The hegemony of Hindutva can be gauged from its confident transformation of structures with powerful symbolic significance.
With two big electoral mandates in 2014 and 2019; With the meek popular acceptance of the economic shock generated by demonetisation in 2016; With Kashmir’s political aspirations and remaining autonomy effectively revoked in 2019; With the inauguration of Ayodhya’s Ram temple in 2020 on the long-disputed ruins of the Babri Masjid; And finally, with the lack of any public outcry about its handling of the pandemic despite millions of lives being lost in 2021, the Narendra Modi government is probably justified in proceeding as if it has a carte blanche, at least No less on the cultural front.
One of the ways to gauge this regime’s apparently unwavering belief in its ideological plank of Hindutva is its systematic acquisition and alteration of the many places and structures that have powerful symbolic significance in the public life of the nation.
renewal of nationalism
From Gandhi Ashram in Sabarmati to Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, from Parliament House on Raisina Hill to Vishwanath Temple in Varanasi, from Sabarmati Riverfront in Ahmedabad to Central Vista Avenue of the capital, from Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar to Teen Murti House in Delhi, all kinds of Historical sites, be they sacred or secular, ancient or modern, are being extensively renovated.
As Bimal Patel, the architect responsible for most of the Modi administration’s most ambitious redevelopment projects in Gujarat, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh, recently told a university audience in the capital: “We are interested in replacing the statue of power ” One can hardly ask for the agenda of Hindu Rights to be stated more clearly.
Patel and his Ahmedabad based firm HCP Design, Planning & Management Pvt. Ltd., along with other government functionaries and spokespersons, ministers and bureaucrats, state and central officials, as well as right-wing culture warriors producing media commentary, have a common justification for these massive undertakings: transforming India from dilapidated Mughal grandeur. What is needed is the transition, the remnants of the British Raj and the remnants of Nehruvian socialist austerity, to its 21st-century self-image of a rising Asian giant.
Preference is given to the Chinese model, where the past is unintentionally erased, differences are ruthlessly equated, and things are made brand new, much larger and technologically advanced as far as possible . Special economic zones, smart cities, international airports, multi-lane expressways and gleaming malls have already popped up across the country. The refurbished heritage structures are the latest symbol in Modi’s ideologically driven visual and aesthetic transformation of India.
People should visit Sabarmati not as Gandhians but as tourists; So too Kashi Vishwanath not only as a devotee of Shiva, nor as the birthplace of not only a believer in Rama, but also as a tourist; Similarly the National Museum or India Gate not only as citizens but also as tourists. Parliament itself, as an area of debate and law, needs to attract tourists. It is no longer enough to find a functioning polity, society or religious community – we need a staging Indian democracy.
Citizenship as Viewership
We should not look at India for what it is – old, diverse, inconsistent, complex, messy, inclusive, subtle and resilient – but instead be overwhelmed by the imitation of a Hindu Rashtra, a grand edifice in which pitiful people live. There is no place for Earth. The relation of the people to the nation is no longer that of partnership and agency. Instead, we are reduced to passive awe-inspiring spectators of an impressive scene whose narrative we cannot question, much less determined through our choices.
In exchange for “amenities” like toilets and parking, we must be prepared to give up all ownership of our neighborhoods, places of worship, centers of commerce, and the intricately woven fabric of our society that has evolved organically over the centuries. For generations the residents of Sabarmati Ashram or Kashi Vishwanath can be bought from their ancestral homes and made out of their traditional livelihood. Muslims have to fight for a legitimate residence, mosque, business or locality – a form of Siddha state-led boycott and marginalization in Gujarat, now widespread in Uttar Pradesh.
The current government’s taste for monumentality, spectacle and grandeur are reminiscent of imperialist and fascist regimes around the world. Gandhi’s ethics of service and humility were ingrained in the routine and customs of his ashram; Nehru’s commitment to developing democracy and promoting secularism in the first years of the Indian republic; Ambedkar’s egalitarian campaign to open temples, ponds and roads to all Indians, regardless of caste and gender; The true seeker’s quest for salvation in a holy city of prayer and pilgrimage like Benares or Ayodhya – none of these habits and practices familiar to Indians is considered valid. Because, for all these ways of being for individuals and communities, tolerance for difference, co-existence with others, respect for nature, accepting the limits of life and most importantly, towards the disappearance of power It is necessary to be alert.
