Bangladeshi English literature
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Bangladeshi English literature (BEL) refers to the body of literary work written in the
English language English is a West Germanic language of the Indo-European language family, with its earliest forms spoken by the inhabitants of early medieval England. It is named after the Angles, one of the ancient Germanic peoples that migrated to the is ...
in
Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mos ...
and the
Bangladeshi diaspora The Bangladeshi diaspora ( bn, প্রবাসী বাংলাদেশী) are people of Bangladeshi birth or descent who live outside of Bangladesh. First-generation migrants may have moved abroad from Bangladesh for various reasons in ...
. The historical background of interpolation of English in this region dates back to the
British colonial period The British Empire was composed of the dominions, colonies, protectorates, mandates, and other territories ruled or administered by the United Kingdom and its predecessor states. It began with the overseas possessions and trading posts esta ...
. English touched the land through the historical process—the historical process of British colonization over the land. However, the thought of creative writing in the colonizer's language inflames the idea that it is a deliberate choice by the native people who exploit—to emphasize more—the language in a way which exceeds the possibility of language to be used only as a communicative medium. Here the first question comes to the issue of taking up English as a medium of creative writing, in which Bankim and Michael Madhusudan underwent a deliberate trial to emerge as writers. The process of writing in English is ever-expanding and now uses a new term, "Bengali English Literature", rather than "Bangaladeshi English Literature". In academia, it is also now referred to as Bangladeshi Writing in English (BWE). Early prominent Bengali writers in English included Ram Muhan Roy,
Sake Dean Mahomed Sake Dean Mahomed (1759–1851) was an Bengali traveller, surgeon, entrepreneur, and one of the most notable early non-European immigrants to the Western World. Due to non-standard transliteration, his name is often spelled in various ways. His ...
,
Bankim Chandra Chatterjee Bankim Chandra Chatterjee (also Chattopadhayay) CIE (26 or 27 June 1838 – 8 April 1894) was an Indian novelist, poet, Essayist and journalist.Staff writer"Bankim Chandra: The First Prominent Bengali Novelist" ''The Daily Star'', 30 June 2011 ...
,
Begum Rokeya Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain") is the commonly used spelling of Rokeya's full married name, Rokeya herself is never seen to use her full married name in this English spelling. In much of her correspondence in English, she used just her initials: ...
and
Rabindranath Tagore Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...
. In 1905,
Begum Rokeya Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain") is the commonly used spelling of Rokeya's full married name, Rokeya herself is never seen to use her full married name in this English spelling. In much of her correspondence in English, she used just her initials: ...
(1880–1932) wrote ''
Sultana's Dream ''Sultana's Dream'' is a 1905 Bengali feminist utopian story in English, written by Begum Rokeya, also known as Rokeya Sahkawat Hossain, a Muslim feminist, writer and social reformer from Bengal. It was published in the same year in Madras-bas ...
'', one of the world's earliest examples of
feminist science fiction Feminist science fiction is a subgenre of science fiction (abbreviated "SF") focused on theories that include feminist themes including but not limited to gender inequality, sexuality, race, economics, reproduction, and environment. Feminist ...
. Modern writers of the Bangladeshi diaspora include Tahmima Anam,
Neamat Imam Neamat Imam ( bn, নেয়ামত ইমাম; born 5 January 1971) is a Bangladeshi-Canadian author of literary fiction. His first novel, ''The Black Coat'', a ''Quill & Quire'' Book of the Year 2016, was published by Penguin Books Indi ...
,
Monica Ali Monica Ali FRSL (born 20 October 1967) is a British writer of Bangladeshi and English heritage. In 2003, she was selected as one of the "Best of Young British Novelists" by ''Granta'' magazine based on her unpublished manuscript; her debut nove ...
and
Zia Haider Rahman Zia Haider Rahman () () is a British novelist and broadcaster. His novel '' In the Light of What We Know'' was published in 2014 to international critical acclaim and translated into many languages. He was awarded the James Tait Black Memorial ...
. Thus, literary study begins from the British colonial period in the Indian subcontinent, transcends to a specified land of Bangladesh after 1947 and is now diversified over the writings in English even by the
Bangladeshi Diaspora The Bangladeshi diaspora ( bn, প্রবাসী বাংলাদেশী) are people of Bangladeshi birth or descent who live outside of Bangladesh. First-generation migrants may have moved abroad from Bangladesh for various reasons in ...
who posses a content in English but context in Bangladesh.


Writers and their contributions (1774–2022)


Emergence of English in the Bangla Region (1774–1855)


''Minute of Macaulay'': the legal document of the establishment of English (1835)

