With president Narendra Modi as its head, India commemorated the seventieth anniversary of its independence this week. The country has reason to celebrate: India has a powerful economy and is an increasingly important global player.
But, as The Conversation's scholars have written, freedom of speech, expression
and religion also seem to be regressing, while nationalism, cow vigilantism, and gender inequality
are rampant. Partition, and the creation of Pakistan, which also took place in 1947, remains a hot-button issue today. Today’s Weekend Conversation rounds up our best recent coverage of India, offering an in-depth look at its arts, politics and controversies.
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Lipstick Under My Burkha challenges India’s patriarchal society as well as the film industry’s bias against women.
Variety.com
Anubha Yadav, University of Delhi
Alankrita Srivastava's feminist film has Indian censors in a tizzy.
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Hindustani classical music played on a river boat in Banaras.
Jason Baker/flickr
Laksmi Subramanian, Center for Studies in Social Sciences Calcutta
Are music bans in India and Pakistan an appropriation of art and performances by nationalist imperatives?
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Be careful! In Uttar Pradesh, the cow trade is now almost wholly criminalised.
Jitendra Prakash/Reuters
Afroz Alam, Maulana Azad National Urdu University
A crackdown on the beef and leather trades has put hundreds of thousands of Indian Muslims and Dalits out of work, vexing already-tense religious relations and hurting India's economy.
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India’s tricolour (which actually has four colours) hides a complex subaltern history that originates with Mahatma Gandhi.
Adam Jones/Flickr
Sadan Jha, Centre for Social Studies
As India celebrates its independence, the flag is on full display, but few people know about the complex origins of this ubiquitous national symbol.
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‘Your nationalism is not my democracy’ read the banners of a protest in Delhi against intimidation on campuses. February 28, 2017.
Cathal McNaughton/Reuters
Aftab Alam, Aligarh Muslim University
Intolerance is rising on Indian campuses, where clashes initiated by right-wing student groups have slowly become the norm and freedom of speech is under threat.
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