Is Dhurandhar propaganda - or a challenge to Bollywood's dominant ideological narrative? Sriram Chellapilla argues that the film breaks from decades of cinematic conventions that framed Pakistan, nationalism, and secularism through a particular political lens. In doing so, it exposes Bollywood's own embedded propaganda structures and gives expression to viewpoints long excluded from mainstream storytelling. The essay presents Dhurandhar not as propaganda, but as powerful counterpropaganda against an entrenched ideological and political narrative.
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Secularism Was Never Ours: The Wrong Word for the Wrong Country
What does “secularism” really mean, and does the concept fit India’s civilizational experience? In this essay, Kshiteesh Sharma traces the origins of secularism to specific Christian conflicts in Europe and argues that the term was later transplanted into India without regard for its distinct dharmic traditions. Examining the history of the 42nd Amendment, temple administration, and differing state approaches to religious communities, the article questions whether India’s current model is truly neutral or a legacy of colonial categories. Ultimately, it calls for a re-examination of governance through indigenous concepts such as Dharma and Rajadharma rather than imported frameworks.
Desire, Hierarchy, and Dehumanization: A Critique of Anti-Caste Imagination
This essay examines the deeper assumptions behind a provocative anti-caste claim that caste will end only when oppressed communities can marry Brahmin women. Drawing on Frantz Fanon’s analysis of colonial psychology, it argues that such rhetoric often preserves the very hierarchy it seeks to destroy. The article also critiques the reduction of caste to endogamy, exposing conceptual contradictions in modern anti-caste discourse. Finally, it warns against the dehumanization hidden within symbolic “conquest” narratives, where individuals are reduced to tokens in ideological struggles. Ultimately, the essay calls for a more rigorous understanding of caste, equality, and human dignity beyond the language of resentment and inversion.
It’s the Community, Stupid! Remembering the Lost Art of Celebrating Together
Once, Navratri Kanjak was more than a ritual—it was a living expression of trust, where every home in the neighborhood welcomed children like family. Today, rising walls and shrinking connections have turned a shared celebration into a hollow formality. This article reflects on how rituals once built community and belonging, and how their spirit fades when relationships disappear. It is both a memory of what was and a call to rebuild neighborhood bonds with intention.
Category Errors in the Study of Bharatīya Jñāna Paramparā
Modern scholarship often misreads Bharatīya Jñāna Paramparā by forcing it into text-centric, innovation-driven frameworks that do not match its transmission-based nature. This article argues that the confusion arises from deep category errors about what knowledge is and where it resides. Rather than a collection of texts, the tradition functions as an integrated epistemic architecture sustained through guru–śiṣya paramparā. Recognising this distinction reframes continuity not as stagnation, but as disciplined preservation of valid knowing.