The ''Minute of Macaulay'' (''Minute on Indian Education'') paves the way for the establishment of English as a formal medium of transferring
European philosophy Western philosophy encompasses the philosophical thought and work of the Western world. Historically, the term refers to the philosophical thinking of Western culture, beginning with the ancient Greek philosophy of the pre-Socratics. The word ' ...
and
English literature English literature is literature written in the English language from United Kingdom, its crown dependencies, the Republic of Ireland, the United States, and the countries of the former British Empire. ''The Encyclopaedia Britannica'' defines E ...
down, valuing the momentum of Sanskrit and Arabic or Persian. The Minute, drafted and presented by
Thomas Babington Macaulay Thomas Babington Macaulay, 1st Baron Macaulay, (; 25 October 1800 – 28 December 1859) was a British historian and Whig politician, who served as the Secretary at War between 1839 and 1841, and as the Paymaster-General between 1846 and 184 ...
in 1835, was an eventful historical milestone as it proposed the pressing need for English on the then Indian subcontinent. T. B. Macaulay, a great scholar of English literature and philosophy, was invited back to India in 1834 by the Lord Bentinck so that Macauley could serve as the law member of the
Company A company, abbreviated as co., is a Legal personality, legal entity representing an association of people, whether Natural person, natural, Legal person, legal or a mixture of both, with a specific objective. Company members share a common p ...
. He was made the chief of the Public Instruction Committee to study the fate of Oriental education based on the
Charter Act of 1813 The East India Company Act 1813 (53 Geo 3 c 155), also known as the Charter Act 1813, was an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom that renewed the charter issued to the British East India Company, and continued the Company's rule in Ind ...
. Macaulay took this as an opportunity to attack Oriental literature written in Sanskrit, Arabic and Persian as he commented "a single shelf of a good European library was worth the whole native literature of India and Arabia". This remark by Macaulay inserted in the Minute disregarded the Oriental educational tools, techniques and total system, though it was grounded on the specific reasons that Macaulay explained in his Minutes. He was a liberal
educationist Education is a purposeful activity directed at achieving certain aims, such as transmitting knowledge or fostering skills and character traits. These aims may include the development of understanding, rationality, kindness, and honesty. Var ...
who regarded education unbiased from religious sentiments which Macaulay found to have engulfed the Indian education nurtured through Sanskrit, Arabic or Persian. Macaulay had a firm conviction that Anglo-Saxon England transformed into the present enlightened England due to their embrace of Greek and Roman which bathed England in the philosophy and science documented in these languages. Macaulay had the conviction on the proposal that he made was in no way flawed and disrespectful to Indian education: "At that time almost everything that was worth reading was contained in the writings of the ancient Greeks and Romans. Had our ancestors acted as the Committee of Public Instruction has hitherto noted, had they neglected the language of Thucydides and Plato, and the language of Cicero and Tacitus, had they confined their attention to the old dialects of our own island, had they printed nothing and taught nothing at the universities but chronicles in Anglo-Saxon and romances in Norman French, – would England ever have been what she now is?" Perhaps; England would not have come to this point of pragmatic excellence if they had acted reverse on the account of
nationalism Nationalism is an idea and movement that holds that the nation should be congruent with the State (polity), state. As a movement, nationalism tends to promote the interests of a particular nation (as in a in-group and out-group, group of peo ...
. In the case of India and England, Macaulay hints at that stage of England, must not be the same as India is endowed with a rich spiritual culture and various religious sects had their respective momentum already established prior to the intrusion of the
East India Company The East India Company (EIC) was an English, and later British, joint-stock company founded in 1600 and dissolved in 1874. It was formed to trade in the Indian Ocean region, initially with the East Indies (the Indian subcontinent and Southea ...
. However, English as a medium of teaching-learning became necessitated in order to endow the natives with utilitarianism philosophy. Macaulay proposes the natives know
Milton Milton may refer to: Names * Milton (surname), a surname (and list of people with that surname) ** John Milton (1608–1674), English poet * Milton (given name) ** Milton Friedman (1912–2006), Nobel laureate in Economics, author of '' Free t ...
,
John Locke John Locke (; 29 August 1632 – 28 October 1704) was an English philosopher and physician, widely regarded as one of the most influential of Age of Enlightenment, Enlightenment thinkers and commonly known as the "father of liberalism ...
and
Newton Newton most commonly refers to: * Isaac Newton (1642–1726/1727), English scientist * Newton (unit), SI unit of force named after Isaac Newton Newton may also refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Newton'' (film), a 2017 Indian film * Newton ( ...
. Then, English emerges as the redeemer language as Macaulay admits he does not have the capability to preach through Sanskrit, Arabic and Persian. Moreover, Macaulay hints at producing a group of native nobles who will make close ties between the company and the natives and secondly take the role of preaching to their brothers. The historical truth is that Macaulay then succeeded with his Minute to persuade Lord Bentinck on the answer to the question of what the language of Indian educational instruction must be. In the 1835 "Resolution", Lord Bentinck stated, "I give my entire concurrence to the sentiments expressed in this minute" and passed English as the medium of teaching science and philosophy on the Indian subcontinent on March 7, 1835. English thus became established as one of the first graded languages having legal provisions. The bottom line is that Macaulay was the visionary behind the inception of English as a legal and superior language keeping Sanskrit, Arabic and Persian behind, and Lord Bentinck was the activist who materialized the vision; the natives were thus legally forced to learn English as a viable medium for learning western philosophy, science and literature.


The Hindu College at Kolkata (1817–1855)

