International Journal of Finance, Entrepreneurship & Sustainability (IJFES) https://doi.org/10.56763/ijfes.v3i.157 ISSN Online: 2583-0899, Volume-3, Issue -1, 2023 52 The Making of Modern Odia Identity and Print Media in 19 th Century Tanaya Mohanty Assistant Professor, Department of Sociology, Utkal University, Bhubaneswar Email: tanayamohanty@gmail.com Received: 10 th January 2023 Last Revised: 10 th April 2023 Accepted: 22 th April 2023 Abstract This article chalks out the symbiotic relationship between media and nationalism in the context of modernity. There are certain basic pre-requisites required for the advent of modernity with media being one. Media creates the forum for growth of nationalism as pointed out by Anderson. I take the case of 19 th century Odisha which can be considered as the period of awakening for the given society. This period saw the growth of Odia nationalism, which preceded Indian nationalism in the context of Odisha owing to the presence of a robust print media that aimed at creating a political identity by striving for unification of Odisha. Here, we take a look in the development of print media situating it within a particular historical and social milieu. Key words: Modernity, Print media, Odia Nationalism, Introduction This article is an attempt to map the idea of modern Odia identity where I underscore the idea of being modern. Modernity makes its presence felt at a particular historical juncture. Every society has its own pathway and temporality for attaining modernity. Modernity does not start universally on an anointed fixed time. Every society has its own struggles of reaching it out. This article explores the idea of media and mass media to be more specific as an important component of modern times, and its symbiotic relation with nationalism. Here, I intend to contextualize 19 th century Odishaas a period of advent of modernity in the midst of growing Odia nationalism supported by a plethora growth of print media across the province. In the next section, I would try to explore the relationship between modernity and media followed by a section on print media in Odisha. Modernity, Media and Nationalism Stuart Hall believes modernity is represented through the social formations like nation states, capitalism, new class formations, and a secular outlook (Hall 1992). Every society is a product of its historical forces. Modern societies are marked by specific historical developments, which shape its social formations. I am not a historian neither I am