For the writing of a book in Bengali on the history of Jatra (1900-2006) with a particular focus on the performance of Jatra in non-metropolitan Bengal, and the digitisation of play scripts, photographs, interviews and publicity materials. Over the medium term, the objective is to mount an exhibition with the digitised materials to generate public awareness about the history and popularity of Jatra in Bengal.
For research and documentation leading to a sound and oral history archive on the fakirs of Bengal and an ethno-musicological travelogue in Bengali focusing on the life of the fakirs and their music. The project is expected to contribute to the study of oral cultures and popular religion, and generate a critical discourse on the radical syncretism practiced by a minority community.
For research and writing that explores the relationship between the language of contemporary Bengali poetry (1990-2007) and the emergence of a new, urban middle class. The project will engage with the role of television, the Internet and mobile phones, among other things, in transforming the notion of a poetic language. It will lead to a series of essays that is expected to introduce new ways of reading and new tools of analysis into literary studies in Bengali.
