More about Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women

The journal Diva was borne out of the desires of a small group of South Asian feminist women based in Toronto. We wanted to create an alternative platform of feminist dialogue. There was consensus that ‘mainstream’ feminist avenues left us feeling invisible, without a voice and political space from which we could speak. We wanted to create our own platform from which we could express ourselves and be heard, not just as South Asian women within Canada but as part of an international feminist community with roots in the Indian subcontinent. It was a bold concept for the times: think globally, act locally!

The journal covered a broad range of feminist issues. We addressed the challenges women faced as immigrants and as women of colour, experiences that were unique to us and yet missing from the wider feminist conversation. We engaged in an international dialogue with feminists around the globe, with special attention to South Asia. A unique and special component of the journal was the allocation of space for creative writing and artwork. Local women writers who might otherwise not have had the opportunity to be published were given a space to creatively express their life stories, experiences, unique to them as South Asian women. Through painstaking translation by the editor, readers were given the opportunity to enjoy the works of gifted women writers from South Asia.

We began as a small group of dedicated women, and despite our growing popularity over the years, we were unable to sustain ourselves. As often happens, when the enthusiasm and commitment of the volunteers that keep a publication running become fragmented, it can no longer maintain itself. And so, after six years, Diva ceased to publish.

From 1988 to 1996, Diva provided a much needed social forum for South Asian women to express themselves and be heard. In the context of the social-political climate of that time, publishing such a journal was in itself a highly political act. We challenged issues of inclusion by creating an independent political space. Our global outlook along with a focus on the needs and experiences of women within our local communities was a pioneering concept.

Suman Goyal, Co-Founder, Editorial Board, and Writer

(Note: name changes in 1994)

© 2016 Suman Goyal

Issues of Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women

thumbnail of Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 01 Issue 01 – April 1988

Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 1, Issue 1 – April 1988

  • Year created:

    1988
  • Author(s):

    Brenda Cranney, Sheelagh Conway, Riffat Hassan, Rubya Mehdi, Ismat Chughta, Fauzia Rafiq, Gohar Sultana Uzma, Ahmed Salim, Reeta Kohli, Himani Bannerji
  • Region:

    Ontario
thumbnail of Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 01 Issue 02 – July 1988

Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 1, Issue 2 – July 1988

  • Year created:

    1988
  • Author(s):

    Tania Das Gupta, Bhooma Bha Yana, Judy Whitehead, Mariella Sala, Kishwar Naheed, Nudrat Niazi, Saadat Hassan Munto, Marlene Nourbese Philips, Aruna Papp, Vishwapriya Iyengar, Nilambri Ghai
  • Region:

    Ontario
thumbnail of Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 01 Issue 03 – October-December 1988

Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 1, Issue 3 – October-December 1988

  • Year created:

    1988
  • Author(s):

    Annalise Kongstad, Bhooma Bhayana, Holly A. Handspiker, Amita Dhillon, Brenda Cranney, Fauzia Rafiq, Suniti Namjoshi, Gill Hanscombe
  • Region:

    Ontario
thumbnail of Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 01 Issue 04 – March-May 1989

Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 1, Issue 4 – March-May 1989

  • Year created:

    1989
  • Author(s):

    Reeta Kohli, Naini Cloutier, Mila Astorga-Garcia, Nila Ostapowicz, Sylvia Hull, F. Schwarz , H. Juhler, Ettie Trier Petersen, Rubya Mehdi, Booma Bhayana, Marlene Nourbese Philip, Dolores Chew, Fauzia Rafiq, Mariam Khan Durrani, May Yee, Christine Donald
  • Region:

    Ontario
thumbnail of Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 02 Issue 01 – June-August 1989

Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 2, Issue 1 – June-August 1989

  • Year created:

    1989
  • Author(s):

    Meera Dewan, Bhooma Bhayana, Hardarshan Kaur Gill, Dr. Mahboob Mehdi, Vibhuti Patel, Margaretha Jarvinen, Mariam Khan Durrani, Sarah Mathai Stinus, Christine Donald
  • Region:

    Ontario
thumbnail of Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 02 Issue 02 – January 1990

Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 2, Issue 2 – January 1990

  • Year created:

    1990
  • Author(s):

    Jyoti Sanghera, Marlene N. Philipps, Rita Gill, May Yee, Dominica Dileo, Susan M. Beaver, Bernadette Dyer, Doreen Falling-Doll Silversmith, Loma Philipps, Laliti Tamu
  • Region:

    Ontario
thumbnail of Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 02 Issue 03 – July 1990

Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 2, Issue 3 – July 1990

  • Year created:

    1990
  • Author(s):

