Collision of Modernities in British Odisha

Fakir Mohan Senapati (1843-1918) is remembered largely for his emancipation of early Odia fictional narratives both collection of short stories and novels, as well as autobiography, poetry, essay, text books, dictionary, spiritual and journalistic writing and translations into Odia which enriched early modern Odia literary canon. Perhaps, Senapati's identity may be aptly remembered more than the literary the socio-political and socio-economic changes which challenges and urgency he lived upon and accepted and refabricated around the historical time line in British Odisha when many changes were in threshold. Senapati remains the early chronicler of the 'SOCIAL REALISM' narrative tradition in Indian Literature and his fictional narratives which is a sum total of four novels and twenty short stories are set within the local Odia traditions focuses upon the hundred and more years of the tumultuous history of Odisha, emerging of colonial modernity in early 19th century and its effects during British rule. Senapati is also conscious of foreign and native encounter which simultaneously built up Odia collective identity in the past. He examines and mentions of the chronology of shifting of the power structure such as the Afghan, Mughal, and Maratha invasions long before the arrival of British East India Company (1803) in Odisha. Fakir Mohan Senapati remains a critic of the 'HYBRID' modernities - the collision of Odia modernities and British modernities during the colonial rule which influenced each other for near about hundred and fifty years and addresses important political factor responsible for demanding first a language province and then, sovereign intellectual sub-national identity. Senapati's fictional narrative may be compared with the rare classics in world literature; for Senapati's collective voice forms new waves across national and subnational boundaries in British India which is anticolonial and brings forth local resistances towards the emerging of European orders during British rule chiefly on the basis of the demands of the emerging collective Odia identity of his time.----------------------------------------------------Collision of Modernities in British Odisha, Vol. I, 2017, General Editor: Sarat Kumar Jena.This book contains brief modernities debate by Satya P Mohanty. Special critical section on fictional narratives of Fakir Mohan Senapati is contributed by Jitendra N Patnaik, Shubhendu Mund, and Sarat Kumar Jena. Brief analytical work on Senapati's short stories are contributed by Udayanath Sahoo, and Sarat Kumar Jena. A short memoir section on life and work of Fakir Mohan Senapati is written by Monica Das.