About

I am a Naga poet and short story writer living in Norway. I have written three novels of which two are published. I have taught at university in Nagaland for 18 years and continue to teach poetry and postcolonial literature in Norway.

I also go on school tours. In the past I have toured Nordland district with a Sami yoiker, Inga Jusso, with a performance of songs and storytelling from our respective cultures. The Samis and the Nagas have a lot of cultural affinity. We discovered that we could work together artistically, through both music and storytelling.

The most rewarding part of working with Inga has been the singing and yoiking together. As I sang, she would join me with a yoik. The shared story tradition among the Samis and the Nagas is also remarkable.

My Work

Published Books:

1. Kelhoukevira, A volume of poetry in English, 1982. J.B.Lama.

2. Folk Elements in Achebe, 2000, Ura Academy.

3. The Windhover Collection, 2001, Steven Herlekar.

4. A Naga Village remembered, 2003, Ura Academy.

5. Ah, People of Tromsø, 2006, Nival Forlag, Norway.

6. Three Nagas in Norway, March 2007, Avvik Forlag, Norway.

7. The Battle of Kohima, May 2007, Ura Academy.

8. A Terrible Matriarchy, October 2007, Zubaan Books India.

Forthcoming books:

1. MARI, a novel on the second world war in Kohima, the Japanese invasion of India during the Burma Campaign, and the defeat of the Imperial Japanese army at Kohima, Nagaland, North-east India.

2. Forest Song, a collection of spirit stories from Nagaland.

3. The Lion in the refrigerator, a collection of stories for children and adults in Norwegian.

4. The Forgetful Prince, a collection of modern fairy tales. 5. Sometimes in the North, working title for a collection of poetry. 6. Dinkypu, the friendly blogger, working title for a children’s book.

Reviews:

The Windhover Collection: Mahesh Bhatt: “This is a very quiet book, it has silences in it, the silences that you find in great books. The images are very visual as well.”

Ah..People of Tromso: Prof Jacob Meloe, “You have yoiked the people, in the Sami tradition, you have described each person in the same way as the Sami would yoik an individual person.

” A Terrible Matriarchy: Book review by Paul Pimomo at kuknalim.com: “A girl’s coming of age story. The journey of a girl from childhood to womanhood which also mirrors the journey of a society…”told in unadorned language that moves because of the power of its evocative simplicity”. “A first Naga novel in English.”