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Time of India
15-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Rethinking Indian Literature: Dispersion, Diaspora & Expanding Boundaries Beyond Traditional Literary Canon
Excerpts from the interview: Q: How did the two of you come to collaborate on this book? Let's start with Anjali. Anjali: The project started when Ulka reached out to me with this proposal and I obviously jumped at it because this idea of modern Indian and literatures, each of those terms that we query in this handbook is at the heart of everything that I do and have been doing all this while. Right? So I was delighted when Ulka reached out to me, what was it, four and a half years ago or five years ago? She'll be able to remember the date. And it just went from there. It was like natural. She said, will you do it? And I said yes. And we just started from there. Ulka: The Oxford Handbook series is a very prestigious series and so I was delighted when the editor reached out and asked if I was interested in working on such a project. The main thing for us was how Anglo-centric the Indian literary studies continues to be despite the fact that there are so obviously literature and long traditions in so many languages. But it's true in the US, it's even true in India itself. Even the study of Indian literature in English is relatively new. For a long time in English departments, even in India, you were just studying British and American literature. So that is new. Even then there's been such a favouring of English language literature over all these other traditions. So when the editor at Oxford reached out and said we want something that focuses on India's multilingual heritage, of course I immediately thought of Anjali because I was such a fan of her book Bombay Modern and of course her work in multilingual Indian spheres. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like SRM Online MBA | India's top ranked institute SRM Online Learn More Undo So I think it was a good match and it was something I think we were both very passionate about. Q: Even just the title Modern Indian Literature packs in so much, you can dissect those three words for a very long time, isn't it, Ulka? Ulka: Yes, absolutely. And in fact we do spend quite a bit of time in our introduction and in all the presentations we've given dissecting those words because none of them are self-evident. It's not obvious what we mean by modern, what we mean by literatures, because when we think about the literary sphere, we often tend to think about the novel and poetry and short stories. But recent studies of different media have shown that what we count as literature might be much more vast than that. We have a chapter on the graphic novel, we even have a chapter on video games to really expand what we think of as literature and push those boundaries. And the term Indian itself is not self-evident, especially with the different role that different languages play within a kind of conception of India. So of course we can think about Hindi and Tamil and some of the main languages, but also languages that, you know, have a different relationship with the nation. So we really had to piece out these different terms. And the final book is not a conclusive answer to what these terms mean, but hopefully opening it up to more questioning and more debate. And we really hope that others will take up some of these provocations that we've tried to try to propose in the introduction. Anjali: To add to what Ulka said about the handbook. I think one of the concepts we kept in mind when putting together this handbook was the idea of dispersion, especially because the notion of handbook is such a canon making sort of concept, a gesture, right? And along coupled with the idea of Oxford, which is another canon making gesture. So one of the concepts that we dealt with was, or rather kept in our mind was the idea of dispersion. So dispersion of several things, of a limited and prescriptive canon of Indian writing, of texts that must feature in this list of the disciplinary boundaries. Ulka talked about that right. Of what is literary or not literary, but also of what are regions and languages, and also of scholarly voices that usually reflect, are reflected in Anglophone tables of contents from where they speak, generally the predominance of scholars only from the Western world dominating the conversation. So all of these ideas were at the back of our minds when we thought of this idea of dispersing this to kind of removing that centre that has been in this Anglophone Western world when talking of Indian literatures, and we hope, or we Assume, we hope that we went a little way towards that. Q: The texts you choose to explore are unusual. When it comes to going into the minor languages, and with reference to video games etc, how did you decide to explore these boundaries? Ulka: So one thing I'll say is with any project like this we have an ideal TLC of what we'd like, who we like and what kind of topics we'd like covered. But of course when you ask people can we do it, can you write this 6,000 word piece? There's many people who can't or