundane to the
extraordinary that pull his characters from the rural setting of his stories and set them on the universal stage.
Their sorrows are easily recognizable and the dreams they dream are as much their own as are they of the
common man. Simple human emotions, sometimes fleeting, sometimes overpowering, all are captured within
the small frameworks of Dr. Saikia’s brilliant short stories.21

20 th
(https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sringkhal), last accessed on 15 April, 2018.
21
Mrs. Gayatri Bhattacharrya, ‘The Mistake and Other Stories’ (Kindle Edition)

19
4. APPRAISAL AND ANALYSIS OF DR. BHABENDRA NATH SAIKIA’S SHORT
STORIES

Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia’s short stories are infused with humanity and realism —elevating them from mere
reflections to invocations of the humbled, the hungry, the broken-hearted, the victim of power equations
swathing society. In Dr. Saikia’s short stories, we are presented with a ‘microscopic’ observation of human
society—portraying life in its flitting fleeting ambiences, momentary twitches of vulnerability; enlivening in the
reader emotions in their sincerest hues. Though most of the stories are based in the middle-class and lower-
middle class, often rural, Assamese society, there is a smaller segment in Dr. Saikia’s oeuvre based on foreign
soil, which however is fragranced with human emotions in a way that, stripped to its bare emotional self, an
unfamiliar world poses no barrier to the comprehension of the Assamese reader.

Of course, a detailed discussion of Dr. Saikia’s short stories is beyond the constraints of this paper. For which
purposes, two short stories are taken for consideration—‘Gohbor’ and ‘Sringkhol’. While ‘Gohbor’ was written
in 1968 and published in the anthology Gohbor in 1969, ‘Sringkhol’ was written in 1970 and published in his
1975 anthology Sringkhol. These two stories present two contrasting societies, and yet, share a common theme
of conflict albeit in their diverse shades. ‘Gohbor’ (literally meaning ‘Cavern’) is set in a racist era, in a society
and time divided along what W.E.B.Du Bois would term the ‘colour line’. This story explores and questions
racism and societal pressures despite man’s scientific advancements, thus making it probably the only story of
its kind in Dr. Saikia’s fictional oeuvre. On the other hand ‘Sringkhol’ (meaning ‘Fetter’) based in a(nother)
nondescript village in Assam, glances into the conflicts a young widowed mother has to face in the advent of
hunger of the flesh.22

Both ‘Gohbor’ and ‘Sringkhol’ present the conflict in which the protagonists cannot escape the certain life and
circumstances they are thrust into. Their ideologies and their circumstances clash in an excruciating way—
particularly in the context of the society they live in.

In ‘Gohbor’ power, class, domination and exploitation form a dangerous quadrangle. Power stems from class.
The privileged class seeks to dominate the less-privileged –the ‘other(s)’ which assumes the form of
exploitation. Such is the invisible presence of the societal forces that a person, even when saved from the jaws

22
Stuti Goswami, ‘Conflict in the short stories of Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia- a selective reading’;
(http://www.academia.edu/7912063/Conflict_in_the_short_stories_of_Dr._Bhabendra_Nath_Saikia_a_Selective_
th
Reading), last accessed on 15 April

20
of death, cannot live life as he desires. Such is the tale of Mr. Piyenaar, the character around whom the short
story ‘Gohbor’ revolves. In this story a heart patient Mr. Piyenaar’s life is miraculously saved when his doctor,
the famous Dr. Campbell successfully implants into his body the heart of a young man who was seriously
injured in a car accident.23

‘Gohbor’ is the tale of a biased culture and a cultural-ideological power politics that can play the game of
subversion to any extent for the fulfillment of its own prejudices. It is the story of one man’s futile fight with the
accepted societal ideologies, ideologies he had himself once contributed in generating. Mr. Piyenaar thus
emerges as a ‘shifter’—whose position shifts from that of the powerful, to that of the repressed. Of course, this
is not without a fair share of struggle with himself—for the unconscious conditioning is in itself a constant
surveillance—and of course with his society. However, though he is dead within the first few passages of the
story, and utters not a word, Smith’s absence becomes all too powerful a presence to be overlooked. As
Mr.Piyenaar thinks increasingly of and for the wife of the man who had to die so that he could live, the two
personas—Smith and Mr.Piyenaar emerge as reflectors of one another. This heightens the conflict within Mr.
Piyenaar. Smith is in fact the silence(d) hero. Belonging to the marginals of a White culture, Smith’s life holds
no value for the likes of Dr. Campbell. What matters is a successful implantation of a Smith’s heart into the Mr.
Piyenaar’s and thereby ‘inaugurating a new era in man’s advancement’. Thus, as it emerges the conflict in this
story is both internal, and external—the external impinging on the internal, which has its impact on the
protagonist’s relation with his own society.24

