Performative Politics and the Cultures of Hinduism: Public Uses of Religion in Western IndiaPerformative Politics and the Cultures of Hinduismfocuses on one of the major festivals of western India, the Ganapati Utsava, dedicated to the elephant-headed god. Raminder Kaur uses this occasion as the central anthropological and historiographical site within which to examine the dynamic relationship between spectacle, religion and nationalist politics. In contemporary India, this kaleidoscopic event is of interest to various bodies, including political parties such as the Shiv Sena, the BJP and the Congress, media conglomerates which sponsor competitions associated with religious rituals and the police and regulating organizations of the state which strive to keep religious festivity 'clean' of criminality and excessive political manipulation. At the level of community life and everyday bhakti (religious devotion), Kaur shows that the audiovisual aspects of the festival are today crucial to its enduring appeal among large sectors of urban India's populace. Deploying a single major cultural and religious event to study the variety and cultures of contemporary Hinduism and their complex histories, this book is an outstanding work that will interest every serious student of Indian politics, cultural history and anthropology. |
Contents
BR1kaurpdf | 4 |
BR2kaurpdf | 33 |
BR3kaurpdf | 71 |
BR4kaurpdf | 102 |
BR5kaurpdf | 142 |
BR6kaurpdf | 155 |
BR7kaurpdf | 194 |
BR8kaurpdf | 219 |
BR1kaurpdf | 4 |
BR2kaurpdf | 33 |
BR3kaurpdf | 71 |
BR4kaurpdf | 102 |
BR5kaurpdf | 142 |
BR6kaurpdf | 155 |
BR7kaurpdf | 189 |
BR8kaurpdf | 219 |
BR9kaurpdf | 277 |
kaurglossary bib and indexpdf | 279 |
BRkaurprelimspdf | v |
BR9kaurpdf | 260 |
kaurglossary bib and indexpdf | 262 |
Other editions - View all
Common terms and phrases
activities agendas ahimsa arena argued artworks associated Bal Gangadhar Tilak Bal Thackeray bhakti bomb Bombay British Cashman celebrations Chapter Chinchpokli colonial communal competition Congress considered contemporary contestation culture deity Delhi demon discourse film flag Ganapati festival Ganapati murti Ganapati utsava Gandhi Ganesh Hindu nationalism Hinduism Hindutva icons ideal Illustr imagery images immersion India indigenous judges Kichak Maharashtra mandal mandal members mandap displays mandap tableaux mandir Marathi mela Mitra Mandal mobilisation modern Mumbai Muslim narration narratives nationalist Nehruvian nuclear weapons occasion organised Pakistan party peace performative Peshwa Pokhran Political Weekly politicisation popular praxis procession programmes public festival public field Pune rashtriya religion religious represent representations revivalists riots role Sainik Sarvajanik Ganeshotsava Mandal scene secular seen SGM display shakha Shiv Sena Shivaji social society socio-political spectacle spectators Spring Mills strategies talim themes Tilak tion University Press Vanaik vignette visual