A symposium on oral narratives makes the case for preserving the native languages of North-East | Lifestyle News, The Indian Express

A symposium on oral narratives makes the case for preserving the native languages of North-East | Lifestyle News, The Indian Express

Written by Tanushree Ghosh |Updated: November 20, 2019 7:57:02 am

A symposium on oral narratives makes the case for preserving the native languages of North-East

The symposium, with film screenings, was curated by Assamese NGO Folk Culture Research Centre of North-East India — Arhi (“example” in Assamese).

Hesheto Y Chishi (left) with Dibya Jyoti Borah

At the recent 7th North East Festival in Delhi, while the aroma of pork curry in bamboo shoot, lai shaak (mustard greens), or black sesame paste, and the dulcet notes of Bipul Chettri’s music, pulled in hordes, a debut feature — Oral Narratives symposium — had a few in attendance. Addressing the linguistic debate of the imposition of Hindi as the national language, and of his work in revitalising Nagaland’s Sumi language, one of the speakers, Hesheto Y Chishi, director of Dimapur-based NGO Indigenous Cultural Society, said, “National language is to be maintained but equal importance should be given to the native language. Most schools (in the North-East) have a Hindi teacher but not a native-language teacher.”