The Hindu College is the first considered institution that institutionalized English on the Indian subcontinent. The aim of this institution was to impart liberal education to the Hindus. The visionary Raja Ram Muhan Roy, the Hindu gentry, and the British government had the consent to establish this institution viewing the identical motive for preaching liberal art, European philosophy and literature. This institution began operation in 1817 and replaced
Hindu mythology Hindu mythology is the body of myths and literature attributed to, and espoused by, the adherents of the Hindu religion, found in Hindu texts such as the Vedic literature, epics like ''Mahabharata'' and ''Ramayana'', the Puranas, and reg ...
and metaphysics. The motif of the institution culminated in its success when Derozio joined in the Hindu College in 1828. His magical influence over the young Indian learners moved them to establish the
Young Bengal The Young Bengal was a group of Bengali free thinkers emerging from Hindu College, Calcutta. They were also known as Derozians, after their firebrand teacher at Hindu College, Henry Louis Vivian Derozio. The Young Bengal Movement peripherally ...
liberal society, which broke the barrier of religious orthodoxy with the light of humanism and logic. A note in 1831 from the governing body reads that the learners have acquired competence in English and their knowledge in science is equal to the knowledge of any European learner of the sciences. Rachana Chakravarty has pointed out: ''When in 1847, the Professorships of Engineering and Experimental and Natural Philosophy were created on the condition that such lectures would be open to all students irrespective of caste or religion, the Hindu College succeeded in shedding its sectarian limitations.'' Again, the British government tended to revise the name of this college in view of establishing this institution as a secular entity. The name changed to The Presidency College on 15 April 1855 and the Hindu College ended its history, merging into the new identity.


Raja Ram Mohan Roy (1774–1833)

Raja Ram Mohan Roy Raja Ram Mohan Roy ( bn, রামমোহন রায়; 22 May 1772 – 27 September 1833) was an Indian reformer who was one of the founders of the Brahmo Sabha in 1828, the precursor of the Brahmo Samaj, a social-religious reform m ...
(1774–1833) is the renaissance icon of Bangla literature. He is more remembered for his social reforms. Yet, he was a man who made an invaluable contribution to the establishment of English not only as a valuable medium of education but also as the first moral essayist of Bengali English literature. The Hindu College has garnered due evaluation for its contributing influence in catering for English as a valued medium of instruction. Here, the name Ram Mohan Roy must claim the position of having motivated the British Raj to establish this college, as Chakraborty states: This compelled the courier Ram Mohan Roy to aid the native gentry as well as the government to establish a formal institution for exercising secular ideologies, which are far distant from Indian metaphysics and mythology. Again, the contribution stated previously transcends Ram Mohan to the sphere of social reformation. And, his contribution to reach the ceiling of modernity in Bangla literature through the inception of the renaissance is also amplified. In contrast, his name has been little mentioned regarding English literature written by Bengalis; Bangladeshi history writers have tersely alluded to his name as if it were taboo to create an accolade of a few sentences for him.
Askari An askari (from Somali, Swahili and Arabic , , meaning "soldier" or "military", which also means "police" in the Somali language) was a local soldier serving in the armies of the European colonial powers in Africa, particularly in the African G ...
has felt expiated only to refer Williams with his remarks for that personnel: "Raja Ram Mohan Roy, the father of the Bengali Renaissance, was also the 'father of Indian literature in English'". The one sentence statement by Askari notes the exemplary impact over English literature in the Bongo Region as it states: "He was the pioneer of a literary trend that has extended over a vast area of the subcontinent, including Bangladesh". While in Rangpur, Ram Mohan took a lively interest in the political development in England and Europe. He used to read avidly all the journals and newspapers that Digby got from England, and thereby not only improved his knowledge of English which he had started to learn at the age of twenty-two, but also acquired considerable knowledge of European political thought. Through Digby it is evident that Ram Mohan was attracted by the political liberalism prevailing in Europe at that time''.'' Ghose has made a thorough discussion on the English work of Ram Mohan Roy. The following lists sketch the man's effort to social and political reformations from the perspectives of liberalism. Thus, the emergence of Ram Muhan Roy, the establishment of the Hindu College and the Minutes of Macaulay helped the emergence of English in the Bengal region, which afforded those in the Bangla region the opportunity to create literature through English.


Period of early singing birds (1830–1870)


Light of reason (1870–1905)


Emergence of Muslim consciousness (1905–1947)


Pre-liberation period (1947–1971)


Post-liberation sensibility (1971–1980)


Transnational experimentation (1980–2000)


Contemporary scene (2000–2022)

