PVLF 2026

Interview with Pratibha Ray, Author of “Uttarmarga”

Uttarmarga redefines India’s freedom struggle, honoring unsung rural heroes while blending history, philosophy, and civic reflection.
on Aug 29, 2025

Frontlist: In Uttarmarga, you offer an alternative narrative to the dominant freedom struggle discourse. What inspired you to revisit India’s Independence movement through the lens of ordinary citizens?

Pratibha: Tradition, especially in its literary form, is generally perceived by a given society as comprising a set of literary, creative traits inherited from the past. While the term “tradition” tends to carry the notion of the “conservative” or the ‘orthodox’ there is no gainsaying the fact that in the literary, cultural domain tradition remains an essential prerequisite for the creative act of the present and in the future. Revisiting the past is the passion of a writer. Every Independence Day celebration compels my creative self to think over the self-generated struggle of freedom of the unsung heroes of rural Odisha. I have seen their silence suffering for the rest of their lives. I have seen my uncle’s other freedom fighters’ poverty and misery. I don’t consider rural freedom fighters as ordinary citizens. Without their sacrifices all over India one Gandhi or one Subhash could not have brought Independence in our country. All characters in the novel are real.

Frontlist: You draw philosophical parallels from the Upanishads throughout the novel. How do these spiritual motifs deepen the political and emotional weight of your story?

Pratibha: If in the west complexities arise out of individual mind’s response to the challenges of the external reality, in India the complexities are inherent in the tension between the metaphysical beliefs and social reality and due to the juxtaposition of several social situations. In a society, thousands of years of history and often contradictory metaphysical and socio-religious tradition cannot lead to a type of sophistication and complexity of mind, which may be unknown to the west. We are living in a period of history when human intelligence and knowledge have virtually no limits. But human imagination facing this knowledge explosion is increasing by a sense of helplessness, spiritual void, the absurd, the bland world, the rootlessness and alienation. It is in this context that the concept of cultural awareness in modern times ought to be aroused. The cultural introspection shapes the sensibility which changes a society in the right way.

Frontlist: Uttarmarga challenges the perception that only iconic leaders shaped India's freedom. Why was it important for you to highlight the sacrifices of the common man and woman?

Pratibha: Uttarmarga challenges the perception you mentioned. It was not a one man’s show. It was team spirit, a spiritual journey to be liberated from two hundred years of imprisonment. The whole nation was united of course with the leadership of Mahatma Gandhi, Subhash, Ballabh Bhai Patel etc. I don’t consider rural freedom fighters, ordinary citizens though some of them are illiterate but culturally and spiritually they were educated.

Frontlist: Post-Independence disillusionment is a recurring theme in the novel. In your view, has India lived up to the ideals envisioned during the freedom movement?

Pratibha: Talking about our country India, a subcontinent in itself, with its multiple languages, ethos and social strata, appears extensively broad. We all inhabiting this subcontinent have more or less similar historical background, similar socio-cultural heritage and almost identical problems and challenges. We fought against the Britishers as Indians. Just after the moment of independence we are divided as Indian, Pakistan and now we are divided as Hindu, Muslim, Odia, Bengali, Tamil, Telugu etc. We miss Indianness. Uttarmarga novel ends with the result of the first general election and its disillusionment indicating the future political scenario.

Frontlist: Through Diganta’s character, you explore themes of duty, justice, and reawakening. How do these themes reflect the current socio-political climate in India today?

Pratibha: As a writer I am optimistic. We have the patience and tolerance to find out Diganta Keshari’s in the present socio political scenario.

Frontlist: Your writing often blends literary excellence with deep-rooted social concerns. How do you balance historical critique with storytelling in a way that inspires civic reflection?

Pratibha: A writer’s creative power chooses a path or genre of work of art spontaneously which is deeply rooted in his mythic culture and national heritage from which his creative dreams draw necessary nourishment. Here, his creative power is his word power. Word becomes meaningful with the help of word and thus word is above the word. Man has lived on the word culture even before the book culture. Word power is the greatest power of the writer. The impact of literary creation depends upon language of expression. The word can make or mar. Words may provoke war and invoke peace. Hence the universe of the writers is a structure of words. But literature is not meant for intellectual luxury of lexicon; it aims at binding man with man, man with nature, man with supernatural power.

Frontlist: Originally written in Odia, Uttarmarga has now reached a broader audience. What do you hope non-Odia readers take away from the novel about India’s struggle for—and interpretation of—freedom?

Pratibha: It is time for the literature in our country to transcend national boundaries and work across frontiers by ensuring that we do not attack each other within the paranoia of narrow nationalism. Literature can help the masses develop such awareness. We should try therefore to ascertain how much we think alike as writers.

Frontlist: What role do you believe literature plays in shaping the collective memory of a nation’s freedom struggle, and how does Uttarmarga contribute to that ongoing conversation?

Pratibha: We have witnessed collapse of socialist world, aggressive emergence of religious fundamentalism, political legitimization of violence, degeneration of any kind of moral order and as a result, eternal human suffering. Economic disparity, caste prejudice etc. still exist. Writers continue their struggle against social evil. The trend of postmodernism, continental literature has not yet arrived in a big way in our Bhasha literature. However, one significant trend of recent times is marked in contemporary fiction. The protagonist of several fictions represents world citizenship, remaining very much inside the national boundary. The genuine awareness is shown in our literature to uproot colour prejudices, caste distinctions, ideological and religious differences, not destroying the fabric of aesthetic beauty and excellence of art. Hence, struggle for humanity in our literature has not turned into a bleeding war. Many writers, including this writer herself are writing against all social evil, though swimming against tide. This is the challenge of the writer. Contemporary fiction writers of repute believe that each literary deed should become an art, it should rouse the conscience of callous society, it should give a voice to the mute mass of the society.