People called Shillong aims to break stereotypes

From A Reporter

Shillong, Nov 3: A book titled People called Shillong that aims to break stereotypes about Shillong will be launched in the city on Saturday.

Addressing a press conference here on Friday, Nisha Gupta of People Place Project, a city-based organisation, said the book People Called Shillong is a pilot project that intends to survey the life and landscape in the mesmerizing land called Shillong.

The book intends to capture the textures transcending beyond the clichés. There are a total of 50 stories in the book that capture the heartbeat, life and times of the city in Khasi Hills. Its publisher hopes to forge a relationship between the readers and the writers

The book, an exhaustive collection of stories – and many beyond the conventiol word limit – is a product of enthusiasm of its 15 writers: Alethea O’Neal Kynta, Arjun Chaki, Auswyn Winter Japang, Eudora Khonglah, Jagriti Jhunjhunwala, Mayborn Lyngdoh, Prem Sarit Acharya, Nishiggandha Kerure, Priyanka Shimpi, Rajeev Laloo, Shriti Das, Shweta Raj Kanwar, Sriram tarajan, Suchita Mundhra and Vancouver Shullai.

The range of perspectives offered by these varying degrees of engagement with Shillong makes the book unique and a rich reading. Their writings have diverse styles, are introspective and inquisitive.

Where did the writers find their stories? Often in the everyday of the city. They are the people at the cafes, corridors of institutions, on the streets running old markets, busy within office buildings and even homes and neighbourhoods, both quaint and new.

The book captures an array of stories — of the folklores and folklorists,  stories of businesses and entrepreneurship, some spectacular women who make the city tick, a writer for whom the city is a muse,  a professor who indulges us in the history of not only the city, but that of the Northeast, some intriguing insights into the sport and gambling called Teer, a restaurant owner who takes readers on his persol journey of food, cuisine and discovery of culture,  another food trail in the bustling markets of Police Bazaar for local home-made scks and more.

There are also stories of music, of how deeply it is entrenched in the landscape of this city —from the Shillong Chamber Choir to the band Summersalt to a music entrepreneur Jason Manners. Each of them has stories that interpret music in their own ways. Each of these stories not only captures their persol journeys, but also the city’s.