Nabanoor was a monthly Bengali literary magazine published from Kolkata. It was a progressive magazine that encouraged contribution by both male and female authors.[1]

History

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Nabanoor was a monthly magazine which started publication in 1903 in Kolkata, Bengal Presidency, British India. The first editor of the magazine was Syed Emdad Ali. The magazine wanted to encourage literary traditions in the Bengali Muslim community. Notable contributors to the magazine included Qazi Imdadul Haq. It continued to publish till December 1906 when it was closed down.[2][3] The magazine wrote on issues affecting the Muslim community. It also included articles by Muslim women and Bengali Hindus.[4] Begum Rokeya started her literary career by writing for this magazine.[5]

According to Leela Fernandes in the book Routledge Handbook of Gender in South Asia, articles published in the Nabanoor showed a growing divide between the Muslim Bengali and Hindu Bengali community. The two communities accused each other of being against women empowerment. Begum Rokeya published a number of articles on women empowerment in the magazine. Her article Amader Oboniti (our downfall) in 1904 which described jewelry as symbols of enslavement. Her article drew widespread criticism of Muslim men and women.[6]

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References

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  1. ^ Bharati Ray (2002). Early Feminists of Colonial India: Sarala Devi Chaudhurani and Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain. Oxford University Press. p. 23. ISBN 978-0-19-565697-8.
  2. ^ Ahmed Wakil. "Nabanoor". Banglapedia. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
  3. ^ "Writer Syed Emdad Ali". The New Nation. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
  4. ^ Mahua Serkar (2008). Visible Histories, Disappearing Women: Producing Muslim Womanhood in Late Colonial Bengal. Duke University Press. pp. 257–258. ISBN 978-0-8223-4234-2.
  5. ^ Amna Nasir (5 July 2017). "Begum Rokeya: The Writer Who Introduced Us To Feminist Sci-Fi". Feminism In India. Retrieved 24 May 2020.
  6. ^ Leela Fernandes (2014). Routledge Handbook of Gender in South Asia. Routledge. p. 36. ISBN 978-1-317-90707-7.