The same Ganga that shed thousands of dead Covid bodies during the delta wave a few months ago, without shame, irony or apology, is going to serve as a beautiful backdrop for the pompous “Viswanath Dham” inaugurated by the Prime Minister. The screenwriters of his speeches, the architects of his corridors, the curators of his sound-and-light shows and the designers of his outfits forget that in the 17th century, Kashi bowed to neither Aurangzeb Alamgir nor Chhatrapati Shivaji. Even today, Banaras is not a mere electoral area – in fact, from the Hindu point of view, full of faith, it is the eternal stronghold of Shiva Tripurantaka, the destroyer of the three demon cities.
What the makers of Mr Modi’s tortured image do not know is that Banaras gave birth to both Tulsidas and Kabir, the greatest poets of medieval North India, who represent two alternative notions of divinity and form the fundamentals of the languages of their region. use in a different way. What they fail to acknowledge is that from Banaras’ famous brocade weaving to its colorful wooden sculptures, the city is unimaginable without its Muslim artisans. They highlight the fact that no defined function of Banaras – from religious rituals to scholarship, from music making to boating, from cooking to cremation – is not possible without the complex ecology of communities. These groups have developed by combining all kinds of religious, communal, caste and occupational identities. modus vivendi Ignoring any state interventions since ages.
what is needed
Like all Indian cities, Varanasi is in dire need of better urban infrastructure as it is crumbling and crumbling. Like all Indian rivers, the highly polluted Ganga needs immediate cleaning. One of the most respected and visited places in the subcontinent can certainly do with governance, investment and development that has not happened in decades. But bulldozing the heart of Banaras, the Vishwanath temple and the Gyanvapi mosque complex, eroding its historically multi-religious character and grand display of Hindu pride, is contrary to the spirit of the Constitution, and shockingly insensitive and useless in a pandemic .
The Bharatiya Janata Party leadership is expected to be rewarded for its clearly communal message and magnification of Hindu symbols in the upcoming Uttar Pradesh elections. But this should not undermine the famous affinity of Kashi residents, their enduring doubts about illusions and appearances, be it the magic of Modi or the imagination of the world. ,Maya Maha Thug Hum Jaani”, sang Kabir that clever bard of the eccentric city.
Ananya Bajpai, an intellectual historian, is a Fellow at the Center for the Study of Developing Societies, New Delhi. views expressed are personal
change the image of power
The hegemony of Hindutva can be gauged from its confident transformation of structures with powerful symbolic significance.
With two big electoral mandates in 2014 and 2019; With the meek popular acceptance of the economic shock generated by demonetisation in 2016; With Kashmir’s political aspirations and remaining autonomy effectively revoked in 2019; With the inauguration of Ayodhya’s Ram temple in 2020 on the long-disputed ruins of the Babri Masjid; And finally, with the lack of any public outcry about its handling of the pandemic despite millions of lives being lost in 2021, the Narendra Modi government is probably justified in proceeding as if it has a carte blanche, at least No less on the cultural front.
One of the ways to gauge this regime’s apparently unwavering belief in its ideological plank of Hindutva is its systematic acquisition and alteration of the many places and structures that have powerful symbolic significance in the public life of the nation.
renewal of nationalism
From Gandhi Ashram in Sabarmati to Ram Mandir in Ayodhya, from Parliament House on Raisina Hill to Vishwanath Temple in Varanasi, from Sabarmati Riverfront in Ahmedabad to Central Vista Avenue of the capital, from Jallianwala Bagh in Amritsar to Teen Murti House in Delhi, all kinds of Historical sites, be they sacred or secular, ancient or modern, are being extensively renovated.
As Bimal Patel, the architect responsible for most of the Modi administration’s most ambitious redevelopment projects in Gujarat, Delhi and Uttar Pradesh, recently told a university audience in the capital: “We are interested in replacing the statue of power ” One can hardly ask for the agenda of Hindu Rights to be stated more clearly.
Patel and his Ahmedabad based firm HCP Design, Planning & Management Pvt. Ltd., along with other government functionaries and spokespersons, ministers and bureaucrats, state and central officials, as well as right-wing culture warriors producing media commentary, have a common justification for these massive undertakings: transforming India from dilapidated Mughal grandeur. What is needed is the transition, the remnants of the British Raj and the remnants of Nehruvian socialist austerity, to its 21st-century self-image of a rising Asian giant.
Preference is given to the Chinese model, where the past is unintentionally erased, differences are ruthlessly equated, and things are made brand new, much larger and technologically advanced as far as possible . Special economic zones, smart cities, international airports, multi-lane expressways and gleaming malls have already popped up across the country. The refurbished heritage structures are the latest symbol in Modi’s ideologically driven visual and aesthetic transformation of India.
