Overview

Covering nearly 225 years, this volume tries to capture a broad spectrum of the situation of women performers from Gerasim Lebedeff's time (1795), who are considered to be the first performers in modern Bengali theatre, to today's time. The moot question is whether the role of women as performers evolved down the centuries. Whether this question will lead us to their subjugation to their male counterparts, producers, and directors has been explored here to give readers an understanding of when, where, by whom the politics began, and, by tracing the footprints, we have tried to understand if the politics has changed, or remains unchanged, or metamorphosed with regard to the woman's question in the performance discourse. We have explored, in this regard, how her body, mind, and sexuality interacted with and negotiated the phallocentric hierarchy. The essays included are on (i) Baiji/Tawaif culture in eastern and western Bengal; (ii) prostitute/'fallen' women/ patita, beshya performers; (iii) IPTA and the Naxalbari movement; (iv) group and commercial/professional theatre of Kolkata; (v) women's position in the theatre of Bangladesh; (vi) Cabaret (with an interview with Miss Shefali) (vii) Jatra; (viii) Baul tradition. (ix) Besides, there are chapters on English, Anglo-Indian, Jew, Nachni performers and the illustrious dancer Amala Shankar, and film-music-dance in general.

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9780192871510

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This anthology takes its readers on an enthralling journey across a span of over two centuries to the engagements and negotiations of women as performers and cultural workers in Bengal and Bangladesh. It is an essential read for those wishing to understand and explore the dynamics of the subliminal spaces that exist between the public and private in the discourses of performance and non-performance. - Dr Meghna Guhathakurata A significant contribution to scholarship on the performing arts, gender studies and sociology. An inclusive and wide-ranging project, encompassing dance and music alongside theatre, crossing borders to embrace Bangladesh and West Bengal, and consciously treating rural and urban art forms on equal footing. - Professor Ananda Lal

This anthology takes its readers on an enthralling journey across a span of over two centuries to the engagements and negotiations of women as performers and cultural workers in Bengal and Bangladesh. It is an essential read for those wishing to understand and explore the dynamics of the subliminal spaces that exist between the public and private in the discourses of performance and non-performance. * Meghna Guhathakurta, Executive Director, Research Initiatives,Bangladesh, Dhaka * A significant contribution to scholarship on the performing arts, gender studies and sociology. An inclusive and wide-ranging project, encompassing dance and embrace Bangladesh and West Bengal, and consciously treating rural music alongside theatre, crossing borders to and urban art forms on equal footing. * Ananda Lal, Former Professor, Department of English, Jadavpur University, Kolkata *

Author Information

Manujendra Kundu is the Founding Editor of Springer's Book Series titled Performance Studies & Cultural Discourse in South Asia. The decade-long journalist, who worked for institutions like Anandabazar Patrika and Zee Media, did his PhD on the Third Theatre in Bengal. His book titled So Near, Yet So Far: Badal Sircar's Third Theatre was published by Oxford University Press, New Delhi, in 2016. He is an author, editor, playwright, cultural commentator, and analyst who specializes in Cultural Studies, Performance Studies, Media Studies, Tagore Studies, and the intellectual history of India.

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