CALL FOR PAPERS
Everyday Life, Everyday Stories: Oral Histories of the Ordinary
4-5-6 February 2027
Oral History Association of India in collaboration with the Department of Humanities & Social Sciences, National Institute of Technology (NIT) Silchar, Assam
Often the epistemological determinations of the past are framed around seminal events – the fall of an authoritarian regime, the publication of an influential literary work, the deaths of personalities who shaped artistic movements, and the birth of a nation, among others. Tucked within the interstices of such grand narratives remain the experiences of ordinary people. Herein lies the potential of oral history, for it brings to light the everyday lives of people through the act of recording between the interview partners. In the spatial configuration of the interview process, the focus of oral historians on recording the detailed minutiae of everyday life – the routines, emotions, labour, relationships, aspirations, and struggles of ordinary people – testifies to the fact that such human experiences can also emerge as an equally compelling archive. Rather than the factual rendering of events, oral history showcases how broader historical processes attain significance and become meaningful through everyday interactions.
Against this backdrop, the conference intends to situate the everyday as a pedagogy and a generative site of knowledge production. It foregrounds the premise that the stories of everyday life constitute the domain in which social structures are consolidated, power is contested, memory vis-Ã -vis forgetting is cemented, and the past is both constructed and challenged. Through everyday encounters, the interviewees or narrators create a sense of their being, which translates into stories presented to the interviewer. By recording these textures of daily experiences, oral historians can deepen our understanding of the everyday and help conceptualise the ordinary as a deeply valuable epistemic and archival category.
In this regard, the conference invites participants to explore how the intimate formulations of political, economic, cultural, and technological changes are negotiated and produced in the everyday existence of ordinary individuals who share their stories with oral historians, thereby engaging in the collaborative process of recording and preserving the narratives. We are particularly interested in submissions that examine oral history recordings that reflect on the ethical challenges, methodological innovations, community engagements, and co-created endeavours in documenting everyday lives.
The conference is open to accept abstracts on the following themes, but not restricted to them in their entirety:
- Oral history and oral traditions of everyday life
- Recording, archiving, and digitising everyday life
- Everyday mobility, migration, and displacement
- Stories on work, labour, and livelihood
- Everyday experience of violence, conflict, and resilience
- Stories of family life and domesticity
- Culinary practices and food or edible memory
- Gendered experiences of everyday life
- Everyday ecological practices and environmental memory
- Popular religion and everyday beliefs
- Everyday experiences of technology and the digital realm
- Sports, play, and everyday cultures
- Ethical and methodological reflections on oral histories of the ordinary
Submission guidelines and general requirements
- The conference will include paper presentations, mixed-media presentations, and panels.
- The submission for the conference will be done by filling out the form: https://forms.gle/UzmJ4ecVBCjhH2kg6
- The word count of the abstracts for the paper/presentation should not be more than 300. Along with the abstracts, the contributors are requested to submit a bio note of 100 words through the aforementioned link. No separate attachment is required.
- Only multimedia submissions (poster, art, film, podcast etc.) may include attachments. Accepted file formats: JPEG, PNG, or other standard formats.
- Submissions for panels must be directed to the email ID: ohaiannualconference@gmail.com. Each panel should ideally comprise 3-4 papers/presentations, along with an abstract delineating the broad overview of the entire panel by the one who intends to propose the session. Kindly submit short bio notes for each presenter along with the abstracts.
- All submissions must demonstrate how they employ oral histories to examine the various themes of the conference. In this regard, we would encourage the contributors to shed light on the methodology, key findings, and conclusion of the study.
- All the contributors must provide a disclosure statement regarding the use, if any, of generative AI tools in their research.
- The conference will be held in-person at NIT Silchar. There will be no online or hybrid sessions.
Important Dates
Abstract submission opens: 1 August 2026
Abstract submission closes: 10 September 2026
Notification of accepted abstracts: 30 October 2026
Registration opens: 5 November 2026
Registration closes: 25 November 2026
Registration fee
- For non-OHAI members: INR 3000
- For OHAI members: INR 2200
- For students (non-OHAI members): INR 2000
- For students (OHAI members): INR 1500
The registration fee includes the conference kit and food (breakfast, lunch, and dinner) on the conference dates.
Important: NIT Silchar will be able to accommodate a limited number of participants at the institute guest house.
Conference Chairpersons:
Dr. Aniket Alam (President, OHAI & Associate Professor, HSRC, IIIT Hyderabad)
Dr. Reena Sanasam (HoD & Associate Professor, HSS, NIT Silchar)
Conference Coordinators:
Dr. Sumallya Mukhopadhyay (Vice President, OHAI & Assistant Professor, HSS, NIT Silchar)
Dr. Dinamani Biswal (Assistant Professor, HSS, NIT Silchar)
Contact: ohaiannualconference@gmail.com