Discourses From the East
Photo (Sobi)
Introductory translator’s note: This is yet another incredible short story from Saurav Kumar Chaliha’s impressive oeuvre. His unique punctuation style is defined…
Discourses From the East
জুবিন আৰু ধৰ্ম
In this article "Zubeen and Dharma," author Jiten Bezboruah explores the profound sacralization and deification of the iconic artist Zubeen Garg within the Assamese collective consciousness following his death. Despite Zubeen’s lifelong irreligion, Bezboruah frames the public's overwhelming grief as a deeply transformative "post-secular" and "paramodern" phenomenon where society projected its own existential anxieties and cultural ambitions onto his persona. Ultimately, the text positions this event as a powerful moment of cultural re-enchantment—the birth of a "national sacred"—that reclaimed Zubeen's legacy from the capitalist market to revitalize an inclusive Assamese nationalism.
Doctors as Champions of Social Change
Anchored in the legacy of Dr. B. C. Roy and the philosophy of Rudolf Virchow, National Doctor's Day highlights how health is shaped not only by clinical care but by broader social, economic, and environmental conditions. The piece argues that doctors, as trusted figures, are uniquely positioned to advocate for health equity, address social determinants of disease, and engage in public discourse. From patient communication to community outreach and climate advocacy, it calls for a reimagining of medical practice as both a science and a socially responsive art. It needs to be seen, imagined and practiced as one that extends beyond treatment in shaping a healthier and more just society.
Politics: Essence and Deception
Politics is the art of managing public life. Its core meaning is not merely to rule, but to establish justice and equality in society. However, when politics is reduced to a "numbers game of power," its essence is gradually overshadowed by cunning.
The Work of AI in an Age of Digital (Re)Production: Artificial Intelligence and Academic Integrity
The release of Chat GPT an Artificial Intelligence (AI) application in November 2022, has unleashed a furore in the academic community. More such Large Language Model tools or companions like Claude, Gemini, Copilot has followed in its wake. In response to a prompt, the AI chat bots can generate coherent long form discursive prose on a given topic, prepare slides, summarise and generate content. This has led to universities in the USA to rewrite their academic codes of honour, initiating discussions on the issue, dividing academicians over whether they should ask students to go back to writing assignments by putting pen to paper or embrace AI and use Chat GPT as a tool, just like calculators.
In the Republic of Cockroaches: Reading India through Kafka
Historically, satire in India often functioned as entertainment rather than disruption. Cartoons mocked politicians; stand-up comics ridiculed public life. But social media has fundamentally altered the grammar of dissent. Memes now travel faster than manifestos. Irony carries greater emotional resonance than speeches.