''
A Golden Age ''A Golden Age'' is the first novel of the Bangladesh-born writer Tahmima Anam. It tells the story of the Bangladesh War of Independence through the eyes of one family. The novel was awarded the prize for Best First Book in the Commonwealth Writ ...
'' by Tahmima Anam is set during the
Bangladesh Liberation War The Bangladesh Liberation War ( bn, মুক্তিযুদ্ধ, , also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, or simply the Liberation War in Bangladesh) was a revolution and War, armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Benga ...
in 1971. Anam is also the author of ''
The Good Muslim ''The Good Muslim'' is a novel by Tahmima Anam. This novel is a sequel to her debut novel '' A Golden Age'' and spans the year from 1984 to 1985, with occasional flashbacks to the aftermath of the Bangladesh Liberation War in 1971. It is a story ...
''.
Zia Haider Rahman Zia Haider Rahman () () is a British novelist and broadcaster. His novel '' In the Light of What We Know'' was published in 2014 to international critical acclaim and translated into many languages. He was awarded the James Tait Black Memorial ...
, a British Bangladeshi novelist, published his debut novel ''
In the Light of What We Know ''In the Light of What We Know'' is the first novel by Zia Haider Rahman. First published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux, it was released in the spring of 2014 to international critical acclaim and earned Rahman the James Tait Black Memorial Pri ...
'' in 2014, which won the James Tait Black Prize for literature in 2015. Rahman received glowing praise and acclaim for his first book, which ''
The New Yorker ''The New Yorker'' is an American weekly magazine featuring journalism, commentary, criticism, essays, fiction, satire, cartoons, and poetry. Founded as a weekly in 1925, the magazine is published 47 times annually, with five of these issues ...
'' described as "astonishingly achieved".
Monica Ali Monica Ali FRSL (born 20 October 1967) is a British writer of Bangladeshi and English heritage. In 2003, she was selected as one of the "Best of Young British Novelists" by ''Granta'' magazine based on her unpublished manuscript; her debut nove ...
's ''
Brick Lane Brick Lane (Bengali: ব্রিক লেন) is a street in the East End of London, in the borough of Tower Hamlets. It runs from Swanfield Street in Bethnal Green in the north, crosses the Bethnal Green Road before reaching the busiest ...
'' was shortlisted for the
Booker Prize The Booker Prize, formerly known as the Booker Prize for Fiction (1969–2001) and the Man Booker Prize (2002–2019), is a Literary award, literary prize awarded each year for the best novel written in English and published in the United King ...
in 2003. Published from the US in 2018, Fayeza Hasanat's debut short story collection ''The Bird Catcher and Other Stories'' addresses gender expectations, familial love, and questions of identity and belonging. ''Like A Diamond in the Sky'' by
Shazia Omar Shazia Omar is a Bangladeshi novelist. Her debut novel, ''Like a Diamond in the Sky'', was published by Penguin India and Zubaan in 2009. The novel dealt with drug abuse. She studied at Dartmouth College and the London School of Economics. She i ...
portrays the psychedelic world of Dhaka's university students, who are caught up in the haze of drugs, punk rock and fusion.
Rashid Askari Harun-Ur-Rashid Askari (born 1 June 1965), known as Rashid Askari, is a writer, columnist, media personality, and an academic in Bangladesh. He was the 12th vice-chancellor of Islamic University, Bangladesh. Among post-1990s Bangladeshi write ...
"has demonstrated enough artistic talent to come up with fiction in English". His short story collection ''Nineteen Seventy One and Other Stories'' (2011) has been translated into French and Hindi. In 2019, Mehrab Masayeed Habib wrote a novel named ''Slice of Paradise''. It is an English novel based on
Dhaka Dhaka ( or ; bn, ঢাকা, Ḍhākā, ), formerly known as Dacca, is the capital and largest city of Bangladesh, as well as the world's largest Bengali-speaking city. It is the eighth largest and sixth most densely populated city ...
in the 1960s and published by Swore O Publication. It is now viable for contemporary Bangladeshi English writers to write about the details of transnationalism, the Liberation War, political disharmony, massive unplanned urbanization and identity issues.


Native Bangladeshi contributions


Fakrul Alam

Fakrul Alam Fakrul Alam (born 20 July 1951) is a Bangladeshi academic, writer, and translator. He writes on literary matters and postcolonial issues and translated works of Jibanananda Das and Rabindranath Tagore into English. He is the recipient of Bangla A ...
(born 20 July 1951) is an academician, writer, and translator. He writes on literary and postcolonial issues and has translated works of
Jibanananda Das Jibanananda Das () (17 February 1899 – 22 October 1954) was an Indian poet, writer, novelist and essayist in the Bengali language. Popularly called "Rupashi Banglar Kabi'' ('Poet of Beautiful Bengal'), Das is the most read poet after Rabindr ...
and
Rabindranath Tagore Rabindranath Tagore (; bn, রবীন্দ্রনাথ ঠাকুর; 7 May 1861 – 7 August 1941) was a Bengali polymath who worked as a poet, writer, playwright, composer, philosopher, social reformer and painter. He resh ...
into English. He has also translated
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Sheikh Mujibur Rahman ( bn, শেখ মুজিবুর রহমান; 17 March 1920 – 15 August 1975), often shortened as Sheikh Mujib or Mujib and widely known as Bangabandhu (meaning ''Friend of Bengal''), was a Bengalis, Beng ...
's autobiographical works ''Asamapta Atmajibani'' (
The Unfinished Memoirs ''The Unfinished Memories'' ( bn, অসমাপ্ত আত্মজীবনী) is the autobiography by Sheikh Mujibur Rahman, founding father of Bangladesh. Background Inspired by his wife, Fazilatunnesa Mujib, Mujib started writing his ...
) and ''Karagarer Rojnamcha'' ( Prison Diaries), and Mir Mossaraf Hossain's epic novel '' Bishad- Sindhu'' (Ocean of Sorrow). He is a recipient of the Bangla Literary Award in translation and
SAARC Literary Award SAARC Literary Award is an annual award conferred by the Foundation of SAARC Writers and Literature (FOSWAL) since 2001 Shamshur Rahman, Mahasweta Devi, Jayanta Mahapatra, Abhi Subedi, Mark Tully, Sitakant Mahapatra, Uday Prakash, Suman Pokhrel ...
. Notable works include: * ''Jibanananda Das: Selected Poems with an Introduction, Chronology, and Glossary'' * ''Ocean of Sorrow'' * ''Essential Tagore'' * ''The Unfinished Memoirs'' * ''Prison Diaries''


Syed Manzoorul Islam

In the arena of English literary output, ''The Merman's Prayer and Other Stories'' eternalizes Syed Manzoorul Islam: the narrative of the stories are entangled between reality and fantasy. Twists and turns prevail in their narration. All the characters emerge from the fringes of Bangladeshi societies and the urban middle class. Desires and deprivations, ecstasies and frustrations engulf all the characters presented.


