Contemporary Manipuri Short Stories
- Part 1 -

Nahakpam Aruna *

A collection of old Manipuri Literature from (L) Oja Ningthoukhongjam Khelchandra Library
Pix - Donny Meisnam

The development of Manipuri short story passed through various stages linked by an organic continuum from its conception to the age of maturity and 'sparks'. Despite the resistance to recognition of its contemporary form and the near rejection of the same by established littérateurs and critics, the embryonic genre emerged as a formidable literary corpus acquiring a life of its own.

In the twilight of the last millennium, the short story emerged as a potent and mature genre despite its late entry into the varied Manipuri literary traditions. The genre was shaped and chiselled in the early part of twentieth century. With the new education system launched by the British post-1891 and subsequent change in the political landscape, Manipur saw the proliferation of more recent Indian and world language literature.

Short story as a genre, however, was developed much ahead and independent of this phase owing to the Manipuri literature's proximity to strong currents in Bengali and Assamese literature. The changing political contours, social and economic state, stage of modernization and contemporary world literature have left not just an impinging reflection on emerging Manipuri short stories, but also shaped their thematic structure just like these changes shaped the novel in Manipuri.

Gazing through Manipur's turbulent social history, the development of the "short story" in Manipur can be incised into four chronological stages:
1. The period of conception (1932-1941),
2. The birth of the short story (1946-1960)
3. The stage of maturity (1960-1970)
4. The age of Meirik (Sparks) (1970-till date)

On closer scrutiny, the last stage can be further segmented into two sub-stages: (a) 1970–1990, and (b) 1990–till date.

Like the history of literature in most languages, development of short stories in Manipur was possible due to the introduction of periodicals and journals. Sabbarjit's "Yumpanba" (Marriage), Dr. Kamal's "Brojendrogee Luhongba" (Brajendro's Wedding), Krishnamohan's "Laman" (Obligation) etc. were the ones that imitated the structure of the short story and got print spaces in Manipuri journals during the first phase.

However, it is worth mentioning here that the first ever short story titled "Ima Wa Tannaba" (Discussion with Mother) was written by Khunthing Tangkhul. Most short stories from this phase have "love" and "romance" as the key themes. Short story writers mainly dealt with the issues of overarching dominance of clan, caste, class and community hostility and discrimination over an individual's choice of "lovers" and "partners" during this stage.

Most writings focused on the societal norms that not only governed but also put strictures on personal choice. Despite the content and the theme, the writings could not get closer to the exact "formal structure" of short stories as is known today. After most of these short stories appeared on the Manipuri journals of the pre-1947, it was Raj Kumar Shitaljit who wrote and published a book of short stories called Leikolnungda (In the Garden) in 1946, a year before the end of British Raj.

In the same year, Raj Kumar Shitaljit also published another collection of short stories called Leinungshi (Fragrance) and thus began a new era of short stories. Shitaljit can be credited as the father of Manipuri short stories for the strong foundation he laid not only in terms of "form" and "content" but also in the actual production of literary works closely associated with the short story genre.

R.K. Elangbam wrote his Chingya-Tamya (Foothills) in 1955. By 1958, when Enlangbam published his Yumgee Mou (Daughter-in-law), the flow of short stories became more steady and smooth. Even during this phase, Manipuri short stories continued to depict the idealistic and romantic aspects of life and the tension between societal norms over inter community/clan/caste matrimonial alliances and individual choice.

Shitaljit adeptly handled these themes in his works like "Inthokpa" (Excommunication) and "Naknabadagee" (Owing to Proximity). In the early short story texts of Shitaljit, one can find criticism of the sheer hypocrisy of the Manipuri ruling elites without directly referring to them. Some of the works not only reflected the spiritual insolvency and unjustifiable norms of the society but also a voice of revolt against these practices.

R.K. Elangbam's work embodied a careful yet sharper textual picturisation of love relations between man and woman. The changing face of women in society was adequately reflected in "Thajagee Ayingba Maithong" (The Tranquil Face of the Moon). Apart from mirroring the dynamic changes in gender relations, one can also find descriptive narratives on the prevailing conditions of women of that particular period in history, particularly in late works like Kalenthagee Leipaklei (Earth Flower in Summer, 1979).

