Devadasis

Davesh Soneji on Indian classical dance, working with hereditary artists: 'We need a new, radical epistemology and political grammar'

Withstanding the test of time, Davesh Soneji's book Unfinished Gestures has emerged as a potential litmus test, for academicians and classical dancers alike, to reflect on their response, towards the hereditary community of artists.

Classical dance and appropriation: How to think about a field whose foundations rest on cultural violence

Given that classical dance entered the upper caste communities through the process of appropriation (first by denying the hereditary dancers their right to perform, then adopting the same dance tradition while continuing to deny them the right to perform) it might seem rather obvious that the present day classical dancers should be aware and respond to this past that they continue to benefit from. The reality however couldn’t be further away from this.

Maharashtra's crusade against dance bars replicates anti-nautch campaign of late 19th century

The dance bar ban was in fact an almost exact repetition of history of an earlier campaign against tawaifs and devadasis, and with the same devastating consequences for these groups of women.

Pride and prejudice: Sadir has stirred scholarly debate in India and abroad, can the dance form finally get its mojo back?

In recent years, competing accounts of sadir and its practitioners have stirred up intense scholarly debate in India and abroad.

From courtesans to prostitutes: Tracing the devolution of the profession

The nonchalance with which the word ‘prostitute’ is used by our politicians arouses a sense of discomfort at the ignorance pervading our political system.