Book Launch of Intimate Others

The invitation

The launch of Intimate Others took place on February 9, 2011 at Vivekananda Hall, Jadavpur University. The program had an inspiring start through the song, 'Jaga utha sara sansar' by Nilanjana Sengupta, Lecturer at the School of Women's Studies, Jadavpur University and one of the contributors of Intimate Others. The MC of the event was Dr. Paramita Chakravarty, Reader, English, Jadavpur University. 
The book was launched by Jashodhara Bagchi, founder of School of Women's Studies, Jadavpur University. Samita Sen, Director and co-editor of Intimate Others introduced the book. She said that marriage was an essential aspect of adult and in our case, child's life. There is an assumption about the unchanging aspect of marriage where we talk about it in the same breath as it is found in ancient texts and contemporary reality. The book was a result of tension between the rapidly changing scenario of marriage and its unchanging nature. 

The three editors of Intimate Others

The book was released by the the three editors, Samita Sen; Ranjita Biswas, Lecturer, School of Women's Studies; and Nandita Dhawan, Research Coordinator, School of Women's Studies. The surveys which gave rise to some of the articles in the book had respondents who were willing to divulge their most intimate details. Marriage is seen as a framework of intimacies, living practices and sexualities.

The panelists

The panelists for the discussion were Subhobroto Bhattacharya, Reader and Head of Media and Culture, Surendranath College and former teacher of English, Jadavpur University; Ritu Sen Chowdhury, teacher of Sociology at West Bengal State University; and Rimi B. Chatterjee, author and Senior Lecturer, English,  Jadavpur University. 


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Review: The traditional image of the ‘Indian family’ has been disrupted by the growing influence of globalization and information technology, as well as by the increased 'social visibility' of homosexual relationships and other forms of intimacy. The institution of marriage has also acquired explosive political significance in recent years. This collection of essays also takes into account factors that have challenged the “hegemonic status” of this institution in Indian society. The Telegraph: 4 March 2011