Kalahandi (Lingaraj Mishra): Young writer and researcher from Kalahandi, Sudhir Kumar Dhangadamajhi, has been invited to present his research paper at the three-day Brihattar Bharat International Conference on “Bharat’s Cultural Connections across the Globe”, to be held from 14 to 16 October at Vigyan Bhawan, New Delhi.
The international conference, organised by the Indira Gandhi National Centre for the Arts (IGNCA) under the Ministry of Culture, Government of India, marks the centenary of the Greater India Society, established in 1926. Organised under the Global Engagement Scheme of the Ministry of Culture, the conference will bring together delegates, ambassadors and scholars from 50 nations to deliberate on India’s historical and contemporary cultural connections with the wider world. Participants from countries including China, Japan, Mongolia, Indonesia, Sri Lanka, Nepal and Iran, among others, will contribute to discussions on shared cultural heritage and civilisational exchanges.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi will address the gathering through a special video message on the occasion, while Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Union Minister of Culture and Tourism, will attend as the Chief Guest.
Dhangadamajhi will present his paper titled “From Mahanadi to Melaka: Mapping the Maritime Trade Routes of Kalinga Sādhabas.” The research examines the historic maritime networks that connected ancient Kalinga with Southeast Asia, with particular attention to the relationship between inland trade routes, river systems and overseas maritime networks.
A significant aspect of his study is its attempt to place Kalahandi and its ancient settlement of Asurgarh within the wider geography of Kalinga’s maritime trade. By tracing possible connections from Asurgarh through the Sandul, Tel and Mahanadi river systems to the Bay of Bengal and onwards towards the Straits of Melaka, the research explores how inland centres and riverine corridors may have contributed to larger networks of trade and cultural interaction.
The study also examines the Sādhabas not merely as merchants carrying commodities across the sea, but as participants in the movement of ideas, beliefs, technologies and cultural practices between Kalinga and Southeast Asia. In doing so, the paper seeks to broaden the understanding of Odisha’s maritime history beyond its coastal centres by examining the possible links between its interior regions, river networks and overseas trading world. The paper forms part of the conference theme “Trade and Commerce as Carriers of Goods and Ideas.”
Born in Budhipadar village under Narla block of Kalahandi district, Dhangadamajhi is a researcher, writer, editor, broadcaster and cultural activist. He currently serves as a Senior Teacher under the School & Mass Education Department, Government of Odisha. Education, language, literature, culture and history are among his principal areas of study and research.
His Odia short-story collection ‘Khangar’ received the Timepass Bestseller Award in 2021 and was shortlisted for the Sahitya Akademi Yuva Puraskar in 2020 and 2021.