In his short story ‘Sringkhol’ the conflict is focused on the protagonist Ambika, a young mother of five.
Widowed, and struggling to keep her family afloat in the face of grinding poverty, ‘Sringkhol’, presents the
arrival of a set of pigeons in Ambika’s life, which lead her, like links in a chain, to a series of intense moments
of turbulent conflict within herself. The pigeons had been set to flight in a grand public meeting near her
village, to spread the message of peace. Ambika manages to capture four such birds, and brings them home. At
home, the hungry children want to have a meal of pigeon meat, while she feels selling the birds in the market
would fetch home some money, with which she can buy a few essential commodities. At the same time, she is
afraid of being caught with the birds, for the entire village would know the source. The story portrays Ambika’s
23
Dr. Bhabendranath Saikia, ‘Gohbor’, (Galpa aru Silpa), p.342-55
24
Stuti Goswami, ‘Conflict in the short stories of Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia- a selective reading’;
(http://www.academia.edu/7912063/Conflict_in_the_short_stories_of_Dr._Bhabendra_Nath_Saikia_a_Selective_
th
Reading), last accessed on 15 April

21
fight for sustenance in the face of the changing circumstances in her life that follow the arrival of these birds. At
the same time, hovering on the periphery of her world, and constantly endeavouring to make his presence
increasingly felt is Kalidas, who once supposedly had feelings for Ambika, but had ‘allowed’ his friend
Nilakanta to marry her. And now, widowed, struggling youthful Ambika arrests Kalidas’s roving eye, who
makes his intentions for her clear enough to make Ambika uncomfortable in his presence. 25 Throughout the
story, we witness Ambika thwarting Kalidas’s advances, all along waging a battle in her thoughts about the fate
of the pigeons. In the story, pigeon’s meat is used as a powerful symbol for human (the woman’s) flesh, at the
same time as it symbolizes Ambika’s vulnerability. Her economic condition, and her dilemma gradually bind
her in an invisible iron-like fetter.26

The writer presents the niggling sensuousness beneath Ambika’s unostentatious body. As a mother, a widowed
mother, her identity has been trapped in her daily battles to fend for her family; Kalidas’ advances awaken in
her tints of her sense of herself, and her body. At the same time it throws her into an ethical dilemma. As
mentioned above, the pigeons embody Ambika’s entrapped and vulnerable existence, wherein she constantly
has to fight the demons within. The conflict in this story is thus internal—enacted in the battleground of the
protagonist’s mind. However, Ambika’s struggle is also with the society she lives in; such a society would
never accept a widowed mother having a relationship with another man. Even if Ambika forays into such
territory, if not anything else but at least to alleviate her poverty-ridden family, society , that panopticon would
return and resurrect itself to stifle and stigmatize her. This leaves Ambika stranded in a moral and emotional
dilemma. Though she remains silent (silenced?) much of the time, the reader hears her voice, and the voice that
emerges is a defiant one. In portraying the conflict, Dr. Saikia reveals a deep understanding of the functionings
of the human mind. Out of such conflict, and struggle, the embattled protagonists arise ennobled.

Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia's short stories are always thought provoking, witty and display his close view of life.
‘Evening Walk’, a translation of Shandhya Bhraman, is a short story in which the author has presented the story
of a woman, Sumitra, who decides to live a life as a single woman. She was in love with Bipul, and during those
days of her life she believed in such things as seeing salika bird in pair brings happiness. But when Bipul
ditched her, she suspended all her belief on happiness and transformed herself into an impersonal person, “dry
of emotions”. She has been offered help almost by everyone who meets her, but she rejects to accept any help
extended to her out of pity. Niranjan Dutta is one such man, he even tries to flirt with her and shows some

25
Dr. Bhabendranath Saikai ‘Sringkhol’, (Galpa aru Silpa), p.425-
26
(http://www.academia.edu/7912063/Conflict_in_the_short_stories_of_Dr._Bhabendra_Nath_Saikia_a_Selective
th
_Reading), last accessed on 15 April

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interest in her, but she does not response to his advances which is seen from her decision of altering the plan of
her house that she is going to build near his cottage.27

‘Evening Walk’ is the story of the predicament of Sumitra in a society where male is the dominator, where male
only has the right to relax in an armchair in the verandah of his house and where everyone is prepared to take
“advantage of her singleness.” Niranjan Dutta visits her very often “to extend whatever assistance Sumitra
might need”. In the short story love is not clearly presented in terms of any peaceful or happy affair for Sumitra.

