A tribute to Aiyushman Dutta

It was shocking news for me that Aiyushman Dutta is no more!!

I started writing in Melange, the Sunday Magazine of The Sentinel, a few years back, when I was staying in Noida. Before that, I was writing mostly in Assamese newspapers and magazines like, Amar Asom, Prantik, PiryoSakhi etc. But staying in a cosmopolitan city, as the readers are mostly multilingual, as per need of various magazines, I started writing in English too. Then the idea of publishing in the English newspaper of Assam cropped up and I sent an article to Melange.

That was the beginning....and I came in connection with Late Aiyushman Dutta. Over the period, I started sharing a lot many articles with him. I have never met him. But from the conversation over the phone, I found him very mild, composed and a mature person.

Once I sent him an article on my experience of few cultural shows held in Delhi. After publishing the same he requested me to send articles on similar type of cultural shows, telling that, he is associated with some cultural activity in Assam. Later on, I found him as the founder member of the Guwahati International Music Festival. He even sent me an invitation to some programmes.

Once I wrote an article on Delhi's Mughal garden and I sent him the article during March. Then I got a phone call from him with a request to change the article a bit so that it matches with the Spring season as he wants to publish the article in the incoming issue starting in April. Accordingly, he renamed the article as 'Welcoming Spring with an Abundance of Flowers'.

Again, a few years back, during Rongali Bihu, I wrote an article on Bihu - cultivating my experience of the festival in various places including Delhi NCR. With beautiful photographs, he published the article in a very attractive colourful way.

It was April 11, 2021, and I was in Guwahati on vacation. I got a message from Late Dutta on my WhatsApp - about the article published on that day. I collected the paper from a nearby shop, as I enjoy reading the physical paper rather than the e-paper. I surprised to see three of my articles published in that day's magazine "Melange". Late Dutta preserved my earlier articles and published those two relevant articles on Bihu as well as the Spring season – 'Welcoming Spring with an Abundance of Flowers' and 'Rongali Bihu outside Assam'.

It was shocking news for me and I am yet to believe that he is no more.

With a heavy heart, I have to obey the path set by God almighty that from now onwards I can't write to him anymore.

It's unbelievable.

It's a great loss to the Assamese community to lose such bright talent so early. I pray God almighty for his eternal peace and offer my sincere condolences to the bereaved family.

– Mousumi Deka

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