Tora Agarwala
INDEPENDENT journalist
I am an award-winning independent journalist covering India’s north-east. I’ve spent much of the past decade reporting on this vibrant but turbulent region — first with The Indian Express, one of the country’s foremost dailies, and now as an
independent journalist.
My work has appeared leading
international and Indian publications such as Reuters (I’m a regular contributor there!), Guardian, BBC, Rest of World, Scroll, Mint among others.
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 this geopolitically strategic and sensitive frontier region. This includes the very urgent themes of migration and citizenship in Assam, and other border states in the region.
I have also reported across the border from Bangladesh, specifically the historic 2026 general elections triggered by a Gen-Z led mass uprising that overthrew the ruling regime.
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 on the Manipur ethnic conflict has 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!
