Echoes FROM THE PAST: A file picture of the Bangladesh liberation movement, and (below) some books on the subject

The call came as a surprise to former Indian diplomat Sashanka S. Banerjee. To be asked to write a book on Bangladesh was expected, but the caller certainly was not. On the other end of the line was Bangladesh Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.

“Perhaps somebody advised her to get in touch with me,” reasons the London-based Banerjee, who had been closely associated with some of the leading figures of the liberation struggle of Bangladesh. “She gave me access to her personal archives as she wanted me to write about the liberation of a nation about which little had been written so far,” he says. The outcome was India, Mujibur Rehman, Bangladesh Liberation & Pakistan, published last month by Amazon.

Banerjee’s book, which narrates the behind-the-scene events that led to the creation of Bangladesh, the conspiracy leading to its founder’s assassination and the ensuing turmoil, is just one of the many new books on the 1971 uprising being launched to mark its 40th year. The books range from autobiographical accounts to research-oriented volumes, oral history and narratives.

“Bangladesh has been neglected for a long time from all aspects including literary work,” says Ritu Menon, publisher, Women Unlimited. “What better way to celebrate the 40th year than by bringing in more testimonies about the war,” says Menon.

A look at some of the titles underlines the trend. Take for instance An Odyssey in War and Peace written by Lt Gen. (Retd) J.F.R Jacob. Published by Roli Books, it is an autobiographical journey recapitulating some crucial developments from the 1960s to the 1990s — with special focus on the 1971 war where Jacob oversaw operations leading to the fall of what was then Dacca. Or take Sarmila Bose’s Dead Reckoning, a lucid narrative of the memories of the 1971 war encapsulating views from both Bangladesh and Pakistan. There is also Yasmin Saikia’s Women, War and the Making of Bangladesh: Remembering 1971. Published by Women Unlimited, it chronicles oral accounts of Bangladeshi women in the run-up to the 1971 war and its aftermath.

The echoing memories of the battle for Bangladesh from different quarters can provide a reader with a deep insight into the various facets of a not-so-distant war. “Both India and Bangladesh have played down the contributions of each other. It was time we gave those freedom fighters of 1971 due credit,” says Jacob, who adds that his new book is an autobiography with special emphasis on the 1971 war. It includes chapters condensed from his 1996 book Surrender at Dacca, Birth of a Nation. The new book, which has gone into a second reprint, has already sold over 3,000 copies since its launch in May.

For academician Sarmila Bose, the book started taking shape when a series of newspaper articles that she intended to write demanded the depth of a book. “There were so many stories of such complexity that a book-length treatment was necessary,” says Bose, senior research fellow in the politics of South Asia, Oxford University. “It’s a book written for the general public in South Asia or for anyone interested in the region,” says Bose, who also stresses that what is now needed is not necessarily books from the region but impartial investigations by scholars and journalists.

It’s not an easy task to write about the tumultuous events that led to the liberation of a State. Yasmin Saikia points out that the research for her book took nearly 10 years. She spent a year in Bangladesh in 2001 and learnt spoken Bangla for oral history research. In 2004, she went to Pakistan for a year to do research and then spent six months there again in 2009 to access radio transcripts, TV footage and declassified parliamentary and government reports of the period before 1969.

“I worked in India every summer from 2006. I consulted archival material and undertook oral history and library research in Calcutta, Agartala, Guwahati and Delhi,” says Saikia.

Even as writings tumble out, publishers rue the fact that not enough testimonies are coming out on the 1971 war or even general writing from or on Bangladesh. “That the 1971 war has so far been neglected by the international scholarly community is no surprise,” says Menon. “There is very little scholarship available from Bangladesh or elsewhere for researchers,” she explains.

There has been a surge in the literary output from the subcontinent, including from Pakistan and Sri Lanka, but barring a few exceptions, books from Bangladesh are still not known to readers in the neighbourhood. “There is a dearth of books from Bangladesh,” agrees Meru Gokhale, editorial director, Vintage Books India, Random House. “But I am keen to publish good writing.”

According to Priya Kapoor, director, Roli Books, the world of English language books is moving at a slow pace in Bangladesh. “A few years ago people perhaps spoke about Pakistan the same way. But look at the tremendous talent that is coming out from Pakistan today,” argues Kapoor. “Maybe English is not as primary in their cultural life as it is in India, Sri Lanka and Pakistan which have all got a tradition of English writing,” adds Thomas Abraham, managing director, Hachette India.

Despite the fact that the war of 1971 was in the neighbourhood and led to unprecedented developments, it is only now that it has been drawing the attention of different quarters. Author and activist Taslima Nasrin, the best known-face of Bangladeshi literature, offers an explanation. “From a researcher’s perspective Bangladesh is not an important country to talk about,” says Nasrin. “Besides language limitations, Bangladeshi citizens need to be free thinkers and courageous to share their stories with the world,” she adds.

Bangladeshi author Mahmud Rahman believes the lack of interest in Bangladesh could be linked to the country’s relatively subordinate place in the hierarchy of global geo-political interests. “We did not occupy a strategic corner of the world as far as the big powers were concerned. And let’s face it, attention from the media, historians and other non-fiction writers tends to come in the wake of interest from political players on the global stage,” says Rahman , author of Killing the Water, a collection of short stories about the effects of war, migration and displacement.

But if the number of books on the 1971 war is any indicator, the world, it seems, is ready to hear the stories coming out of — and about — Bangladesh. “It is interesting to see that although the book is less than three months old, I have been invited to many places, mostly American universities, to speak on my research and help in critical thinking about war and its effect,” says Saikia. “My book is perhaps the first book in post-colonial South Asia which will have a publication address in all the three countries — Bangladesh, India and Pakistan,” she sums up.

The story of the war, clearly, is unfolding. Perhaps a little slowly, but loudly enough.