Manoranjan Byapari, born in East Bengal and now one of West Bengal’s leading voices of Dalit literature, brings us Nowhere People (English translation of Chhonochhaara), translated by Anchita Ghatak and published in 2025 by Ekada (an imprint of Westland Publications). This 356-page novel, priced around ₹599, offers no easy solace. It demands that we see what is often unseen.
A Life Born From Displacement
Byapari’s own life lends weight to the story he unfolds. Born around 1950-51 in Pirojpur (then East Bengal), he came as a child refugee to India. His early years were marked by hardship: limited formal schooling, a long stretch of work in menial jobs including as a rickshaw puller. Later, he emerged as a writer, political activist, and, in 2021, a Member of the Legislative Assembly from Balagarh. He also serves as Chairperson of the West Bengal Dalit Sahitya Academy. These experiences give his work a lived authenticity.
The Story of “Nowhere People”
Set in and around Jadavpur railway station, the novel tells the intertwined stories of people who live literally “between platforms” — platform dwellers who are part of the city yet forced to exist outside its most basic securities. Some are rickshaw pullers, others collect scrap, wash glasses at hooch shops, or fish at markets. Many are uprooted, vulnerable.
The Protagonist: Nobo
The center of this fragile world is Nobo, whose arrival at night on a station platform marks the beginning of a both hope-tinged and harrowing journey. He is not just fighting for survival; he becomes unexpectedly responsible for an abandoned infant he finds at the station. In this task, he learns what it means to build family in a place where belonging is constantly denied.
Themes That Cannot Be Ignored
- Displacement & Visibility: These people are on the margins, marginalized by geography, poverty and social indifference. Byapari forces us to confront those left between tracks.
- Community & Compassion: Despite deprivation, there are bonds among platform dwellers. Shared suffering often breeds unexpected generosity.
- Existence vs Oblivion: The title Nowhere People is literal and metaphorical. Living without stable shelter, identity often depends on scraps of recognition.
Publication Details & Context
| Element | Detail |
|---|---|
| Original Title | Chhonochhaara (in Bengali) |
| English Title | Nowhere People |
| Translator | Anchita Ghatak |
| Publisher | Ekada (Westland Publications imprint) |
| Publication Date | Mid-2025 (some listings say 23 June 2025) |
| Pages | 356 |
| Price | ₹599 approx. |
Why Nowhere People Matters
In an era where many literary works speak about the urban poor, migration, refugee rights, by contrast Byapari’s book lives in the spaces few visit — the platforms under tracks, the overlooked margins. His voice is rooted not just in empathy, but in experience. He is both participant and observer. For readers, it is a mirror to a society that often distances itself from who builds its foundations: the invisible workers, the dwellers who have no fixed address.
Final Reflection
Nowhere People is not comfortable reading. It asks questions more than it offers answers. But that’s its power: it forces us to see the “platform dwellers” not as metaphors but as real people, whose daily battles reflect wider failures of social justice. For anyone interested in intersectional literature, in understanding caste, class, migration, or in simply reading stories of human diminishment and resilience, this novel is essential.
