Culture

The vibrant colours and the splendor of its cultural wealth have defined India and its people since time immemorial. This is an outcome not just of a long human saga, but also of other, myriad contributing factors – the intimate relation with diverse flora and fauna; a constant inflow of people and ideas from far and wide; as well as their assimilation; religious and secular influencing the other or divergent in their own separate paths; ethnic and regional effervescence adding to the melting pot. However, being blindly obedient to culture is just as harmful as forgetting it altogether in the face of foreign influence and a fast life. Culture is a constantly evolving phenomenon and in a time when these questions are increasingly relevant, we shall strive towards generating a passion for conservation coupled with a spirit for critical reasoning.

Culture

Beyond the Books: The Diminishing Essence of Oral Traditions

July 11, 2020July 11, 2020 Arushi Kapoor 0 Comments ancient texts, bards, Bengali bards, bhopa, Brahmins, community, deity, devotees, epic, folklore, Hindustani, History, knowledge, Lifestyle, mechanised life, murti, oral traditions, Pabuji ka Phad, Pabusar, pastoralists, Rajasthan, Rajputs, ravanhattha, recitals, scrolls, shruti, smriti, stories, storytellers, teachings, temple, texts, traditions, Vedas, written traditions

Documentation of ancient rituals has always been a task of paramount importance. But some people beg to differ. Pocket cultures in the nooks of our country have another story to share.
Click on the link below to be intrigued by Pabuji ka Phad.

Culture

Therigatha: An anthology by and about the first Buddhist women

July 5, 2020July 7, 2020 Debopriya Bhattacharya 0 Comments Anthology, Arvind Sharma, ashtangika marg, bhikkhuni, Buddha, Buddhist, Buddhist nuns, childlessness, depression, dukkha, four noble truths, friendship, gatha, George-Therese Dickenson, growing old, india, intimacy, liberation, Mara, marginalisation of women, materialism, menopause, motherhood, nibbana, Norman 1991, Pali, poems, salvation, Sarah Clelland, Self-purification, sixth century C.E, social realities of women, Soma, spiritual, tanha, their, Theragatha, Theravada, Theravadin, Therigatha, Therigatha: Poems of the First Buddhist Women, Verses of the Elder Nuns, Voices from the Yore- Therigatha Writings of the Bikkunis, Women

The Therigatha literature is one of the most significant Buddhist literature, and is appreciated all over the world. This article aptly elaborates on why it is held with such high regard, and more.

Culture Society

Food: Much More Than Taste

June 26, 2020June 26, 2020 Ritika Soun 2 Comments Brahmanism, caste system, class discrimination, Culture, discrimination on the basis of food habits, food, food habits, Hinduism, Indian cultures, Indian society, non-vegetarianism, Othering, various food consumed by people across cultures, Vedas, Vedic ideology, vegetarianism

Food though is about taste, but is not limited to it, and spreads wide to include within it several other elements. It also contributes towards formulation of and sustenance of perceptions and also false notions about certain cultures or people. To know what else various connotations are associated with the word “food”, read here.

Culture

Unveiling the veiled desires of sexuality and eroticism through Rajasthani folklore

June 19, 2020June 19, 2020 Aastha Tiwari 0 Comments folk songs, gali and kesya, gender roles. Gender discrimination, Ghatiyali village Rajasthan, ghoongat, goddess worshipping india, good woman and bad woman, honour, morality, paloo, patriarchy, rajasthani culture, Rajasthani folklore, sexuality, veil wearing women, woman’s sexuality, women’s songs

Where most mainstream Bollywood songs and even lullabies comprise lyrics that more or less sexualise and objectify women’s bodies, these songs in this Rajasthani folklore are celebratory of a woman’s desires.