they want to write on something else than what we would have liked them to write about. So having said that, the final project is, you know, is hopefully moves towards what we were envisioning. It's not exactly what we were envisioning. I said we would have even wanted more attention to more minor literatures and minor in the sense of, you know, not always represented in these kind of anthologies than we had. But we really were trying to do many things at once. We were trying to kind of present what some of the most exciting work in Indian, in contemporary literary criticism on Indian literatures in a variety of languages and also push some of the boundary. So you know, with video games as a good example, it's not, I don't think I would argue that it is definitively a literary form. But we wanted to have some places at the, in the volume where we were pushing those boundaries. We also have a chapter on auto fiction, again, you know, always, not quite always understood as literary, but. And so we wanted to push some of these boundaries and that includes talking about literatures from, from languages where, you know, people have an ambivalent relationship with the idea of India and we wanted to use those as Places to push the boundaries. So we were trying to do many things at once. Both kind of present things that people understand as Indian and then also push the boundaries. And we think those two things are done at once. Then you can never take a term like Indian literature for granted. Anjali: I remember one of the conversations we had when we went to India and talked to students about this book in September. And one of the questions that that students had was how can you subsume, for example, this was just an example. How can you subsume Tamil modernism under Indian? Right. And so the kind of way we tried to explain was that we proceed as if we already know the term, right. What Indian is. But then in the actual chapters and in the actual work that follows, it gets queried, dismantled, reformulated. So, for example, Tamil Modernism, or the Question of Tamil is featured here. But then we also talk about Tamil in Sri Lanka and Tamil in Singapore. A chapter goes across India and Tamil in Singapore. So the borders, the contact zone of the borders is again, one of the other concepts that we always kept in mind, this idea of relationality and contact zones which. From which we started looking at the idea of what it is that is Indian or what it is that is modern.
The Age
06-05-2025
- Politics
- The Age
First step for the Libs? Embrace modern Australia
To submit a letter to The Age, email letters@ Please include your home address and telephone number below your letter. No attachments. See here for our rules and tips on getting your letter published. ELECTION FALLOUT Peter Dutton lost his seat of Dickson comfortably, in what was a total repudiation of him, his party and its policies (or lack thereof). Struggling in the campaign, Dutton resorted to culture wars over Welcome to Country. Dutton thrived on the politics of grievance and the stoking fear and division. The vast majority of us have said 'this is not who we are, nor who we want to be'. The Liberal Party must now decide how far to the right they are prepared to move to rebuild. Gina Rinehart wants them to go further (' Rinehart blames 'left media' for Coalition wipeout, claims voters 'very short on understanding',' 5/5). Given the Liberal Party's links to the likes of right-wing lobby group Advance, their willingness to use members of the patriarchal and misogynistic Exclusive Brethren in the election campaign, and that three potential leadership contenders – Angus Taylor, Andrew Hastie and Dan Tehan – attended the conference for the climate change denying Alliance for Responsible Citizenship in London in 2023, one must wonder. Rod Eldridge, Derrinallum Contemporary women Charlotte Mortlock is correct in being frustrated that her own party fails to take her advice as a woman seriously (' The Liberal Party is still beholden to a small cohort of angry men. Women have had enough ', 6/5). Sadly, the very Anglo-centric nature of women selected in parliament, including teal candidates, also don't reflect the small business owners in my area who come from educated multicultural backgrounds. These women don't like the oft-cited 'pub test' political analogy – they don't go to pubs as it's not part of their culture and sadly some feel uncomfortable in that blokey environment. Genuine reform means choosing women from diverse backgrounds who have different life experiences and seeing more nuanced perspectives on what it means being a modern day Australian woman. Mel Smith, Brighton An existential crisis Beyond questions of leadership and policy, the Liberal Party must look at its basic principles and consider how closely they reflect modern Australia. That might reveal that the Liberals really do face an existential crisis. A political party based on principles including individualism, limited government and low taxation seems to be at odds with a country that pressures its government to do more and more for its citizens. This creates a huge problem for true