Sita and Shrupanakha Symbols of the Nation in the Amar Chitra Katha Comic Book Ramayana* Karline Mclain

Sita and Shrupanakha Symbols of the Nation in the Amar Chitra Katha Comic Book Ramayana* Karline McLain mar Chitra Katha “Immortal 546), Valmiki (no. 579), and Valmiki’s golden age setting, and its Picture Stories”, the Ramayana (bumper issue no. 10001). demonization of the “other.” By Aleading Indian comic book The Ramayana has occupied a looking at the Ramayana comic we series, enjoys a ubiquitous presence privileges position throughout the can examine how these elements of among the urban middle-class in India development of contemporary Indian the epic may be directed towards and the South Asian diaspora. These culture. It has been employed in nationalist ends in this medium of comic books are an important medium special ways by many of the most public culture. of public culture that contributes to prominent leaders of the national The main characters of the the process of identity formation. As movement, and in recent years, Ramayana, Rama and Sita, are upheld part of the zone of debate that is public especially by Hindutva nationalists. in common parlance and within culture, these comic books entail a Many examples abound of the use of nationalist ideology as the moral range of intended and received messages. However, like other the Ramayana and its characters for exemplars of Indian society. Sally mainstream mediums of public culture, political mobilisation – one of which Sutherland has summed up these ideal these comic books are greatly resulted in the demolition of the Babri constructions: “Rama throughout the influenced by the forces of modernity, Masjid mosque in Ayodhya by the epic is a man totally devoted to duty, globalisation, and nationalism, forces Sangh Parivar in 1992. They insist despite personal hardship, and Sita is which are apparent in the modern that a Ram Mandir be built in its place. a woman totally devoted to her lord “Indianness,” which is constructed in In the 1991 election, before this and master, despite his this medium in opposition to an demolition, the political wing of the capriciousness.”4 The duties of these “otherness.” In this essay I will focus Parivar, the Bharatiya Janata Party ideal role models are divided on how Sita and Shrupanakha may be (BJP), participated in the communal according to their gender; a man’s interpreted as symbols of the nation agitation for a Ram Mandir with its primary concern is his dharma, while – symbols of “Indianness” and popular campaign slogan: “Ram rajya a woman’s is her husband. ki aure chale, Bhajpa ke sath chale” “otherness” – in Amar Chitra Katha Amar Chitra Katha also upholds (Let’s go towards Rama Rajya/ Let’s comic books. Rama and Sita as ideal gender move with the BJP).2 V.D. Savarkar, Amar Chitra Katha picturises the constructs in the Rama issue (no. 504): Ramayana epic. Three of the first ten the originator of the modern forms of The Ramayanas of Kamban, issues published by Amar Chitra Hindu nationalism which eventually Tulsidas or Tunchan are all but Katha were stories from the led to the Hindutva ideology as Ramayana tradition, and numerous practiced by the Parivar, claimed that variations on the same theme. This Ramayana-related issues are regularly India was founded by Rama, and lofty theme, embodies in the reprinted, including1 : Rama (no. 504), celebrated the Ramayana as a source characters of Rama and Sita, the 5 Ancestors of Rama (no. 572), of national integration.3 highest ideals of 'man' and 'woman.' Hanuman to the Rescue (no. 254), I suggest that there are three major In characterising these figures as Ravana Humbled (no. 305), Hanuman reasons for the crucial role this epic ideal, Amar Chitra Katha has (no. 502), The Sons of Rama (no. 503), has played in Hindutva ideology: its overlooked the various arguments The Lord of Lanka (no. 541), Vali (no. depiction of ideal gender roles, its leveled against Rama and Sita as ideal 32 MANUSHI role models. One such argument holds transform society in favor of new and dvapara yugas,10 a time now that the epic as traditionally identities which are portrayed as in often cast as the golden age when interpreted, is a text of political accordance with supposedly dharma was said to have functioned domination. For example, E.V. traditional cultural values of this more properly than in the current era. Ramasami, an activist in Tamil Nadu, mythical golden age. The tradition In this golden age men and women contested the notion of Rama as the they promote is actually based understood their appropriate roles ideal man and instead upheld Ravana primarily on the colonial definition of and, like Rama and Sita, acted as the true hero. Ramasami