People should visit Sabarmati not as Gandhians but as tourists; So too Kashi Vishwanath not only as a devotee of Shiva, nor as the birthplace of not only a believer in Rama, but also as a tourist; Similarly the National Museum or India Gate not only as citizens but also as tourists. Parliament itself, as an area of debate and law, needs to attract tourists. It is no longer enough to find a functioning polity, society or religious community – we need a staging Indian democracy.
Citizenship as Viewership
We should not look at India for what it is – old, diverse, inconsistent, complex, messy, inclusive, subtle and resilient – but instead be overwhelmed by the imitation of a Hindu Rashtra, a grand edifice in which pitiful people live. There is no place for Earth. The relation of the people to the nation is no longer that of partnership and agency. Instead, we are reduced to passive awe-inspiring spectators of an impressive scene whose narrative we cannot question, much less determined through our choices.
In exchange for “amenities” like toilets and parking, we must be prepared to give up all ownership of our neighborhoods, places of worship, centers of commerce, and the intricately woven fabric of our society that has evolved organically over the centuries. For generations the residents of Sabarmati Ashram or Kashi Vishwanath can be bought from their ancestral homes and made out of their traditional livelihood. Muslims have to fight for a legitimate residence, mosque, business or locality – a form of Siddha state-led boycott and marginalization in Gujarat, now widespread in Uttar Pradesh.
The current government’s taste for monumentality, spectacle and grandeur are reminiscent of imperialist and fascist regimes around the world. Gandhi’s ethics of service and humility were ingrained in the routine and customs of his ashram; Nehru’s commitment to developing democracy and promoting secularism in the first years of the Indian republic; Ambedkar’s egalitarian campaign to open temples, ponds and roads to all Indians, regardless of caste and gender; The true seeker’s quest for salvation in a holy city of prayer and pilgrimage like Benares or Ayodhya – none of these habits and practices familiar to Indians is considered valid. Because, for all these ways of being for individuals and communities, tolerance for difference, co-existence with others, respect for nature, accepting the limits of life and most importantly, towards the disappearance of power It is necessary to be alert.
The same Ganga that shed thousands of dead Covid bodies during the delta wave a few months ago, without shame, irony or apology, is going to serve as a beautiful backdrop for the pompous “Viswanath Dham” inaugurated by the Prime Minister. The screenwriters of his speeches, the architects of his corridors, the curators of his sound-and-light shows and the designers of his outfits forget that in the 17th century, Kashi bowed to neither Aurangzeb Alamgir nor Chhatrapati Shivaji. Even today, Banaras is not a mere electoral area – in fact, from the Hindu point of view, full of faith, it is the eternal stronghold of Shiva Tripurantaka, the destroyer of the three demon cities.
What the makers of Mr Modi’s tortured image do not know is that Banaras gave birth to both Tulsidas and Kabir, the greatest poets of medieval North India, who represent two alternative notions of divinity and form the fundamentals of the languages of their region. use in a different way. What they fail to acknowledge is that from Banaras’ famous brocade weaving to its colorful wooden sculptures, the city is unimaginable without its Muslim artisans. They highlight the fact that no defined function of Banaras – from religious rituals to scholarship, from music making to boating, from cooking to cremation – is not possible without the complex ecology of communities. These groups have developed by combining all kinds of religious, communal, caste and occupational identities. modus vivendi Ignoring any state interventions since ages.
what is needed
Like all Indian cities, Varanasi is in dire need of better urban infrastructure as it is crumbling and crumbling. Like all Indian rivers, the highly polluted Ganga needs immediate cleaning. One of the most respected and visited places in the subcontinent can certainly do with governance, investment and development that has not happened in decades. But bulldozing the heart of Banaras, the Vishwanath temple and the Gyanvapi mosque complex, eroding its historically multi-religious character and grand display of Hindu pride, is contrary to the spirit of the Constitution, and shockingly insensitive and useless in a pandemic .
The Bharatiya Janata Party leadership is expected to be rewarded for its clearly communal message and magnification of Hindu symbols in the upcoming Uttar Pradesh elections. But this should not undermine the famous affinity of Kashi residents, their enduring doubts about illusions and appearances, be it the magic of Modi or the imagination of the world. ,Maya Maha Thug Hum Jaani”, sang Kabir that clever bard of the eccentric city.
Ananya Bajpai, an intellectual historian, is a Fellow at the Center for the Study of Developing Societies, New Delhi. views expressed are personal
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