Women performers in Bengal and Bangladesh : caught up in the culture of South Asia (1795-2010s) /
"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 our time. The moot question is whether women's roles as perfo...
| Other Authors: | , , |
|---|---|
| Format: | eBook |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
Oxford ; New York :
Oxford University Press,
2023.
|
| Edition: | First edition. |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | Connect to the full text of this electronic book |
| Summary: | "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 our time. The moot question is whether women's roles as performers have evolved down the centuries. Whether this question will lead us to their subjugation to their male producers, directors, and co-performers has been explored here to give readers an understanding of when, where, and by whom the politics began, and, by tracing the footprints, the volume strives to perceive if the politics have changed, remained unchanged, or metamorphosed with regard to the woman's question in the performance discourse. It has been explored further, in this regard, how her body, mind, and sexuality interacted with and negotiated the phallocentric hierarchy. The book studies the transformation of male dominance that has forced their women counterparts to undergo repression in ever-changing garb. However, it can be said with a fair degree of certainty that with changing times the pattern of exploitation has become ‘artistic', ‘humane', ‘tolerable', and essentially ‘intellectual'. Amid such treacherous terrain, it is indeed a challenging task for women to assert their agency and rights as cultural purveyors and workers/experts. The chapters included are on baiji/tawaif culture; prostitute/‘fallen' women/patita/beshya performers; English, Anglo-Indian performers; IPTA and the Naxalbari movement; women in group and commercial/professional theatre, jatra, nachni performances, baul tradition, film-music-dance; Miss Shefali (interview); Amala Shankar"--Publisher's description. |
|---|---|
| Item Description: | This edition also issued in print: 2023. |
| Physical Description: | 1 online resource |
| Audience: | Specialized. |
| Bibliography: | Includes bibliographical references and index. |
| ISBN: | 9780191967764 0191967769 9780192699350 0192699350 |