History

In terms of temporal length, spatial breadth, complexity and controversy, glory and tragedy, few countries or regions, if any, can boast of a history quite like India. This remarkable diversity has endowed us with an incredibly rich legacy which goes beyond mere political, regional and religious differences to highlight, in no uncertain terms, just how much this nation-state of today owes to the traditions of secularism and co-existence; to syncretism and the flowering of the arts. These are the very traditions which have come under a visible threat and require understanding and upliftment, something which can be brought about through serious efforts at creating awareness and appreciation; to start looking at history in a more nuanced, rational manner; to treat our glorious heritage, both tangible or otherwise, as living entities still capable of teaching us something. We wish to dedicate ourselves towards achieving these goals.

Culture History

Underrepresentation of Female Painters in History of art

October 29, 2020April 27, 2021 Tanya Mittal 0 Comments 18th century, 21st century, Art, art forms, art history, Art work, artist, Bindi, Collectors, Colours, European art, Exhibition, Expression, Female artists, freedom, Gender bias, History, Illustrator, Indian art, inequality, medium, modern art, Modern artists, modernism, Novelist, Novels, opportunity, oppression, painters, patriarchy, Patrons, Perception, Performance, Photography, Power, Recognition, sculptors, Sociology, Suppressed, Women

Women have faced several obstacles in the field of art, be it training, trading, or even gaining recognition. Despite the odds, they have kept on going – to the extent that they have made historical movements out of it. The struggle still continues but clearly, there is no stopping them.

Culture History

Ravana- The Heroic Villain

October 25, 2020October 25, 2020 Editor 0 Comments ancient India, Culture, Heritage, History, Indian Literature, language, legends, literature, Myths, nation, national, Religion, South Asia, traditions, vernacular regional, Writing

All of us have either heard or seen different versions of the Ramayana or are familiar with it’s message of triumph of the good over the evil and thus, to most of us, the acute representation of an evil is Ravana. Through this article we aim at understanding the life of the ‘Evil Brahamana’ from a viewpoint that goes beyond our pre-existing perception of him.

History

Razia Sultana- An Inspiration or an Exception

October 22, 2020October 22, 2020 Aastha Tiwari 0 Comments brave women in history, chand bibi, delhi sultanate, delhi sultanate monuments, delhi sultans, famous women in indian history, iltutmish, rani of Jhansi, Razia sultan, women rulers, women warriors

Razia Sultan, a fearless warrior and the first and only woman ruler of the Delhi. Sultanate has been looked up to by several people. Nevertheless, she has succumbed to being merely an exceptional figure, and her example failed to commonalise such valour on the part of women.

Culture History

Ramnagar Ramlila

October 21, 2020October 21, 2020 Shriya Tandon 0 Comments Anant Chaturdashi, Ashok Vatika, Bhadra month, Dussehra, Goswami Tulsidas, Hanuman, Hindu calendar, historians, History, Intangible World Cultural Heritage, Janaka, Janakpuri, Jatayu, journalists, Kashi Naresh, Lanka, Lord Ram, Maharaja Udit Narayan Singh, Mark Twain, Niyamis, old saga, Panchvati, Pilgrimage, pilgrimage sites, pious, Ramcharitmanas, Ramlila, Ramnagar, Ramnagar fort, Religion, Tradition, travellers, UNESCO, Varanasi, venture, Vyasa family, writers

The Ramnagar Ramlila has piqued the interest of numerous historians, writers, journalists and travellers for its relentless religious observance and simplicity in execution. With UNESCO inscribing Ramlila the status of Intangible World Cultural Heritage in 2008, the acclaim and prestige for the one in Ramnagar has only escalated seeing as it is one of the world’s oldest Ramlilas.

History

Mythology: As Represented In Indian Paintings

September 29, 2020September 29, 2020 Ritika Soun 0 Comments ancient tales, Art, art history, artists, artwork, Belief, colors, composition, contemporary, creativity, decoration, History, imagery, imagination, immortal, Indian art, Indian Mythology, Indian paintings, Indian Traditions, inspiration, logic, Mahabharata, modernism, motif, Mythology, narration, naturalistic, Oral tradition, outlook, painters, painting, past, past traditions, primitive, Puranas, Puranic, Ramayana, Religion, resonance, science, Spirituality, stories, symbolism, Tradition, traditionalism, Upanishads, uplift, Utopia

We all grew up reading mythological stories either from comic books, or we listened to our grandparents narrate it to us – almost as if they were a part of it. These stories would paint too many pictures inside our heads back then, but out there in the real world, they have been represented by many talented artists. Can we correlate?

