New Delhi : A two-day Online International Conference on “Tribes in Transition-III: Indigenous Cultures in the Digital Era” was hosted by the Department of English, Jamia Millia Islamia (JMI) on 21-22 September, 2021.

Prof. Simi Malhotra, Head of the Department of English, JMI, inaugurated the Conference by giving the Welcome Address. The Convener of the Conference, Dr. Ivy I. Hansdak, introduced the theme of the Conference. She spoke about the relevance of digital media in conserving indigenous, tribal and folk narratives.

The Keynote Address was delivered by Padmashree Prof. Anvita Abbi. She emphasized the need for intergenerational transfer of endangered languages and the scope of digitization in the preservation of the same.

Prof. M. Asaduddin, Dean, Faculty of Humanities and Languages, JMI, delivered the Presidential Address.

The second session on the theme “Scope of Folklore Studies in the Digital Era” was chaired by Prof. Anand Mahanand. Dr. Peter B. Andersen, talked about the pros and cons involved in the dissemination of folk cultures through the digital media.

The second speaker, Prof. Indranil Acharya, threw light on the diminishing tribal and folk performances in Eastern India and advocated state patronage in order to preserve them.

The third session was based on the theme “Indigenous Identity and its Survival in the Digital Era”. This bilingual session was chaired by Ms. Vandana Tete.

The first speaker, Ms Mridula Rashmi Kindo, spoke about institutional contribution by Universities for the promotion of Tribal Studies in India.

The second speaker, Mr. Sunder Manoj Hembrom, discussed how tribal collective memory can be preserved through digitization, giving various examples of organizations working towards preserving the tribal narratives through digital media.

The third speaker, Mr.A.K. Pankaj, strongly advocated the adding of texts, memoirs, and philosophy that come from their ancestors in order to correct the misrepresentation by the mainstream.

The theme for the fourth session was “Portrayal of the Indigenous/Tribal in Indian Cinema and Mass Media”. The session was chaired by Prof. V.B. Tharakeshwar.

The first speaker, Dr. Gomti Bodra Hembrom, talked about the emergence of the new wave cinema and the representation of Adivasi women.

In the second presentation, Prof. Nikhila H. tried to engage with the cinematic representation of tribal communities in South Indian films from four languages, namely “Kamli” (Telugu), “Papilio Buddha” (Malayalam), “Aravan” (Tamil), “Hombanna” (Kannada).

In his ethnographic reading of popular Santhali music cultures, Dr. Markus Schleiter discussed how various songs and music videos in the Santhali language act as a medium of articulation of their daily lives and culture.

Embracing an international audience from different time zones, the virtual Two-Day Conference concluded with the valedictory function. The Valedictory Speech was delivered by Prof. Esther Syiem of North Eastern Hill University, Shillong. Referring to the works of three Khasi women, she elaborated upon the use of memory to revive indigenous narratives.

The reports were read by the research scholars, Vasundhara Gautam and Kanu Priya. Faizan Moquim, Usama Zakir, Niyas Ahmed, Sumaira Gilani, Anab Naiyar, Aditi Das Khan, Grace Raju and Shreya Singh worked as rapporteurs. The technical help was provided by Zahra Rizvi, Steven S. George, Sango Bidani, Shraddha Singh and Md. Irfan. A formal Vote of Thanks was given by the Conference Convener,  Dr. Ivy I. Hansdak. To ensure a wide range of viewership and participation, the entire Conference was also live-streamed on YouTube.

Click Here for More Latest News