Women’s activism in the Hindu right has gone through communication and mobilisation shifts in the context of Covid-19. The article traces how the hierarchy and coordination within the Durga Vahini—the women’s wing of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad facilitate the propagation of two primary goals 1 of seva, and sanskar in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh. Through semi-structured interviews with the representatives of the organisation, the article focuses on understanding mobilisation strategies like e- satsangs, accommodation of marginalised groups through the distribution of raw food resources, and manipulation of mythological narratives for the recruitment of young girls to propagate Hindu nationalism. The core argument of the article is focused on understanding these mobilisation tactics and changing nature seva in the times of pandemic.
‘Purity for all’ or ‘ Jai Aryavarta (land of the Aryans)!’1 (Bühler 1886, 5) are the slogans of the nation-state dominated by Hindus in the Netflix released web series, Leila. Based on the theoretical framework of Thomas Blom Hansen, ‘The Saffron Wave’, I have argued that secularism in India was unique to its circumstances and therefore, did not entail a separation between the state and the religion. In recent times, religious nationalism is called out for xenophobia against minorities and attacks against lower-caste communities (Hansen 1999, 134). This article attempts to examine the parallels between religious nationalism in Leila and Indian politics. Through qualitative research methodology and narrative analysis, the article compares the ideas of purity, segregation and dystopia from the series with the Indian politics. The core argument of the article is that although religious nationalism is determined by these ideas, it continues to be a multi-layered concept.
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