liberals, because by definition, they do not want to interfere in people's lives. They prefer a light touch government that leaves people free to live as they wish, provided they do not harm others. But that doesn't match modern, progressive Australia that seems to be constantly demanding the government address an ever expanding list of problems and issues. The Liberal Party can move to the moderate centre, but they will reach a limit beyond which they cannot go and still call themselves liberals. Rod Wise, Surrey Hills Building a coherent story Peter Hartcher's insightful analysis (' Election delivers hard lessons for the Libs. But they can't say they weren't warned ', 6/5) of the Liberal rout in Saturday's election sums up the major shortcomings of the Liberal Party, but does not address their fundamental problem. To be a party electable, voters want a coherent story and direction. Making off the cuff policy statements a la working from home and continually being negative does not inspire confidence. Peter Dutton raged about the cost of living and housing crisis but offered no well-planned solutions. The Liberal Party could well follow Labor's example in holding annual conferences where policies are debated under the umbrella of a guiding philosophy that outlines the party's guiding principles. Federal elections should be a competition between clear policies and ideas, not a slanging match between personalities. Until the Liberal Party establish what they stand for, they will remain in the political wilderness. Graeme Lechte, Pascoe Vale THE FORUM Leave it to the politicians Gina Rinehart still doesn't get it. She is advocating that we continue to embrace Trumpism despite the Coalition's massive loss. She is also blaming the left-wing media. My advice to Rinehart is to leave the politics to the politicians and sit out on her balcony with a cold one and count her money. She is a very fortunate woman. John Cummings, Anglesea Pulling the strings No surprise that Gina Rinehart wants the Liberals to move further right. She sees herself as Australia's Elon Musk, pulling the strings of an Australian Trump-like Liberal Party. She has somehow missed the fact that most Aussies don't like Trump and his ilk. Marie Nash, Balwyn Begin again I completely agree with Gina Rinehart's statement that the Liberal Party should move further to the right. That will hasten the Liberal Party's fall into oblivion. From its ashes new parties and independents will arise, free of lobbyists and vested interests, who are more attuned to the needs of average Australians. Barry Lizmore, Ocean Grove
Russia Today
16-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Russia Today
Shakespeare museum to be ‘decolonized' over ‘white supremacy' claims
The Shakespeare Birthplace Trust (SBT) plans to 'decolonize' its extensive museum collections, after research claimed that William Shakespeare's legacy has been used to advance 'white supremacy', according to The Telegraph. The SBT, which manages properties linked to Shakespeare in Stratford-upon-Avon and holds key archival materials, is exploring the 'continued impact of Empire' on its collections and how 'Shakespeare's work has played a part in this,' the paper wrote on Sunday. The initiative reportedly follows a 2022 study conducted in collaboration with Dr. Helen Hopkins from Birmingham City University, which criticized the trust's attractions for presenting Shakespeare as a 'universal' genius, an idea that supposedly 'benefits the ideology of white European supremacy.' The study argued that portraying the English playwright's work as the standard for high art reinforces 'white Anglo-centric, Eurocentric, and increasingly 'West-centric' worldviews that continue to do harm in the world today.' As part of its 'decolonization' efforts, the SBT has organized events celebrating Bengali poet Rabindranath Tagore and a 'Romeo and Juliet'-inspired Bollywood dance workshop, The Telegraph said. The SBT's latest initiative has sparked criticism online. Conservative academic and writer Adrian Hilton described it on X as 'quite mad.' Shakespeare, he wrote, 'is the greatest in history: an unparalleled mind, undisputed genius, and the most magnificent jewel in the crown of British culture.' He added: 'Why would @ShakespeareBT seek to trash their brand with this nonsense?' Political commentator Darren Grimes remarked that 'the man who shaped the English language is now a problem because his greatness is too… British.' User Bernie believes that 'everything we know and love is being destroyed on the altar of liberalism.' Another user, iamyesyouareno, interpreted the Trust's decision as an attack on cultural values, saying: 'They despise everything you find important and seek to humiliate you.' Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk reposted the message with two exclamation marks. !! Shakespeare (1564-1616) is widely regarded as the greatest writer in the English language and the world's pre-eminent dramatist. His works, including 'Hamlet', 'A Midsummer Night's Dream', and 'Henry V', have been translated into every major living language and are performed more often than those of any other playwright.
