Maheswar Neog

🪔 About

Maheswar Neog (1915-1995) was a distinguished Indian academic, Indologist, and Assamese-language scholar, renowned for his extensive work on the cultural history of North East India, particularly Assam. Born on September 7, 1915, in Kamarphadia village, Sivasagar district, Assam, he displayed exceptional academic ability from a young age. He completed his Bachelor's degree in Assamese from Cotton College and earned his Master's degree in Modern Indian Languages from the University of Calcutta. His PhD thesis, "Sankaradeva and His Times: Early History of the Vaishnava Faith and Movement in Assam," received widespread acclaim. Neog began his career as a school teacher before joining Gauhati University in 1948 as a founder teacher in the Post-graduate Department of Assamese. He later served as the Jawaharlal Nehru Professor at Gauhati University and, after retirement, as the Sankardeva Professor at Punjabi University, Patiala. His scholarly contributions spanned literature, folklore, religion, music, dance, and theatre. Maheswar Neog was instrumental in bringing Satriya dance to national and international recognition, demonstrating its characteristics as a classical Indian dance tradition. He gave the first national exposure of Satriya dance at a Sangeet Natak Akademi seminar in New Delhi in 1958. He also notably edited the ancient treatise on dance, *Sri Hasta-muktavali*. Neog passed away on September 13, 1995, leaving an enduring legacy on Indian cultural studies. Awards & Honours: Padma Shri (1974), President of Asam Sahitya Sabha (1974), Sangeet Natak Akademi Fellowship (1994).