Tea House, a column by Khet Mar
In Burma if you want to hear about issues the newspapers can't talk about, you should go to a tea shop. Tea houses were where I used to meet with other activists, writers and artists, as well as where I built friendships. Within tea houses we talked about Burmese writers, literary trends we noticed, and, of course, politics. This online space attempts to emulate the conversations I enjoyed in Rangoon's tea houses.

Read column in Burmese

Khet Mar is a journalist, novelist, short story writer, poet, and essayist from Burma. She is the author of one novel, Wild Snowy Night, as well as several collections of short stories, essays and poems. Her work has been translated into English and Japanese, been broadcast on radio, and made into a film. She is a former writer-in-residence at City of Asylum/Pittsburgh.
  • Maung Aung Pwint. Photo: Khet Mar
    Maung Aung Pwint: People’s Poet
    by Khet Mar / May 30, 2012

    In this week’s Tea House column, writer Khet Mar profiles Maung Aung Pwint, a Burmese poet who was imprisoned for eight years for “illegal possession of a fax machine” and “sending news” to foreign media organizations.

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  • Aung San Suu Kyi and Dagon Tayar
    Dagon Tayar, Living Record of History
    by Khet Mar / May 17, 2012

    In this week’s Tea House column, writer Khet Mar profiles Dagon Tayar, a 94-year-old Burmese peace activist, writer and editor. Dagon Tayar has been part of Burma’s fight for first independence and then democracy.

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Fearless, Ink.