Kaiser Hamidul Haq

Kaiser Haq Kaiser Hamidul Haq (born 7 December 1950) is a Bangladeshi translator, critic and academic. Known for his translations from Bengali into English, Haq is a recipient of Bangla Academy Literary Award (2013) in the category of translation. He is a fo ...
is the most prominent name in Bangladeshi English-language poetry. He has contributed to the fields of poetry, translation of the poems of Shamsur Rahman, the leading poet of Bangladesh, and also prose translation. His works include:


Niaz Zaman

Niaz Zaman Niaz Zaman () is a Bangladeshi translator and a supernumerary professor at the University of Dhaka. She was awarded 2016 Bangla Academy Literary Award in the translation category. Education and career Zaman completed her I.A. and B.A. from Holy ...
is a writer, translator and an academician. She was honored with the
Bangla Academy Literary Award The Bangla Academy Literary Award ( bn, বাংলা একাডেমি সাহিত্য পুরস্কার; ''Bangla Academy Shahitya Puroshkar''), is given by the Bangla Academy of Bangladesh in recognition of creative genius i ...
in 2016 for her contribution to translation. ''Trees without Roots'' is a trans-created novel by Zaman grounded on
Syed Waliullah Syed Waliullah (August 15, 1922 – October 10, 1971) was a Bangladeshi novelist, short-story writer and playwright. He was notable for his debut novel, '' Lalsalu'' (translated in English with the title ''"Tree Without Roots"''). He was awarded ...
’s novel ''Laal Shalu''. ''Trees without Roots'' depicts typical natural scenery of Bangladesh like the ravages of nature, floods, and storms alongside the use of religion for food and shelter by the people like Majeed in society. This English novel brings the Bengali mind to the English-speaking world and the impact of religion as well as superstition on the village populace of Bengal.


Sabiha Haq

Sabiha Haq (born January 1, 1977) has garnered a reputation for postcolonial and gender issues, women's writings, and cultural studies. ''The Mughal Aviary'' is the touchstone contribution in BEL (Bangladeshi English Literature) that categorically highlights the literary contributions of four Muslim women in the Mughal regime in pre-modern India: Gulbadan, Jahanara, Zeb-un-Nessa, and
Habba Khatoon Habba Khatoon (born Zoon; 1554 – 1609; sometimes spelled Khatun), also known by the honorary title ''The Nightingale of Kashmir'', was a Kashmiri Muslim poet and ascetic in the 16th century. Her compositions have been sung and recited countl ...
, the Nightingale of Kashmir. Their literary sensibilities were exposed with deep concern by the author who could never fail to highlight how gender politics made a mark on their lives and activities which were sufficient to efface their literary faculties. This book covers roughly 200 years of the 16th and 17th centuries that reflect the subjective tone and the self-fashioning of the princess under the Mughal regime through the forms of biography, hagiography and poetry by the four Zenana writers. Their writings depict a strong place for those women who could create a counter culture within the imposed culture they grew up in. The book ''The Mughal Aviary'' shows the dignity of the Muslim women as undiscovered writers and how the annals of history failed to pay due respect to their contributions.


= Theme

= The book cherishes the contribution of the three Mughal princess: Gulbadan Begam (1523–1603), the youngest daughter of the Mughal Emperor
Babur Babur ( fa, , lit= tiger, translit= Bābur; ; 14 February 148326 December 1530), born Mīrzā Zahīr ud-Dīn Muhammad, was the founder of the Mughal Empire in the Indian subcontinent. He was a descendant of Timur and Genghis Khan through his ...
, Jahanara (1614–1681), the eldest daughter of the Emperor
Shah Jahan Shihab-ud-Din Muhammad Khurram (5 January 1592 – 22 January 1666), better known by his regnal name Shah Jahan I (; ), was the fifth emperor of the Mughal Empire, reigning from January 1628 until July 1658. Under his emperorship, the Mugha ...
, and
Zeb-un-Nissa Zeb-un-Nissa ( fa, زیب النساء ) (15 February 1638 – 26 May 1702) was a Mughal princess and the eldest child of Emperor Aurangzeb and his chief consort, Dilras Banu Begum. She was also a poet, who wrote under the pseudonym of "Makhf ...
(1638–1702), the eldest daughter of the last Mughal Emperor
Aurangzeb Muhi al-Din Muhammad (; – 3 March 1707), commonly known as ( fa, , lit=Ornament of the Throne) and by his regnal title Alamgir ( fa, , translit=ʿĀlamgīr, lit=Conqueror of the World), was the sixth emperor of the Mughal Empire, ruling ...
. The book also highlights the nightingale of Kashmir,
Habba Khatoon Habba Khatoon (born Zoon; 1554 – 1609; sometimes spelled Khatun), also known by the honorary title ''The Nightingale of Kashmir'', was a Kashmiri Muslim poet and ascetic in the 16th century. Her compositions have been sung and recited countl ...
(1554–1609). This book makes a thorough discussion and critical evaluation of ''Humayun-Nama'' (a biography on the emperor Humayun, the half-brother to Gulbadan Begam) by Gulbadan Begam, where the biographer delves into the lives of the wife and daughters of the Mughal Emperor, Babur. The hagiography by Jahanara tends to glorify the Mughal monarchy. The third writer excels in poetry where the
subaltern Subaltern may refer to: *Subaltern (postcolonialism), colonial populations who are outside the hierarchy of power * Subaltern (military), a primarily British and Commonwealth military term for a junior officer * Subalternation, going from a univer ...
spirit peeps up with magical gaiety. Habba is famed for her lyricism in Kashmiri poetry. Her pangs of separation add an elegiac tone to the regional poetry. Thus, the author, Sabiha Haq, excavates the prominence of Muslim women's writings even in pre-modern India, while history supposes to deliberately suppress the contributions of those living at the subaltern periphery.


