Bhupen HazarikaBR, widely known as Sudha Kontho, was an Indian playback singer, songwriter, and politician from Assam. He has written songs mainly in the Assamese language, which are marked by humanity and universal brotherhood. His songs have been translated into many languages, most notably in Bengali and in Hindi.
Assamese literature is the entire corpus of poetry, novels, short stories, plays, documents and other writings in the Assamese language. It also includes the literary works in the older forms of the language during its evolution to the contemporary form and its cultural heritage and tradition. The literary heritage of the Assamese language can be traced back to the c. 9–10th century in the Charyapada, where the earliest elements of the language can be discerned.
Jayanta Hazarika was an Indian singer and composer associated with Assamese music. He wrote lyrics for a few songs and composed music for several movies. He was the younger brother of Bhupen Hazarika.
Homen Borgohain was an Assamese author and journalist. He was awarded the 1978 Sahitya Akademi Award in Assamese language for his novel Pita Putra. He was also the President of Assam Sahitya Sabha from 2001 to 2002.
Arupa Kalita Patangia was born in 1956 and is an Indian novelist and short story writer and known for her fiction writing in Assamese. Her literary awards include: the Bharatiya Bhasha Parishad award, the Katha Prize and the Prabina Saikia Award. In 2014, she received the prestigious Sahitya Akademi Award for her short stories book named Mariam Austin Othoba Hira Barua. Her books have been translated to English, Hindi, and Bengali. Her works touch upon Assamese history and culture, addressing the lives people from middle and lower income brackets, and focus specifically on concerns of women, violence, and insurgency.
Birendra Kumar Bhattacharya was an Indian writer. He was one of the pioneers of modern Assamese literature. He was the first ever Assamese writer to receive the Jnanpith Award, which was awarded to him in the year 1979 for his novel Mrityunjay (Immortal), followed by Indira Goswami in 2001. He was also a recipient of Sahitya Akademi Award in Assamese in 1961 for his Assamese novel Iyaruingam, which is considered a masterpiece of Indian literature. In 2005, a translation of the work published by Katha Books with the title Love in the Time of Insurgency was released. Another famous novel written by Bhattacharya is Aai (Mother).
Literature from North East India (Assamese: উত্তৰ-পূৱ ভাৰতৰ সাহিত্য is literature in the languages of North East India and the body of work by English-language writers from this region. North East India is an under-represented region in many ways. The troubled political climate, the beautiful landscape and the confluence of various ethnic groups perhaps have given rise to a body of writing that is completely different from Indian English literature. North-East India was a colonial construct and continues to be one by virtue of having a historically difficult relationship with the Indian nation state.
Temsüla Ao was an Indian poet, fiction writer, and ethnographer. She was a professor of English at North Eastern Hill University (NEHU) from where she retired in 2010. She served as the director of the North East Zone Cultural Centre between 1992 and 1997 on deputation from NEHU. She was awarded the Padma Shri award for her contribution to literature and education. Her book Laburnum For My Head received the Sahitya Akademi Award for English writing in the short story category. Her works have been translated into Assamese, Bengali, French, German, Hindi, and Kannada.
Harekrishna Deka is a former member of the Indian Police Service who is now known for his writing. He was the Director General of Police for Assam from 2000–2003.
Dr. Dhrubajyoti Bora, a medical doctor by profession, is a Guwahati-based Assamese writer and novelist. In a literary career spanning around three decades he has published many critically acclaimed works of fiction and non-fiction including more than twenty four books – Novels, monographs on history, travelogues, collection of articles etc. Most notably, he was honored with the Sahitya Akademi Award in 2009.
Nilmani Phookan was an Indian poet in the Assamese language and an academic. His work, replete with symbolism, is inspired by French symbolism and is representative of the genre in Assamese poetry. His notable works include Surya Henu Nami Ahe Ei Nodiyedi, Gulapi Jamur Lagna, and Kobita.
Mahim Bora was a prominent Indian writer and educationist from Assam.His notable works include "Kathonibari Ghat," a collection of short stories, and "Edhani Mahir Hanhi," a novel. He was elected as a president of the Assam Sahitya Sabha held in 1989 at Doomdooma. He was awarded most notably the Padma Shri in 2011, the Sahitya Akademi Award in 2001 and the Assam Valley Literary Award in 1998. Assam Sahitya Sabha conferred its highest honorary title Sahityacharyya on him in 2007. He also participated in the Quit India Movement of 1942 held in Kaliabor town in the Nagaon district of Assam.
Chandraprabha Saikiani or Chandraprava Saikiani was an Assamese freedom fighter, activist, writer and social reformer considered to be the pioneer of the feminist movement in Assam. She was the founder of The All Assam Pradeshik Mahila Samiti, a non governmental organization working for the welfare of the women of Assam and was a recipient of the fourth highest Indian civilian award of Padma Shri for the year 1972 from the Government of India. Three decades later, the Indian government issued a commemorative stamp on Saikiani under the series, Social Reformers, in 2002.
Nalini Prava Deka was an author, poet, storyteller, actress and playwright from Assam, a state in India encompassing the Brahmaputra Valley. She was honoured at a 2012 gathering in Ledo by the Assam Sahitya Sabha. Deka promoted Assamese heritage, traditional customs, weaving and fabric art, cooking and folk music with her husband, Bhabananda Deka. They researched traditional Assamese lifestyle, art, literature and culture. Deka was the first female editor and publisher of a children's magazine, Phul (Flower), and wrote 30 critically praised books. All India Radio broadcast Deka's radio plays on issues related to women and children.
Lakshmi Nandan Bora was an Indian novelist and short story writer in the Assamese language, known for over 60 books he has authored, including award winning novels, Patal Bhairavi and Kayakalpa. A recipient of Sahitya Academy Award and Saraswati Samman, Bora was honoured by the Government of India in 2015 with Padma Shri, the fourth highest Indian civilian award. He died on 3 June 2021, from complications caused by COVID-19.
Prodyut Kumar Deka is an Indian film and stage director, screenwriter and author based in Assam. His films include Dhunia Tirutabur (2009), Samiran Barua Ahi Ase (2012), Surjasta (2013), and Borosi (2014).
Yeshe Dorjee Thongchi is an Assamese writer. He was formerly a deputy commissioner. His first literary creation is a poem named 'Junbai'.
Suchibrata Roychoudhury was an Assamese litterateur and poet, and the first female Judicial Magistrate of Assam as an Assam Civil Services officer. She received the Sahitya Akademi Translation Prize in 2001 for translating Suvira Jaiswal's The Origin and Development of Vaishnavism in India.
