A retired bureaucrat, Madhurima, who worked in administrative positions for 34 years, now leads a life as a social and cultural activist. She is also a prolific writer.

Madhurima Barua is a retired bureaucrat from Assam. She retired as Secretary to the Government of Assam in the Cultural Affairs, and Environment and Forest Department. She has spent 34 years working as a bureaucrat. In addition, she is a writer, a proponent of the arts, and a movie buff.

Remembering her childhood, Madhurima says she had a normal childhood. She was born in Dibrugarh. She was the oldest of four sisters and never experienced any discrimination on the basis of gender from her parents. Because of her father's transferable job, she was able to travel and explore new places. She graduated and also got her postgraduate degree from Dibrugarh University. She then graduated from the Delhi School of Planning and Architecture with a master's in planning.

She joined the Assam administrative services in 1987 since her parents encouraged her to do so. Meanwhile, she also kept on writing.

Describing her journey thus far, Madhurima says that she began writing when she was a young child and contributed to school periodicals. Her pieces began to appear in the regional newspaper, "Amar Asom." She has written ten books, including two novels and one collection of short stories. Also, she has translated five Dale Carnegie works into Assamese. She is now translating a history novel and some of Rabindranath Tagore's writing.

Sharing her experiences, Madhurima says she observed atrocities being committed against women while serving as Secretary of the State Commission for Women, which inspired her to work for underprivileged women and girl children. She had the chance to collaborate with several artists from various artistic disciplines as the Director of the Department of Cultural Affairs.  Meanwhile, she developed a love for cinema and wished to provide a platform for the screening of important films for the next generation.

Speaking of her mistakes, Madhurima says that everyone makes mistakes that they later come to regret. She recalls a mistake she made as a bureaucrat when she had to defend her state in court at a case hearing. Prior to testifying in court, she neglected reading the case file, which upset both her and the department. She later came to regret this lapse and made a commitment to never make the same mistake again.

Citing her accomplishments, Madhurima says that she was chosen as a short story writer for a government initiative called "Untold Write Assamese," which was supported by the British Council and BEE Books, Kolkata, and intended to promote Indian literature in translation. Her short stories have been included in the project's book, "A Fistful of Moonlight: Stories from Assam," which will be released in 2023. She was also chosen to serve on the juries for world cinema festivals in Barcelona and Poland.

When asked about her role models, Madhurima says she looked up to different persons in different phases of life as her role models.  Her parents served as her initial role models, and when she entered the administrative services, Kiran Bedi, a former IPS officer and former LG Puducherry, impressed her. Later, when she began writing, Rabindranath Tagore served as her inspiration.

Madhurima spends her free time reading books, watching movies, and enjoying various forms of art. She also enjoys taking trips across the world.

According to Madhurima, she avoids conflicts and keeps quiet in order to maintain her composure. She thinks a restful night's sleep will help her cope with a demanding circumstance.

Madhurima’s life mantra is “Don't squander your time; instead, work and live simply.”

Madhurima says that even at the age of sixty, she still has a life goal: she wants to be a writer and a social and cultural activist.