= Chapter details

= ''The Mughal Aviary'' has six chapters, as follows: # "The Mughal Aviary and Women In/Out" # "Humayun's Biographer Gulbadan Begam: A Quiet Observer of the Aviary" # "Jahanara's Hagiographies: The Mind of A Matriarch" # "Dissenting Songbird in the Aviary: The Poetry of Zeb-un-Nissa" # "The Plaintive Songbird beyond the Aviary: Habba Khatoon's Lol" # "Where to Conclude?" Chapter one exposes the thought on the key metaphor, the aviary, distinctively featured with the
harem Harem (Persian: حرمسرا ''haramsarā'', ar, حَرِيمٌ ''ḥarīm'', "a sacred inviolable place; harem; female members of the family") refers to domestic spaces that are reserved for the women of the house in a Muslim family. A hare ...
or
zenana Zenana ( fa, زنانه, ur, , bn, জেনানা, hi, ज़नाना) literally meaning "of the women" or "pertaining to women", in Persian language contextually refers to the part of a house belonging to a Muslim, Sikh, or Hindu f ...
established by the
Mughals The Mughal Empire was an early-modern empire that controlled much of South Asia between the 16th and 19th centuries. Quote: "Although the first two Timurid emperors and many of their noblemen were recent migrants to the subcontinent, the d ...
alongside their other khash mahals (special chambers). This chapter seeks to explore the unsought stories from the women, especially the sojourners of the "aviary" like the princess of the Mughal emperors. The scope of the "aviary" extends to the Queen of Kashmir who is linked among the other Mughal Sahajadies as Kashmir was annexed by the Mughal emperors and
Habba Khatoon Habba Khatoon (born Zoon; 1554 – 1609; sometimes spelled Khatun), also known by the honorary title ''The Nightingale of Kashmir'', was a Kashmiri Muslim poet and ascetic in the 16th century. Her compositions have been sung and recited countl ...
was the last queen of the Free Kashmir. Thus, the first chapter covers the literary women who had to peep up their heads with the literary spree during the Mughal period while the harem existed. The second chapter deals with Gulbadan as a biographer. Gulbadan positions
Humayun Nasir-ud-Din Muhammad ( fa, ) (; 6 March 1508 – 27 January 1556), better known by his regnal name, Humāyūn; (), was the second emperor of the Mughal Empire, who ruled over territory in what is now Eastern Afghanistan, Pakistan, Northern ...
from the neutral point of view being a man of flesh and blood as well as of a strong sense of justice. Haq judges Gulbadan for making keen observations regarding Humayun's characteristics. The third chapter delves into the hagiography of Jahanara Begam, where the biography is given a "self-fashioning", according to the author. Jahanara writes a biography on Sufi masters like Hadrat Sheikh Nizamuddin Auliya in Munis-ul-Arwah, and Mullah
Shah Badakhshi Mullah Shah Badakhshi, popularly known as Mullah Shah was a 17th-century Muslim Sufi, and spiritual successor of the famous Sufi saint Mian Mir (1550 – 1635). He was born to a Qazi in the village of Araska in the Rustaq area of Badakhshan ( ...
in Risala-i-Sahibiya. She focuses on the spiritual power – soft power per se – of those Sufis that led to the spread of the Mughal dynasty. ''The Mughal Aviary'' traces the masculine flavor imposed on the translation of Jahanara's biography. Chapter four points out the double marginalization of
Zeb-un-Nissa Zeb-un-Nissa ( fa, زیب النساء ) (15 February 1638 – 26 May 1702) was a Mughal princess and the eldest child of Emperor Aurangzeb and his chief consort, Dilras Banu Begum. She was also a poet, who wrote under the pseudonym of "Makhf ...
. She is firstly a political victim and secondly the victim of subaltern marginalization; her poetry was not given a place in the annals of literary history in Mughal India. Chapter five projects the plaintive notes of Habba Khatoon through her elegiac tone and lol. Habba had to embrace widowhood and loneliness due to Mughal state terrorism; the author sheds light on her poetry with the same effort as for the harem shahzadis. The last chapter is developed with the author's argument that the course of the feminism and its history in the South Asian region needs to be redefined as to evaluate the literary contributions made by these four Muslim women under the patriarchal design of history. Her "A Liminal Bengali Identity: Film Culture in Bangladesh" in ''Media Culture in Transnational Asia: Convergences and Divergences'' published by Rutgers University Press in 2020, transcends her proneness to cultural studies apart from the much-coveted area of the feminine-literary cosmos that is evident throughout her research work as well as her entries on Tahmima Anam, Selina Hossain, and Jahanara Imam in the ''Literary Encyclopedia.''


Rashid Askari

Rashid Askari Harun-Ur-Rashid Askari (born 1 June 1965), known as Rashid Askari, is a writer, columnist, media personality, and an academic in Bangladesh. He was the 12th vice-chancellor of Islamic University, Bangladesh. Among post-1990s Bangladeshi write ...
(born 1 June 1965) is a prolific writer in Bangladesh writing both in Bangla and English. His English short story collection ''Nineteen Seventy One and Other Stories (2011)'' claims the secured place in the English literary arena of Bangladesh. The author is firmly committed to the 1971 Liberation War spirit through this book. The indomitable nationalism touches upon every aspect of the characters. The author shows his deeply rooted belongingness to the land, the culture and the heritage of Bangladesh. Askari sings the saga of mortified bravery of the women who may be prostitutes by profession, but pure in heart. Hence, Bashanti never craves for life in the sight of the hounds. Rather, she transcends herself through sacrifice. The story "The Maiden Whore" consoles:
Bashanti was sinking headlong into the deep waters like a harpoon-hit mermaid. She knew she was nearing the end of her life. But she felt happy to think that she was still virgin. She had not been defiled by the alien beasts!