Struggle for survival sullied by the filth of the surroundings and purity of the inner self are imageries Elangbam constructs over women. However, the core of short story writings during this period were governed by romanticism and idealism; controlled by a filtered gaze, which in turn had a profound impact upon the smooth flow of a straight narrative.

The romantic and idealistic trend set by R.K. Shitaljit and R.K. Elangbam in their works were further allowed free and smooth run with the emergence of writers of repute like Maharaj Kumari Binodini, Nongthombam Kunjamohan, Kumanthem Prakash, Shri Biren, Hijam Guna, Elangbam Dinamani, Chitreshwor Sharma, Nilbir Shastri etc. in the 1960s. With a fertile ground already set during this phase, short story writing in Manipuri sprouted as a matured genre. It was also the phase of Manipuri short stories where the writers could pull themselves out of the rubric of romanticism and straight away deal with social realism.

The new turn was towards a portrayal of everyday social realities faced by the people. The tremendous changes and pressures experienced in the realm of political, social and economic life of Manipur in the post-1947 period did have a profound impact on the works of all these writers. In sharp contrast to the celebrative moods of independence from colonial rule and feudal monarchy, this was a phase of growing distrust propelled by the crisis in democracy and the all pervasive repressed anger and anxieties in society.

Witnessing the decadence that characterized public life and the growing economic disparity, the writers were catapulted towards these realities unlike the first stage where the spirit of romanticism triumphed. Most short story writers lamented the breakdown of traditional morality and the attempt to replace the same with materialistic values. Dominant themes were the fear and anxieties of the times, corruption in economic life, the widening gap in relationships and cyclic dilemma of the poor.

The breakdown of traditional morality and its effects were all tackled from different possible angles by writers like Kunjamohan, Prakash, Guna and Shri Biren. Kunjamohan's "Wanomba" (Seeking Favour) revolves around the character Priyalata who offers her flesh so nonchalantly to a senior government official so that her husband could get promoted to a higher rank. The story focused on how power and money can effortlessly subdue one's prevailing and practicing notion of honour and morality.

Prakash's works "Manorama," "Echa" (My Child) and "Mama" (Mother) deal with the sensitive aspects of sexual taboo and illicit relations. While Prakash's works link the phenomena with distorted understanding of modernity, Kunjamohan links them to larger social issues. Kunjamohan succeeds in portraying the imageries of poverty stricken people without associating the style with extra sentimentalism best illustrated in his work Ilisha Amagee Mahao (The Taste of a Hilsha, 1973).

Inescapable fate of the economically marginalized are clearly sketched in his works. This particular phase in Manipuri short story writing is known for its matured artistic fulfilment. The narrative flow governed and controlled by self imposed restrictions became a thing of the past. The wave became closer to Western short stories in its form and style. Shri Biren's short stories "Nanthokkhee," (Escaped) "Masina Imphalgee Warini," (Tale of Imphal) "Shegairaba Kurangpal" (The Torn Skin) delineate close proximity to the emerging changes in the lives of the people that led to disruption in relationships as well as breaking of bonds.

These writings, however, were still markers of Manipuri new writings based on the imitation of the Western short story style. Despite the development, there were no perceptible changes in the narrative style of some writers and continued to have a smooth flow as mirrored in the works of M.K. Binodini and Nilbir Shastri.

The hallmark of Binodini's work lies in her ability to utilize mesmerizing and romantic language in short stories, and this in turn helped maintain a continuity of flow from the earlier works in the entire body of Manipuri short stories. Many of these writings also rescued the form from unprecedented qualitative decline. This particular stage also witnessed the beginning of using directness of communicative styles which were rarely deployed in previous works.


(This article originally appeared in Manipuri as one of the chapters titled "Houjikki Matamgi Manipuri Warimacha" in Nahakpam Aruna's Nongthangleima Amasung Taibang, Imphal, 2001. It was abridged and translated by Dhiren A. Sadokpam in 2008.)

To be continued..