There is a tree whose image has gone viral on social media in and around Guwahati over the last two days. It’s the massive tree adjacent to Digholipukhuri. The buzz is about the planned felling of this century-old tree, which has witnessed Guwahati's transformation from a sleepy little town into a bustling—now congested—metropolitan city. But this write-up isn't about the stellar planning skills of the concerned authorities, who have so thoughtfully overlooked the ecological, historical, and emotional impact that felling trees like this would have on future generations. It also isn’t about how the state’s green cover is being mercilessly chopped down to make way for ever-growing urbanization. And I surely don’t want to repeat what thousands have already echoed about the urgent need for conservation and the woes of Guwahati's residents, who have been battling climate change, artificial floods, and dust storms in recent years. No, this is about something much more personal—th

Late Taru Das Kakati (1941-2024) Summer vacations in Barpeta were a cherished ritual. Almost every monsoon, my parents would leave me with my grandmother for a delightful two weeks or more. My grandfather ran an ice cream factory in Bongaigaon, and a bonus during my Barpeta days was a visit to him and the unlimited ice cream. For as long as I can remember, Taru Das Kakati was a prominent name in the sleepy little town of Barpeta. It was a place where everyone knew everyone. For me, it was half a month of royalty, where everyone showered me with love and affection. She was distinguished to be the first female employee of the District Commissioners’ office of the Barpeta division of Assam. At a time, when working females were not quite encouraged in society, she managed to be that iconic lady who broke all societal shackles. Aaita (the Assamese for Grandmother)   completed her schooling from a night school, something that women would not dare to do at that age and then further went on to

Workplace trauma is quite a thing. And very often, it leads to a complete derailment of one’s career or confidence to say the least. We are a generation marred with severe stress, COVID19, worst pollution and whatnot. Along with that, the topping of a toxic work environment can potentially make one’s life just hollow.  I have been meaning to write about this for a while now. The fact that I had to take a break for years to even get started about documenting it says a lot about the impact a bad workplace can have on you and the shame, that accompanies, makes it even harder for us to admit.  There is humiliation, and then there is shame. And third, there is anger for the humiliation that you enabled and the shame to admit it in public. I have passed through all of it. Of course, the last stage is acceptance, but trust me when I say this, acceptance isn’t the end of it.  Under-confidence and anxiety are some of the most used words in our vocabulary set. Yet, when I am asked why I sound hy

One of the greatest fears one can have is to be a stranger to someone or a place, that was once very close to you. Often in our lives, we cross paths with so many places and people, that for a period they become an integral part of our lives. While some remain with us forever, others are as good as strangers.   We often walk into places knowing it’s temporary, yet when we move out, pain engulfs us knowing that things will never be the same again.   One of the biggest fallacies in our 20s is that we often claim a space, area or city to be our own. As a university student, your life revolves around the campus and everything in and around the campus becomes the comfort zone that we reside in. Every second person is a familiar face, and your sense of belonging is rooted around them. But just in a matter of few years, everything changes, and the most known place of yours becomes as good as the new city which you moved in, completely unknown. (This of course is not true for everyone)   I

I have been writing for over a decade now. In 2012, I started a blog and went on to garner a lakh page views by 2015. Social media wasn’t as big then as to what it is now, the internet wasn’t a necessity, but rather an accessory and attention span surely was more than what we have today. So I believe I can get a little pat on my back for what I achieved.   Come 2016, my blog reached the 200k mark, and then like the abandoned Paper Factory in Jagiroad, Assam, I abandoned my blog. I did write a couple of pieces up until 2021, but that was probably the flickering flame of a dying lamp.   So, did I stop writing after 2016? Hell no, in fact, I have been writing an unimaginable volume of work. From academic papers, news stories, features for magazines, websites, academic papers, dissertations, press releases, scripts, concept notes and my favourite pass time, emails, I have been churning out words after words .  But what I absolutely stopped doing is, writing for myself. Personal writing a

I have been engrossed with football for a while now. From it being my favorite game in my childhood to working with India’s first ever FIFA tournament, the it’s been an exhilarating ride. I have covered Indian Football, researched about Indian football and ultimately worked with Indian football. . But let’s start with ground zero. This post is about my love for football. Everyone has a story as to how they fell in love with the game and this is my story. Football is particularly a favorite pass time in Assam, the place I come from.  I wouldn’t necessarily say that Assam is a football crazy land. But back in the days, Bordoloi Trophy was one of India’s foremost football tournament, and the residents of the state flocked in numbers to witness national and international giants locking horns with each other. The fandom for the game in Assam, might be relatively less than its neighboring North Eastern states. But there is a deep rooted connect within the Assamese soc

The best bit of TVF’s latest creation Panchayat is that there is nothing extraordinary about its storyline or storytelling. Yet the series comes across as something extremely special, soothing, calming and as a breath of fresh air in these un-extra ordinary times that we live in. For a lot of us, we are stuck in this one in a millionth pandemic situation, with our chaotic metropolitan lives coming to an abrupt halt. From a time, where we would be fighting for space in our personal lives, we are now stuck in a morass where emptiness is irking us out. Living with uncertainties and constant feelings of helplessness makes us question the very core of our existence, as human race, as competitive individuals and even as the smartest being on the planet. But cutting short to Panchayat, the Jitendra Kumar, Neena Gupta and Raghubir Yadav led cast has managed to deliver as masterpiece simply because whatever is narrated in the series is very real. As mentioned before, the st