Sumitra, throughout the story, depicts her mental agony imbibed in her different thoughts. She relates every
other situation with her love-life, as for example, she relates the lying to her mother to meet Bipul, to the
imaginary daughter of a woman working in the garden. Again, she relates the words of Diganta about ‘whole-
life’ promise with that of the ‘whole-life’ promises of Bipul. In fact, the short story is a story depicting pain,
pain suffered in love. It is a story of a walk into pain, if pain can be considered the evening of love, where
morning signifies a relation of love which is full of happiness and peace. Bhabendra Nath Saikia has not only
presented the pain that Sumitra has suffered after her separation from Bipul, but he has also made her an
embodiment of a ‘new woman’ in Assamese literature, although she partly represents a ‘new woman’. Sumitra,
through the ‘stern-lesson’ to herself, has put forward an expanded potential of women in Assamese literature.28

Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia’s short stories are characterized by a remarkable simplicity of language and a
conventional narrative. Everything—from the choice of character names to the description of the setting to the
characters’ utterances—is picked from the everyday life. And yet it is Dr. Saikia’s touch that lends artistic
magic to ordinary experience. Though the stories deal with essential human(e) issues, Dr. Saikia is never
preachy or didactic in his tone. His characters’ heroisms are the confrontations of the ordinary man with his
circumstances and the ambient culture he finds himself/herself in.

27
Bishnu Prasad Varma, ‘REPRESENTING WO(E)MAN IN SAIKIA’S EVENING WALK’(www.researchscholar.co.in), last
th
accessed on 15 April, 2018.
28
Saikia, B. N. Sandhya Bhraman, 1988. Trans. Ranjita Biswas ‘Evening Walk’. in Shantinath K.

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6. CONCLUSION

Indeed, Padmashri Dr, Bhabendra Nath Saikia occupies a prestigious place in the history of Assamese literature.
This prolific writer’s large body of work enjoys great appreciation from the readers. Dr. Saikia presents a
picture of human life that is both beautifully poignant and surprisingly revealing. Written in a classic,
minimalist style, Dr. Saikia's stories use the mundane events of everyday life to highlight subtle and important
truths about all of us. His characters are memorable for the simplicity of their insights, and for the way Dr.
Saikia is able to reveal that insight though seemingly unconnected events.

For example, in the compilation ‘The Cavern and Other Stories’, there are stories depicting a man's obsession
with protecting his crop of litchi fruit from hordes of hungry bats reveals much about both his love for his
deceased wife and his hopes for his daughter. A mother's grief over the loss of her young son, as well as her
gradual recovery, is revealed by the stealthy rats that come to steal her rice each night. And a jaded writer
reveals his true feelings for his dying lover, not through words, but through pins unconsciously placed in a
pattern while speaking of her. The endings of Dr. Saikia's stories are really what make them work so perfectly.
He has a talent saying something that, in just a line or two, brings great truths into sudden focus. It reminds us
of the stories of Indian writer R. K. Narayan, and even of O. Henry, whose stories are little gems of insight into
the workings of the human mind.

Throughout this project, the life of Dr. Saikia was portrayed, with depictions of his famous works of art and
literarture. The chapters clearly emphasized on the style and insights of expressions in the author’s collections
of short-stories.

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BIBLIOGRAPHY
Books:
 Bezboruah, D. N; ‘The Cavern and Other Stories’, (Kindle edition)
 Saikia, Dr. Bhabendranath; ‘Sringkhol’, (Galpa aru Silpa)

Articles:

 Pisharoty, Sangeeta Boruah; ‘The Man and His Magic’ , The Hindu, 16th August 2012
 Konwar, Pallabi; “The Hour Before Dawn” and “Agnisnan”: A critical response’
 Varma, Bishnu Prasad; ‘REPRESENTING WO(E)MAN IN SAIKIA’S EVENING WALK’
 Goswami, Stuti; ‘Conflict in the short stories of Dr. Bhabendra Nath Saikia- a selective reading’
 ‘THE GROWTH AND DEVELOPMENT OF ASSAMESE SHORT STORY’, online article.

Websites:

 http://www.indiaonline.in/about/Personalities/WritersandPoets/Bhabendra-Nath-Saikia.html
 https://www.smashwords.com/profile/view/BhabendraNathSaikia
 https://archive.li/PR5el
 http://www.assams.info/movies/sandhya-raag-1977
 http://sofura.org/#aboutus
 http://www.worldlibrary.org/

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