Illicit Worlds of Indian Dance

Morcom, Anna

doi:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780199343539.001.0001

Cited by 39 publications

(8 citation statements)

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“…In fact, the Bharatiya Bar Girls Union, the largest Indian trade union of bar dancers set up in the year 2004, has been vociferously asserting just that. 148 There is one important difference between the times of the anti-nautch campaign and the recent legislative attacks on bar dancing. It is that the devadasis could not fight back against the British and the anti-nautch campaigners.…”

Section: Parallels Between the Suppression Of Sadir In The Colonial Period And The Prohibition Of Bar Dancing In Twenty-first Century Mahmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Devadasis, Dance Community of South India: A Legal and Social Outlook

Shankar

Ganesan

2021

Int. J. Minor. Group Rights

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The devadasi community of south India are originators of a popular dance form called bharatanatyam. This paper explores several dimensions of this community including legal and social angles. A misjudged and misunderstood community, the modern-day devadasi’s circumstances can be described as fraught with social disabilities ranging from a lack of economic opportunities and the resultant poverty to an increased propensity for delinquency. The paper presents an unbiased view of the history of the devadasi system that attempts to use a varied range of sources so as to paint a clear narrative. The paper proposes a mechanism to move forward through truth commissions as a form of restorative justice that is likely to help both policymakers as well as artists.

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Section: Parallels Between the Suppression Of Sadir In The Colonial Period And The Prohibition Of Bar Dancing In Twenty-first Century Mahmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Devadasis, Dance Community of South India: A Legal and Social Outlook

Shankar

Ganesan

2021

Int. J. Minor. Group Rights

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“…Thus, most of the feminist debate on ban on the dance bars, while cognizant of the large presence of women of DNT and nomadic communities among the dancers does not take any special note of this fact and treats the entire problem within the broader rubric of Dalit women and their sexual/erotic labour (see, e.g., Dalwai, 2013; Gopal, 2012; Pandit, 2013). Others like Morcom (2014) see them within the rubric of ‘entertainers and performers’. Most of these works treat the existence of these women in the bar dance as being in continuity with the performing traditions in these communities.…”

Section: Relations With Other Communities and Gender Questionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Gender Questions at the Margins: The Case of Nomadic and DNT Communities

Agrawal

2018

ANTYAJAA: Indian Journal of Women and Social Change

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The nomadic and denotified (DNT) communities are one of the extremely marginalized segments of Indian society. Although they are internally differentiated, they have some significant common concerns that are not necessarily identical with those plaguing other marginal groups. This article provides a broad overview of gender issues which are particularly critical for these communities but which have barely received any systematic attention. Drawing upon the author's research and interaction with members of these communities as well as government reports and other secondary sources, the article examines these issues from the point of view of the marginal position of these groups vis-à-vis the larger society as well as from the perspective of institutions and practices prevalent within these groups. The author argues that gender issues should be integral to policy frameworks as well as other debates about nomadic and DNT communities.

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“…Anna Morcom (2014) analyses the process of social exclusion, loss of status and livelihood of the hereditary female performers in colonial and post-colonial India. She illustrates how the sociopolitical scenario of colonial India considered female performers as prostitutes rather than performers.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Rajnats of Rajasthan and the Sex Work: An Ethnographic Study

Azeez

Toolsiram²,

Mishra

2017

Contemporary Voice of Dalit

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Rajnat community of Rajasthan was a nomadic tribe (now included in the category of Scheduled Castes), who previously engaged themselves as singers, dancers, street players and the entertainers of kings, zamindars and their subjects. However, after the dissolution of monarchy in Rajasthan and the collapse of zamindari system, Rajnats were left landless and jobless but later embraced commercial sex work. This resulted in the vulnerability, deprivation and marginalization of Rajnats. Girls are compelled and sent for bar dance to Mumbai and other cities at the tender age of 15–16 years. They are not allowed to study more than 8th class as they may change their minds for not adopting this occupation of sex work. Rajnat community is found in some villages of Rajasthan which are adjacent to the highways as this accessibility attracts the easy flow of customers to the villages. Women and girls in this community are vulnerable and mere victims of this traditional practice. Experience of physical and verbal violence is causal in this community which affects the women and children the most. Rajnats are leading a socially isolated life with a set of peculiar characteristics. The present study was conducted in the Bandarsindri village of Ajmer district in Rajasthan. The data for the study was generated through ethnographic fieldwork. This article focuses on the historical background, current status and contemporary problems faced by the Rajnat community. The study highlights the peculiar sociocultural characteristics, life and lifestyle of Rajnat community. Intergenerational transfer of ill-being is visible from the present state of the community.

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Illicit Worlds of Indian Dance

Cited by 39 publications

References 0 publications

The Devadasis, Dance Community of South India: A Legal and Social Outlook

The Devadasis, Dance Community of South India: A Legal and Social Outlook

Gender Questions at the Margins: The Case of Nomadic and DNT Communities

Rajnats of Rajasthan and the Sex Work: An Ethnographic Study

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