The Department of English, Tetso College is organizing a Dottalks webinar on the topic “Critiques of Contemporary Historiography through ‘Reincarnations’ of the Mahabharata: Analysing Dharamvir Bharti’s Andhayug” by Jaya Yadav, Assistant Professor of English in Janki Devi Memorial College, New Delhi. The talk will attempt to critique the hegemonic idea of India emergent post-1947 and offers a post-colonial lens on India’s recent past becoming an important departure from various other adaptations of the classical epic tale with a focus on Dharamvir Bharti’s seminal play, Andhayug.
Date: 24th September 2021
Time: 2:00 – 3:00 PM (IST)
Registration Link: bit.ly/dottalks2409
Moderators: Kechegi Khing (Asst. Professor of English)
Aienla A (Asst. Professor of English)
This Webinar is open for all.
BA English Honours (1st, 3rd & 5th Semester) are to attend the session compulsorily. Attendance will be recorded.
Concept Note:
Critiques of Contemporary Historiography through ‘Reincarnations’ of the Mahabharata: Analysing Dharamvir Bharti’s Andhayug
As new nation-states, India and Pakistan sought to (re)define identities and citizenship models often using religion as a driving force. India increasingly became synonymous with Hinduism and Pakistan with Islam. Questions of minorities and the subsequent marginalization of several communities were pushed to the periphery. In Northern India, the television of the Mahabharata marked an important shift in society as it moved the Epic tale visually and artistically on the screen whilst embodying ethnic-nationalistic tendencies altering the cultural milieu of India, which began to articulate monolithic idealogues on what it means to be Indian.
This talk argues on Dharamvir Bharti’s seminal play, Andhayug, which acts as a dialectical adaptation of the Mahabharata. Instead of simply glorifying an ancient, and imagined past it sheds light on the continued historical issues in the region, namely the partition in a dual manner. It critiques the hegemonic idea of India emergent post-1947 and offers a post-colonial lens on India’s recent past becoming an important departure from various other adaptations of the classical epic tale.
Bio Note of the Speaker:
Jaya Yadav is currently working as an Assistant Professor, Department of English, in Janki Devi Memorial College, New Delhi. She is also pursuing her Ph.D. in contemporary South Asian Literature. Her area of interest lies in issues of class, race, and gender, especially in conflict zones. She grew up in Turkmenistan, England, and Nepal, before relocating to India for university and continues to connect with the diaspora from these nations.
Alongside teaching, she also works as a Senior Editor at Strife Blog and Journal, Department of War Studies, King’s College, London.