    Saloni Mathur, Sunera Thobani, Miriam Jones, Susan Crean, Pervis Rawji, Sumika Perera, Bhadra Wickremasinghe, Jyoti Sanghera, Fakhra Salimi, Meera Dewan, Hanne Peterson, Leise Dollner, Suman Goyal
  • Region:

    Ontario
thumbnail of Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 03 Issue 01 – October 1991

Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 3, Issue 1 – October 1991

  • Year created:

    1991
  • Author(s):

    Fauzia Rafiq, Jyotsna Vaid, Tanya Dasgupta, Desh Pradesh, Sherry Jamal, Wei Feng, Sunera Thobani, Saloni Negi, Sharita Sharif
  • Region:

thumbnail of Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 03 Issue 02 – March 1992

Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 3, Issue 2 – March 1992

  • Year created:

    1992
  • Author(s):

    Leela Acharya, Kamalini Wjayatilake, Lina Gonsalves, Rubya Mehdi, Sudha Coomarasamy, Sharmini Peries, Colette Brown, Bhupinder Gill, Vinita Srivastava, Ismat Chugtai, Domeneca Dileo, Nirmala Nathan, Vinita Srivastava
  • Region:

    Ontario
thumbnail of Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 03 Issue 03 – September-December 1992

Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 3, Issue 3 – September-December 1992

  • Year created:

    1992
  • Author(s):

    Leela Acharya, Amina Sherazee, Annie Aman, Lopa Banerjee, Leela Acharya, Kalpesh Oza, Kaushalya Bannerjee, Lopa Bannerjee, Gita Saxena, Dionne A. Falconer, Jyoti Sanghera, Lipika Bannerjee, Mariam Khan Durrani
  • Region:

    Ontario
thumbnail of Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 03 Issue 04 – January-March 1993

Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 3, Issue 4 – January-March 1993

  • Year created:

    1993
  • Author(s):

    Fauzia Rafiq, Sunita Albuquerque, Ramabai Espinet, Sheila James, Sharmsar, Honor Ford·-Smith, Shani Mootoo, Anna Melnikoff, Madhuri Bhatia, Rosamund Edwin, Jayanff Negi , Nathalie Younglai, Kalpana Vridula, Smita Vir Tyagi, Jasmine Javid, Sharmini Peries, Yasmin Jiwani, Georgie Wemyss, Marie-Aimee Helie Lucas, Amina Jamal, Shyamala Parameswaran, Bhupinder Gill, Gulnar Lahor, Vinita Srivastava, May Yee, Dawinder Bansal, Sunera Thobani
  • Region:

    Ontario
thumbnail of Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 04 Issue 01 – June-August 1993

Diva: A Quarterly Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 4, Issue 1 – June-August 1993

  • Year created:

    1993
  • Author(s):

    Sharmini Peries, Ann Philips, Sia Nowrojee, Dhoolekha Sarhadi, Sheila Ramdass, Gitanjali Maharaj , Silpi Gupta, Bamathy Ravi, Leela Acharya, Mariam Khan Durrani, Nilambri Singh
  • Region:

    Ontario
thumbnail of Diva: Art and Literary Journal of Women of South Asian Origin – Vol. 04 Issue 03 – Summer 1994

Diva: Art & Literary Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 4, Issue 3 – Summer 1994

  • Year created:

    1994
  • Author(s):

    Rima Banerji, Manesha Deckha, Dilara Ally , Mina Kumar, Melanie Liwanag Aguila , Shereen Denetto, M. J. Kang, G. K. , Amina Ally, Tshering Wang mo Dhompa, Shanti Dhore, Little Earthquake, Meghna Gulzar, Sapna Patel, Zara, Alessandra Mimma Figliano, Mariam Khan Durrani
  • Region:

    Ontario
thumbnail of Diva: Art and Literary Journal of Women of South Asian Origin – Vol. 04 Issue 02 – Winter 1993-1994

Diva: Literary Journal of South Asian Women – Vol. 4, Issue 2 – Winter 1993/1994

  • Year created:

    1993
  • Author(s):

    Rachel Kalpana James, Ramabai Espinet, Sheila James , Farznna Doctor, Shaheen Lakhani, Gillian McCann, Dharini Abeyeskera , Fawzia Ahmad, Sudha Coomarasamy, Tshering Wangmo Dhompa, Shanti Dhore, Little Earthquake, Mariam Khan Durrani, Bhupinder Gill, Surjeet Kalsey, Maya KhanKhoje, Kishwar Naheed, Leena Irene Haputhanthri, Sheila Ramdass, Seetha Ranjanee, Shivaramani, Fahmida Riaz, Nilambri Singh, Rina Singh, Zara Suleman , Ambika Talwar, Smita Vir Tyagi , Sunera Thobani, Sadia Zaman, Meena Kumar, Fauzia Rafiq, Sarita Srivastava
  • Region:

    Ontario