Ecocritical and Thriller Narrative in Ankush Saikia’s The Forest Beneath the Mountain

Abstract

Literature of the North East India is marked by a wonderful vividness of nature in the form of background or setting in every genre, it plays an active role on the themes and narratives of the writings. The reason behind is closeness to nature and nostalgia about its glory. The term ecocriticism is an ecological concept applied to the study of literature. It is popular hence the people are conscious regarding deteriorating eco-system and environment. Ecocriticism is a critical reading of the literary texts in relation to ecosystem, nature and environment. The government is also making new policies like sustainable development goals and millennium development goals to live in eco friendly manner. This kind of study is a kind of support in this direction.  Thriller is a kind of narrative or story imbedded with suspense or tension by creating dangerous life and situations of the characters. The settings of such kinds of novels resemble menace and possibility of violence therefore the reader is thrilled. Ankush Saikia vividly depicts a society ravaged by environmental degradation and modernisation in The Forest Beneath the Mountain (2021). Abhijit is the protagonist who searches reason responsible for his father’s death.  He conveys through his narration the issues brought about by contemporary socioeconomic growth, the resiliency of indigenous traditions, and the vulnerability of the forest ecology.