Meherab Habib

Meherab Habib is born and brought up in Dhaka and published his debut novel, ''Slice of Paradise'', in 2019. He takes writing as a passion and engineering as a profession. The contemporary Bangladeshi English writers who represent the young generations are either English-medium students living in Bangladesh or diaspora generations who are living abroad and feel the urge to express. These specified characteristic writers have a few things in common in that the Liberation War, political ups and downs, transnational experience, fundamentalism and massive urbanization serve as the background for their writings. The writings of Tahamina Anam, Monica Ali, etc. are rooted in the theme of the
Liberation War of Bangladesh The Bangladesh Liberation War ( bn, মুক্তিযুদ্ধ, , also known as the Bangladesh War of Independence, or simply the Liberation War in Bangladesh) was a revolution and armed conflict sparked by the rise of the Bengali n ...
and transnational identity searching with the backdrop of multi-nationality. Selim, Anarkoli, Arman and Labonee experience transnational identity and the search for the best place to settle all through the novels. Threading through the novel is a grand family drama that enables all the characters to feel a need for communion with the family. Labonee could not continue her strike activities as she feels weak in mind; Anowar leaves the battlefield and joined their family in Salt Lake, Calcutta, upon the suspicion of being caught by the military. It seems "heart is where home is" to almost all the characters of this novel. Kabir feels free upon his arrival in Dhaka from West Pakistan as he reiterates: The incidents of history beginning in 1941 and culminating in June 1972 have created the characters and scenes of this novel. Yet, the glory of Dhaka city, its culture, eating habits, greenery, and walking fields surpass every crisis in the novel. All have become representatives of the capitalistic society where they feel comfortable and their success in attaining that capital. It seems the novel evolves to address it:


Contribution of the Bangladeshi Diaspora


Monica Ali

Monica Ali Monica Ali FRSL (born 20 October 1967) is a British writer of Bangladeshi and English heritage. In 2003, she was selected as one of the "Best of Young British Novelists" by ''Granta'' magazine based on her unpublished manuscript; her debut nove ...
's debut novel ''Brick Lane'' was published in 2003 and shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize that very year. This contribution acquires a shared space in the Bangladeshi English literary sphere, being a massive wake-up call from the Bangladeshi Diaspora. Ali was born in 1967 in Bangladesh and immigrated to England in 1971; all her growth, study, and settlement occurred in England. From this perspective, the characterizations and the evolving theme around the characters in the Brick Lane can never be addressed as her personal experiences; rather, these are her researched work on the plight of immigrants through generations and their nature of integration as well as disintegration with the host cultures. Nazneen is brought to England by Chanu through settled marriage. Chanu is a middle-aged man searching for his fate in England; Nazneen is an adolescent representing the subservient, docile, submissive wife who is a perfect choice for Chanu as he believes women must have wifely and motherly behavior in the British perspective. Nazneen follows the code validated by Chanu, gives birth to a son and two daughters, and satisfies Chanu, being only a wife in mind. The change of currents takes place as Nazneen feels a sense of beloningness in British society along with her two daughters in the absence of Chanu's knowledge on what is going on in the psyche of his wife. Chanu fails to cope with British society and expresses his wish to retreat to Bangladesh, which is met with direct protest from his wife and daughters. Nazneen can think out of the shell of the conch; she feels herself liberated, self-dominated‚ self-directed even upon the loss of the marital tie. Chanu here represents the first-generation Bangladeshi immigrant who feels guilt for the loss of his parental root in Bangladesh and longs for that past, though Nazneen, along with her daughters, belongs to the generations nonaligned with that of Chanu. Here lies the prime crisis all through the novel ''Brick Lane''.


Tahmima Anam

Tahmima Anam was born in Bangladesh in 1975 and brought up abroad. Now she is settled in England. She is well-known among Bangladeshi readers for her trilogy: ''A Golden Age'' (2007), ''The Good Muslim'' (2011) and '' The Bones of Grace'' (2016). This trilogy attempts to sketch out the family and socio-political ups and downs during the factional periods around the Liberation War, the rise of Muslim militancy and the reign of dictatorship in Bangladesh ranging from 1971 to the 1990s. ''The Golden Age'' (2007) was awarded the Commonwealth Prize for the first book category in 2008. In an interview with ''The Guardian'', Anam tells of her purposeful intentions to write the trilogy on the background of Bangladeshi society entangled with family bonding, religious inclination, and political upheavals. Anam says: Anam has been credited with two other books, ''The Startup Wife'' (2021), and ''The Face: Third World Blues'' (2021). ''The Golden Age'' (2007) and ''The Good Muslim'' (2011) are developed in the context of Bangladesh. Instead, ''The Bones of Grace'' (2016), ''The Startup Wife'' (2021), and ''The Face: Third World Blues'' (2021) reiterate the experiences of an immigrant, the search for identity, and an unattainable experience of escapism. The protagonists are in the labyrinths whether they lose their parental connections, whether they are guilty of it, whether they should search for them, or whether they should keep abreast with the changing trends of the context.


