Manderangni Jagring: Images of the Garos in Bangladesh

To a casual visitor, Bangladesh may seem an ethnically uniform country but a close look whole constellation of ethnic groups numbering several scores. Although each one of these ethnic groups is numerically tiny, they have their own history, a distinct identity and nearly all have a language of their own. This book introduces the Garos, a people indigenous to the hills of Meghalaya and the plains of Northern Bangladesh. Through text and pictures, the book introduces the present-day Garos of Bangladesh. The book also deals with the questions they are confronted with and the developments that have taken place in recent times in Garo society. These are important developments. The Garos have had to adapt to situations and demands that were unknown to their elders, who were illiterate and leading a simple life which had changed very little over the centuries. The aim of the book is to make the Garos a little better known and to highlight the ethnic diversity, which exists in Bangladesh. It is true that the present-day Garo society shows a high percentage of literacy and the young Garos enter into all levels of modern Bangladesh society. Nevertheless, their sense of identity apart seems to remain undiminished. What is the composition of this identity? How is it that it survives? These are questions which the book takes up and tries to answer.