| ID | 190723 |
| Title Proper | To kiss or not to kiss?’ cinema, vulgarity and Marathi manus in 1950s and 1960s Maharashtra |
| Language | ENG |
| Author | Paik, Shailaja |
| Summary / Abstract (Note) | Critiques of vulgarity, sexuality and class featured prominently in the social, cultural and intellectual life of post-Independence India. This article focuses on the discourse of chumban bandi (banning kissing) in the 1950s and 1960s Maharashtra and analyses how it became a particularly unique index of heightened transgressive pleasure. I situate this discourse within a larger public debate, where dominant caste middle-class elites took upon the responsibility to shepherd supposedly recalcitrant dominated castes and low-class masses towards decency, civilized action and citizenship. Many elites energetically worked on their ideology, which was rooted in high-caste, middle-class and patriarchal values to create Marathi manus and nation. Drawing upon hitherto neglected Marathi language texts, I show how elites policed the kiss to both ban on-screen kissing and paradoxically harness its energy to engage in the politics of Marathikaran (creating Marathi regional identity) and create a new Marathi identity as modern, moral and decent. |
| `In' analytical Note | South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies Vol. 46, No.3; Jun 2023: p.539-559 |
| Journal Source | South Asia: Journal of South Asian Studies Vol: 46 No 3 |
| Key Words | Modernity ; India ; Cinema ; Sexuality ; Maharashtra ; Marathi ; Vulgar ; Kiss |