Tora Agarwala
INDEPENDENT journalist
I am an independent journalist covering India’s north-east. Till the summer of 2023, I reported on this vibrant but turbulent region for The Indian Express,
one of the country’s foremost dailies.
I write on a range of subjects — really, anything and everything — but my core focus lies in the cultural and identity politics of the diverse communities that make up
the sensitive frontier region of the north-east. This includes the very urgent themes of migration and citizenship in Assam, and other border states in the region.
As an independent journalist, my work has appeared in leading international and
Indian publications such as Reuters, Rest of World, Scroll, BBC, Mint among others.
I have received several journalism awards, including India’s most prestigious
journalism honour, the Ramnath Goenka (Excellence in Journalism) Award 2020. In 2025, I was a Chevening Fellow at the University of Westminster in London. My work has also been awarded by the Vienna-based International Press Institute.
While the narrative longform feature is my favourite journalistic form, half a decade at a daily newspaper means I am more than comfortable working on breaking stories.
For insight and stories from my neck of the woods, get in touch!