Telegraph
16-03-2025
- Entertainment
- Telegraph
Shakespeare's birthplace to be decolonised after ‘white supremacy' fears
William Shakespeare's birthplace is being 'decolonised' following concerns about the playwright being used to promote ' white supremacy '. Shakespeare's Birthplace Trust owns buildings linked to the Bard in his home town of Stratford-upon-Avon. The trust also owns archival material including parish records of the playwright's birth and baptism. It is now 'decolonising' its vast collection to 'create a more inclusive museum experience'. This process includes exploring 'the continued impact of Empire' on the collection, the 'impact of colonialism' on world history, and how 'Shakespeare's work has played a part in this'. The trust has stated that some items in its collections and archives may contain ' language or depictions that are racist, sexist, homophobic, or otherwise harmful'. The process of 'decolonising', which typically means moving away from Western perspectives, comes after concerns were raised that Shakespeare's genius was used to advance ideas about 'white supremacy'. The claims were made in a 2022 collaborative research project between the trust and Dr Helen Hopkins, an academic at the University of Birmingham. The research took issue with the trust's quaint Stratford attractions, comprising the supposed childhood homes and shared family home of Shakespeare and Anne Hathaway, his wife, because the Bard was presented as a 'universal' genius. This idea of Shakespeare's universal genius 'benefits the ideology of white European supremacy ', it was claimed. This is because it presents European culture as the world standard for high art, a standard which was pushed through 'colonial inculcation' and the use of Shakespeare as a symbol of ' British cultural superiority ' and 'Anglo-cultural supremacy'. Veneration of Shakespeare is therefore part of a 'white Anglo-centric, Eurocentric, and increasingly 'West-centric' worldviews that continue to do harm in the world today'. The project recommended that Shakespeare's Birthplace Trust recognise that 'the narrative of Shakespeare's greatness has caused harm – through the epistemic violence'. The project also recommended that the trust present Shakespeare not as the 'greatest', but as 'part of a community of equal and different writers and artists from around the world'. The trust then secured funding from the Esmee Fairbairn Foundation, an organisation that finances projects that boost diversity and inclusion, to help make the collection more international in its perspective. As part of its commitment to being more international in outlook, the trust has so far organised events celebrating Rabindranath Tagore, a Bengali poet, and a Romeo and Juliet-inspired Bollywood dance workshop. The trust will continue looking at updating the 'current and future interpretation' of objects in its collection. It will also explore how objects could be used as the focus for new interpretations which tell more international stories, in order to appeal to a more diverse audience. It has additionally pledged to remove offensive language from its collections information, as part of a 'long, thoughtful' process. The collections contain not only some of the limited contemporary documents linked to the Bard, but archived material, literary criticism, books linked to Shakespeare and gifts from around the world offered in honour of the writer. The ongoing closing of sites linked to Shakespeare comes following a trend for more racially-focused criticism of the playwright in the wake of Black Lives Matter protests in 2020. The Globe Theatre in London ran a series of seminars titled Anti-Racist Shakespeare which promoted scholarship focused on the idea of race in his plays. Academies taking part in the series made a number of claims, including that King Lear was about 'whiteness', and that the character of Prince Hamlet holds 'racist' views of black people. A statement from the trust said: 'As part of our ongoing work, we've undertaken a project which explores our collections to ensure they are as accessible as possible.' Properties run by the trust, including his family home New Place, are not original buildings Shakespeare would have known, but later reconstructions.
