Translated from Assamese and introduced by Aruni Kashyap
“Indira Goswami is one of those rare figures whose achievements as a writer are closely paralleled by their accomplishments as a social and political activist.” —Amitav Ghosh
Indira Goswami’s last work of fiction, The Bronze Sword of Thengphakhri Tehsildar is the heroic tale of a Bodo freedom fighter who was, arguably, the first woman revenue collector, a tehsildar, in British India. Set in late 19th-century Assam, Thengphakhri is a fascinating character that the author recreated from folklore and songs and stories that she’d heard in her childhood. The image of the protagonist, galloping across the plains of Bijni kingdom in lower Assam to collect taxes for the British, is a compelling one and one that inspires awe and admiration.
Indira Goswami has woven a complex tale wherein the foundations of the colonial rulers were shaken by insurgents seeking freedom across Assam just before the rise of the Indian National Congress
Amitav Ghosh on Indira Goswami
“Vivid, haunting and disturbing, Indira Goswami’s characters stay with us long after the last page.”
“Relying on oral sources, Goswami’s book reconstructs Thengphakhri’s extraordinary life. In the process, she touches on the social and political history of the Bodos, an indigenous Assamese tribe, whose lives have seldom been chronicled.”
“A big part of what makes the novel interesting, then, is what it doesn’t tell us. Beyond a couple of fleeting references to a husband we know nothing about Thengphakhri’s status as a widow.
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“…its reading is an unforgettable experience.Whenever my mind wandered back to this sombre, penumbral and horrid atmosphere, I feel overpowered by awe.”
“Indira Goswami is one of those rare souls who have been able to get an insight into the great power which is working behind this universe. In turn the endeavor to grapple with that finds reflection in this book and lends strength to it…This power that this metamorphosis has bestowed upon her has now became a matter of pride for every Assamese women.”
“Her novel The Pages Stained With Blood captures the brutality and the distrust in the cityscape where the fugitives from justice and the perpetrators of crime are difficult to distinguish. To understand the complex nature of mercenary agents of crime, Indira even visited the infamous GB Road and spoke to the sex workers. …The common thread in Indira Goswami’s immensely diverse and rich oeuvre is the concern for women. In her person and in her work this is echoed multifariously. Despite the complex interstices, I see no contradictions—only a holistic expression of India’s many challenges to women’s empowerment and a gifted writer moulding them into creative forms.”