From satirical humour to violent campus clashes, Malayalam cinema has engaged with youth dissent in various ways to capture what[…]
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Tag: politics
When the Sacred Turns Red: Religion and Myth in Kerala’s Communist Visual Culture
How do we make sense of the religious iconography that we increasingly see as part of the CPI(M)’s visual identity in Kerala? Anagha looks at what it means for an atheist-secular political party to turn to religion for its imagery.
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Love in the Time of ‘Love Jihad’
What does the ‘love jihad’ narrative mean for the people who are often forgotten amid all the fearmongering–the lovers themselves? Maggie Paul draws on her life to reflect on the insidious logics behind the idea of ‘love jihad’ and how it has taken root in Kerala.
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Art as an Archive of Memory: Devotion, History, and Resistance in the Irupathettaam Onam of Ochira
Ahnas offers a visual and experiential entry into the spectacular festival of Irupathettaam Onam of Ochira. At a moment when dislocated histories and reinterpreted myths are increasingly mobilized for divisive political ends, the article finds value in staying with the ‘feeling’ of belongingness and participation that a festival can generate and an art can nurture.
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[Podcast] Reimagining Education: Dwindling Democratic Spaces & Resistant Student Movements
In season 3 of the Ala podcast, we hold a series of conversations with educators, academics and activists on Education[…]
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A Window into The World of The Svadesabhimani (1905-1910)
The Svadeshabhimani was an influential newspaper of the Kerala Renaissance that was banned. Thought to be lost, its archives have been partially recovered over a century later. Sajitha Bashir presents us a glimpse into the recently digitised archives and the labour that went into making the archives accessible for all.
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Regional Dynamics of Congress and BJP Support: What Do Past Elections Tell Us?
Suraj Jacob examines the geography of BJP and Congress support through the history of Lok Sabha elections.
Read moreബിജെപിയുടെയും കോൺഗ്രസിന്റെയും ഭൂമിശാസ്ത്രം: ലോക് സഭ തിരഞ്ഞെടുപ്പുകൾ പറയുന്ന കഥ
ബിജെപിയുടെയും കോൺഗ്രസിന്റെയും പിന്തുണയുടെ ഭൂമിശാസ്ത്രം ലോക്സഭ തിരഞ്ഞെടുപ്പുകളുടെ ചരിത്രത്തിലൂടെ സൂരജ് ജേക്കബ് പരിശോധിക്കുന്നു.
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Democracy Breeds Its Own Violence: Understanding Political Conflict in North Kerala
Ala speaks to Ruchi Chaturvedi, whose book, Violence of Democracy, published this year, draws on years of engagement with political violence in north Kerala to think about the forms of violence produced by the very practice of democracy.
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Fishers’ Rights and The Vizhinjam Protests: The Politics of Coastal Commons
Why are the state and the public unwilling to accept the hereditary rights of the protesting fisher community at Vizhinjam? In answer, the protests must be located within broader histories and discussions. Ala presents a translation of Sindhu and Robin’s article on the Vizhinjam protests first published in our September 2022 issue.
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