Tariq Omar Ali

Tariq Omar Ali has taught at Princeton University as Assistant Professor of History and now serves as Associate Professor at Georgetown University, USA. His teaching and writings focus on nineteenth- and twentieth-century South Asia and global histories of capital. His writing is research-oriented and focuses on the everyday lives of ordinary men and women, which are shaped by transnational circulations of commodities and capital. His first research book, the non-fiction ''A Local History of Global Capital: Jute and Peasant Life in the Bengal Delta'', explores how global capitalism shaped peasant life and society in the Bengal Delta during the late nineteenth and early twentieth century. The writer has also continued this exploration of how "decolonization, independence, and the rise of the nation-state restructured the working lives of peasants, boatmen, itinerant traders, and small businessmen in post-colonial East Pakistan (present-day Bangladesh) in the 1950s and 1960s". Tariq Omar Ali's ''A Local History of Global Capital: Jute and Peasant Life in the Bengal Delta'' (
Princeton University Press Princeton University Press is an independent publisher with close connections to Princeton University. Its mission is to disseminate scholarship within academia and society at large. The press was founded by Whitney Darrow, with the financial su ...
, 2018) is a lucidly documented non-fiction wrought on the implication of the entire economic process of jute that enabled the Bengal Delta to make a significant mark in socio-political, cultural and regional development beginning from the British regime, and culminating with the dawn of the Pakistani period. Omar has made the effort to consider the economic history, the golden economic history, of the then eastern region of the British Indian subcontinent, and the author would likely show the effort of infrastructure development, the urbanization process and the development of the Muslim consciousness. This consciousness gave the land influence in regional politics; thus a sense of nationalism grew in the public and the ultimate destiny of this consciousness brought the public to be the owner of a sovereign land, Bangladesh. The back cover description of the non-fiction work reads:


Neamat Imam

Neamat Imam Neamat Imam ( bn, নেয়ামত ইমাম; born 5 January 1971) is a Bangladeshi-Canadian author of literary fiction. His first novel, ''The Black Coat'', a ''Quill & Quire'' Book of the Year 2016, was published by Penguin Books Indi ...
is a Bangladeshi-Canadian fiction writer (born January 5, 1971) whose name was popularized with the debut novel ''The Black Coat'', a novel that uses a Bangladeshi political setting around 1974 when the Mujib government experienced a famine. ''Black Coat'' is a metaphor that represents the father of the Bengali nation,
Sheikh Mujibur Rahman Sheikh Mujibur Rahman ( bn, শেখ মুজিবুর রহমান; 17 March 1920 – 15 August 1975), often shortened as Sheikh Mujib or Mujib and widely known as Bangabandhu (meaning ''Friend of Bengal''), was a Bengalis, Beng ...
. The novel proceeds through analytical narratives of his political diction and philosophy and creates a dystopian arena run by the philosophy of totalitarianism. Khaleque Biswas, Nur Hossain and Moina Mia are the major characters in the novel; the story continues with narration from Khaleque Biswas, who, after fired from a job in journalism, joins the propaganda work for Mujib, the possessor of the 'Black Coat'.


Zia Haider Rahman

''Main Article:''
Zia Haider Rahman Zia Haider Rahman () () is a British novelist and broadcaster. His novel '' In the Light of What We Know'' was published in 2014 to international critical acclaim and translated into many languages. He was awarded the James Tait Black Memorial ...
Rahman's debut novel is the 2014 ''
In the Light of What We Know ''In the Light of What We Know'' is the first novel by Zia Haider Rahman. First published by Farrar, Straus and Giroux, it was released in the spring of 2014 to international critical acclaim and earned Rahman the James Tait Black Memorial Pri ...
''.


Media and journals

Bangladesh has an influential English-language press, including newspapers '' The Daily Star'', ''
New Age New Age is a range of spiritual or religious practices and beliefs which rapidly grew in Western society during the early 1970s. Its highly eclectic and unsystematic structure makes a precise definition difficult. Although many scholars conside ...
'', ''
Dhaka Tribune The ''Dhaka Tribune'' is a major Bangladeshi English-language daily newspaper based in Dhaka, the country's capital and largest city. It also operates an online Bengali version known as the ''Bangla Tribune''. The newspaper has a strong readershi ...
'', '' The Muslim Times'', and ''
The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'', which bring out regular literary supplements. Prominent magazines include ''
The Star ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...
'', ''Slate'', ''
Dhaka Courier The ''Dhaka Courier'' (commonly known as ''the Courier'') is a Bangladeshi English-language news magazine. Founded in 1984, it is the longest running English current affairs magazine in the country. Its content is largely focused on politics, int ...
'' and ''
Forum Forum or The Forum (plural forums or fora) may refer to: Common uses * Forum (legal), designated space for public expression in the United States *Forum (Roman), open public space within a Roman city **Roman Forum, most famous example *Internet ...
''. ''Bengal Lights'' is one of the country's few English literary journals.


See also

*
Bangladeshi English Bangladeshi/Bengali English, Banglish, Benglish or Anglo-Bangla (similar and related to British English) is a variety of English heavily influenced by Bengali very common among Bangladeshis (mainly), and some Indian Bengalis (mainly from West ...
* Hay Festival Dhaka


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Bangladeshi English literature Bangladeshi literature Bangladeshi diaspora in the United Kingdom