Culture History

Protest Art and Indian Freedom Struggle

June 4, 2020June 4, 2020 Debopriya Bhattacharya 1 Comment 1905, 1907, 1938, Aarti Khare, Abanindranath Tagore, Activism, Adolf Hitler, Adolf the Superman: Swallows Gold and Spits Tin, arts, Aurobindo Ghose, Banga Mata, Beauty is in the Street, Bengal, Bengal School of Art, Bharatmata, British Raj, dissent, Dr. Michael Shank, Father of Modern Indian Art, Guernica, Haripura Posters, Ideology of Swadeshi Art, india, Jamini Roy, John Heartfield, Kalighat, Lord Curzon, mother, Nandalal Bose, nationalism, Pahari, partition, Picasso, political and social issues, Protest art, Rajasthani, Redefining the Movement: Art Activism, social movements, Swadeshi Movement, Swaraj, The Shehnai Players, Viceroy of India, Western literature

Art isn’t always about peace. Sometimes, it’s about the struggle to find peace. This article talks about the art that was not just co-terminus with the Indian freedom struggle but also aided the same.

Culture

The Korean connection

May 21, 2020May 26, 2020 Srishti Khurana 3 Comments Ayodhya, Ayuta, Bin dae duk, board games, Culture, diversity, Dravadian, dravido-koreanic language, fish, food, Gautam Pal, Gimhae, hallyu wave, Heo Hwang-ok, Homer B. Hulbert, K-pop, Karak clan, Kim Jung-sook, King Kim Suro, Korean dramas, Korean music, Kyugsoo Kim, language, Mahabalipuram, Manipur, mini Korea, Pachisi, Padmashree Kim Yang-shikh, Pesarattu, Princess Suriratna, Queen Heo Park, Rabindranath Tagore, Republic of Korea, Sarang, Tamil, twin fish, Yut

The richness of global cultural diversity is not restricted to individual countries but has spread across borders. Currently, the Korean culture is the talk of the town. Interestingly, India has its history intertwined with this culture since time immemorial. So this World Day of Cultural Diversity, let’s discover what connects us with the Republic of Korea celebrating the intercultural dialogue.

Click on the link below and be taken by surprise!

Culture

Museums for All

May 18, 2020May 19, 2020 Ritika Soun 0 Comments best museums india, lgbtq, musseums, national art gallery delhi, queer groups, taj controversy, taj mahal

Every moment we create history, and museums document history, so why can’t museums showcase present battles and scenarios? Read here, the newest artefacts and stories that museums should showcase.

Culture History

The Gendered Silencing of the Partition 1947

May 9, 2020May 9, 2020 Editor 0 Comments 1947, abduction, colonialism, Crime, families, hindu, honour, humanity, independence, india-pak partition, kafila, Mahatma Gandhi, muslim, partition, rape, Society, thoa khalsa, women survivors of partition

The unheard narratives of women, the ones who bore the most gruesome brunt of the India-Pakistan partition.

Culture

Cultures of Consumption

May 3, 2020May 8, 2020 Editor 0 Comments British colonies, British empire, classism, colonial housing, colonial india artwork, colonialism, consumption, Culture, edward said orientalism, Indian architecture, Indian culture, Marx, Orientalism, post-colonial era, Public and private spaces, segregation in British India, spatial segregation, unity in diversity, white and black town during British era

Consumption can have different meanings, for different people and in different
contexts. Also interesting is the still lingering shadow and influence on the cultures of
consumption in India. Read here to know more about it.

Culture

Story through Sculptures

April 18, 2020April 18, 2020 Editor 2 Comments architecture, Bhakti Movements, Buddhism, carve, caves, cultural, Culture, icons, Indo-Aryan, Jainism, kings, Mahabalipuram, monuments, origins, Pallava kingdom, political, sacrificial rites, sculptors, sculpture, Shiva, shrines, social, South India, temples, Vedic corpus, Vishnu, yajna

A sight almost unforgettable, wherein the streets of Mahabalipuram are seen flanked on both sides by sculptors immersed in the art of carving deities out of raw black granite pieces brings to light the entire evolution of temples in South India which now a large part of our rich cultural heritage.