Gunabhiram Barua

Gunabhiram Barua (1834 – 1894) was an Indian dramatist, historian, essayist, social reformer.

Biography Barua completed his college education from Presidency College, Calcutta and became an assistant commissioner under the colonial government. He remained in the job for the next 30 years.

After his first wife's death, his 1879 marriage with a Brahman widow, Bishnupriya Devi, created a sensation in the orthodox society of Assam. Bishnupriya and their daughter Swarnalata Barua were encouraged by him to write and publish their work in magazines and newspapers.

Gunabhiram Barua was a cousin of Anandaram Dhekial Phukan. Gunabhiram grew up under Anandaram's tutelage, as his parents died when he was a child. The play tells the tragic story of a young widow, Nabami, and her lover, Ram, both of whom were compelled to commit suicide because of social disapproval of their relationship.

Gunabhiram is also remembered as a historian and biographer. In 1887, he published an Assam Buranji, which went on to become a school textbook. He also wrote regularly on issues such as women's education and marriage reforms.

Gunabhiram Barua published and edited the short-lived but hugely influential literary journal Assam-Bandhu(1885-1886). Famous conservative intellectuals such as Ratneshwar Mahanta and Rudraram Doloi also contributed to its pages.