A Kerala Studies Blog
K J Baby’s 1991 novel, Mavelimantam, is the story of the resistance of the Adiyor community against centuries-old slavery at a historical point where feudalism was joining hands with emerging colonial forces in India. Mileena re-reads the novel with reference to the concept of Dalitisation by Kancha Ilaiah.
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കെ ആർ നാരായണൻ ഇൻസ്റ്റിറ്റിയൂട്ടിൽ നടന്ന വിദ്യാർത്ഥി സമരം എങ്ങനെയാണു ഒരു ബദൽ ജ്ഞാനരൂപം നിർമിക്കുന്നതെന്നു കുഞ്ഞുണ്ണി സജീവ് എഴുതുന്നു.
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Muhammed Anees delves into the recent “kuzhimanthi debate” in Kerala, focusing on the political economy of language, and analyses the role of social media as a space for contested meanings and meaning-making
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Focussing on two Malayalam films from the last decade—22 Female Kottayam (Aashiq Abu, 2012) and Varathan (Amal Neerad, 2018)—Arun Ramesh argues that despite their apparently progressive politics, new-generation films continue to be influenced by feudal norms and practices.
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Jaya Thampi revisits Sachy’s Ayyappanum Koshiyum (2020) to explore its cinematic soundscape and the many lives of Nanjiyamma’s songs in and beyond the film.
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Kerala’s political fortunes and election outcomes have long interested researchers, but the phenomenon of ‘party villages’ and their centrality to electoral democracy in Kerala have been underexplored. Nitasha and Nisar offer us a glimpse into their study of everyday politics in a party village.
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Why do we see ‘modernity’ as something that emerged only in the colonial era? What do the three medieval texts tell us about alternative strands of literature? Why do we mainstream some histories while marginalizing others? In this episode, we discuss these questions with Prof. T.T. Sreekumar.
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കാലാവസ്ഥ വ്യതിയാനവും കടൽവിഭവങ്ങളുടെ ശോഷണവും കേരളത്തിലെ പരമ്പരാഗത മത്സ്യത്തൊഴിൽ സമുദായങ്ങളെ ദുരിതത്തിലാഴ്ത്തുമ്പോൾ കൃത്യമായ കാലാവസ്ഥാ പ്രവചനം അവർക്കു ലഭിക്കുക എന്നത് സുപ്രധാനമാണ്. ഇതിനായി പല മേഖലകളിൽ ഉള്ള ഗവേഷകർ മത്സ്യത്തൊഴിലാളികളോടൊപ്പം ഒത്തുചേർന്നപ്പോൾ ഉടലെടുത്തത് നൂതനമായ സാങ്കേതിക ഇടപെടലുകളും സങ്കീർണ്ണമായ സാമൂഹിക ഉൾക്കാഴ്ചകളും ആണ്.
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Sreejith delves into three of M. R. Renukumar’s illustrated stories for children, exploring how these rich portrayals of the turbulent lifeworlds of boys convey the complexities of gender, caste, and social marginalization for young readers.
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Accompanied by her original illustrations portraying their work and workspaces, Reema K. presents stories of women from Kerala’s Moosari community of sculptors.
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