Hybridity, diasporas or the "chutnification of the language" are some of the consequences of being between languages, and South Asian writing in English and English language teaching in Bangladesh, which is language of officialdom, trade, commerce and even of politics have all registered traumas and creative frissons characterising linguistic and pedagogical situation in the region, they said at an international conference organised by English department of East West University in the city on Saturday.

A host of English professors from home and abroad took part in the two-day conference titled 'Passages - English Studies in the Region" that ended yesterday.

The English colonisers had two purposes of in introducing English in the British India. One is 'subordinating and the other is widening,' said Professor Serajul Islam Chowdhury, who was the chief guest.

"Now is the time to ask ourselves whether we must stop serving the subordinating purpose in a struggle against the capitalist control of the academic world," he said.

"But deciding alone is not sufficient to serve the widening purpose," Islam said. "We must play a role in the struggle against capitalist control," he added.

"English is being placed as a language of conveying knowledge of Information and Communication Technology (ICT)," said the chair of English department, Brac University, Dr Firdous Azim presenting her perspective on problems of English Studies in Bangladesh.

Professor Krishna Sen from University of Kolkata, India, said that de-colonisation must be seen in as a 21st century perspective.

"We have to forge our own literary theory developing our south Asian perspective," Sen said.

"English is becoming a language of ICT media and cyber," said Prof Syed Manzoorul Islam, of Dhaka University's (DU)English department.

Professor Kailash C. Baral of Northeast Campus of CIEFL in Shillong spoke on Postcolonial Fiction and the Chutnification of the English Language, Urbashi Barat from Rani Durgavati University in Jabbalpur, India spoke on English Literature in the South Asian Post Graduate Classroom. Helen Sim and Dr Raja Maznah Raja Hussain from University of Malaysia spoke on SMS (Short Messaging Service), Breaking in Language Learning among others on the first day.

A creative writing session took place on Saturday with Professors Kaiser Huq, Syed Manzoorul Islam, Niaz Zaman, and Nuzhat Amin, Rumana Siddique and Batool Sarwar from DU, Hasan Al Zayed and Rubana Ahmed from East West university, Khademul Islam from The Daily Star.

Hafiz Abid Masood from International Islamic University, Islamabad, Pakistan spoke on English Studies in Pakistan and Dr Antonia Navarro-Tejero from Universidad de Cordoba, Spain spoke on Information Access and Globalisation while others spoke on various other issues.