History

Sugar: India’s white gold

September 25, 2020September 25, 2020 Srishti Khurana 1 Comment Aska, candy, Chinese businessman, Chinni, Christopher Columbus, commodity, crystalized sugar, delicious, desserts, elixir, essential food ingredient, expensive, fodder, Gupta Dynasty, Gur, havan, jalebis, Napoleon, New Guinea, orissa, placebo effect, placebo therapy, plantations, rare, rasgullas, religious offerings, shakar, South America, sugar, sugar blockade, sugar medicine, sugar plant, sugar tablets, sugarcane, sweet poison, sweet tooth, sweets, table sugar, West Indies, white gold, Yang Daijing

Sugar being an essential condiment in our daily lives has a layered history.It is the only commodity to have a revolution to its name. From being considered as precious as gold and an effective medicine, it has now been tagged as the “sweet poison” which is a bit too accessible.

Culture History

The Cult of Lord Jagannath

September 19, 2020September 19, 2020 Debopriya Bhattacharya 6 Comments Aska, Baxi Jagabandhu, Belief, cast, Celebration, color, cult, cultural, Culture, Discrimination, distinction, diversification, diversity, ethnicity, faith, festival, Gajapati, hindu, icon, identity, Jagannath, Jagannath Dhama, linguistic, nationalism, Odisha, Odisha Festivals, Paika Rebellion, Polity, rashtra devta, rath, Rath Yatra, Religion, social, sovereign, spiritual, srikshetra, transhumanism, Unity

Lord Jagannath is a deity worshipped by people from various regional sections of the country. He is believed to be another form or avatar of Lord Vishnu himself. In a country like India, where we have people coming in from so many different backgrounds, we still find things to bind us together – be it in the name of faith or religion too.

History Polity

The Fault in our Roots

September 15, 2020September 15, 2020 Shriya Tandon 1 Comment administration, Akbar, archaic, barbaric, Belief, Bigotry, Caste, caste-orthodoxy, clan, communal harmony, community, consent, conspiracy, Constitution, customs, democracy, dogma, education, election, era, feudal, gotra, Gram Panchayat, group, History, honor killing, Indian history, institution, integrity, Jats, judicial, khap panchayat, liberty, modernization, mughal, Mughal empire, Mughal era, orthodox, Panchayat, Polity, quasi-judicial, Rights, social, socio-political, sub-caste, Supreme Court, Tradition, Women

A genuinely liberal culture or one that is advancing towards the thought is a consistent and solid arrangement of equity. In reality, when the government assistance of the populace is entangled in a political tussle of the predominant gatherings of society, it is the equity framework which anchors the fair soul. In contemporary India, the commonness of Khap Panchayats make for risky threats to this equity framework.

History

Remembering Shankaracharya: Lessons from the Jagadguru’s life and work

September 5, 2020September 5, 2020 Editor 0 Comments acharya, adharma, Adi Shankaracharya, ascetic, asura, avatara, Bhakti, bhoga, brahmin, Buddhist, Caste, charvakas, debate, didactic, disciple, Discrimination, education, evil, guru, hermit, heterodox, Hindu mythology, Hinduism, History, hostility, householder, humanity, interpretation, Jagadguru, kamashastara, kapilakas, knowledge, learning, legend, legitimacy, madhyamika, materialist, memory, Mythology, Namboori, opponent, philosophy, proliferation, proponents, Rama, Ravana, Religion, Sanskrit, sanyasi, Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, scholar, scholarship, school, scripts, scriptures, shaktas, Shastrath, spirit, story, tantric, teachers’ day, thinking, Tradition, tribute, Vedas, vedic texts

In Shankara’s age, the threat to Vedic dharma was from the evil within and he had to tackle it through intellectual debate or shastrarth. Evil therefore had to be fought with the weapon of jnana or true knowledge.

History

Indian Mythology: The cornerstone of Indian Music

August 28, 2020August 28, 2020 Editor 1 Comment ancient history, ancient scriptures, bards, Bhajans, Bharata Muni, civilisations, classical Indian music, classical music, Dance, deities, divinity, drama, folk songs, folklore, foundations, Gandharva Sastra, Gandharva Veda, genesis, God, Heritage, Hinduism, Holy Trinity, hymns, Indian, Indian culture, Indian Mythology, Indian pantheons, Indian poets, legacy, Lord Vishnu, Marga Sangeet, melodies, Mirabai, Music, music scriptures, musical veda, Mythology, Nadabrahma, Natya Sastra, Natya-Veda, poems, poets, priests, religious chants, Sage Narada, Sage Valmiki, Sam Veda, Sama veda, Saraswati, shlokas, song, tanpura, Vedas

“Music is the shorthand of emotion.” ― Leo Tolstoy
With most beautiful melodies, with most surreal tunes, with its wholesome beauty, music is an emotion where everyone can take a refugee in. It is one thing that stays through every high and low; not just since decades but right from the times of the immortals.Music, like other forms of art, lives through people when they pass it on from one generation to another.
Click on the link below and take a peek into India’s legacy of music evident from its history, culture and mythology

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