advocated Hindu tradition, which privileged a accordingly. Hindutva ideologists this reversal because he sought to small subset of carefully chosen use the Ramayana to critique modern social values and gen1der awaken South Indians to their Brahmanic texts that would aid them oppression by North Indians and their constructions by reinscribing their in dominating the society, and a limited true identity as Dravidians.6 own version of the more “authentic” set of practices that were supposedly values of the Hindu golden age, the Women have also frequently derived from these texts.9 contested the idea that Rama and Sita utopian past uncorrupted by other are ideal characters. Narayana Rao The Ramayana epic revolves cultures. One could argue that the and Nabaneeta Dev Sen have around the notion of dharma (duty, comic book Ramayana functions discussed how women’s oral righteousness). It is set in the treta similarly in illustrating proper Ramayana traditions, in Andhra Pradesh and Bangladesh respectively, counter the public Ramayanas’ conception of Rama as ideal by questioning his morality, wisdom, honesty, and integrity.7 Women have also criticized the male nationalists’ notion of Sita as the feminine ideal. One early criticism occurred in the Hindi journal Stree Darpan (1918), in which Uma Nehru criticised male nationalists for upholding Sita as the ideal woman and the preserver of Hindu tradition while men were simultaneously aping Western ways.8 By overlooking these and other criticisms, Amar Chitra Katha joins the dominant discourse which reinforces gender roles that contribute to the maintenance of the type of social hierarchy that is crucial to the legitimisation of the Hindutva ideologists’ political position. This also contributes to the exclusion of women as active citizens, because when nationalist ideologies are founded on gender difference, women too often become symbolic figures and are denied agency. The second reason for the use of the Ramayana as a tool of the Sangh Parivar is related to its setting in the ideal past, depicted as the golden age of Hinduism. Their ideology is a modern construction that seeks to No. 122 33 behavioral guidelines for men and Parishad (VHP), arguing that the literary telling of the life of Rama, and women and in simultaneously centrality given to their version of it is this version that is widely critiquing modern social norms. Rama worship ruptures traditional regarded as the “original” Ramayana. The third reason for the devotional patterns in Bengal and Amar Chitra Katha has produced Ramayana’s importance to Hindutva other non-Hindi belt regions and issues that are based on other tellings ideology is that it is a text that legitimises the operations of an of the Ramayana, but their pre- demonizes the “other.” In this epic authoritarian political formation that planned bound miniseries version is Rama’s wife Sita is abducted by defines not only Muslims, but also entitled Valmiki’s Ramayana (no. Ravana, king of the rakshasas, which Hindus solely in its own terms.12 10001). The introduction to this issue triggers the battle between Rama and Rakshasas, both male and female, states the relation and import of the rakshasas. An oft-debated as variously interpreted “others” who Valmiki’s work to the other question is what historical group of lie outside the Sanskrit fold are a Ramayanas: people the rakshasas represent. threat to the existing social order. In “Valmiki’s Ramayana is believed Sheldon Pollock suggests that a the Amar Chitra Katha Ramayana, to be the first poetic work written in concrete identification of the this threat is made apparent through Sanskrit; it is, therefore, referred to as rakshasas is irrelevant; what is the visual depiction of the rakshasas, the Adikavya. Valmiki’s monumental relevant is that the identity of this which may be seen as indicative of work influenced other great poems on “other” group is flexible and can be racial differences. In the Ramayana- the same theme. Among these are the altered depending on the times.11 This related comic issues all humans are Hindi, Tamil and Bengali versions of flexibility of the identity of the “other,” fair-skinned, except for blue-skinned, the Ramayana written by Tulsidas in I believe, is one reason why the divine Rama. All men are handsome the North; Kamban in the South; and Ramayana has been employed again and well muscled; all women are fair- Krittivasa in the East.”13 and again as a vehicle for the skinned, voluptuous, and have The reason for the exalted status demonization and domination of other flowing hair. Even Hanuman and other given to the Valmiki Ramayana by the groups on the basis of historical shifts animal allies of Rama are human-like. publishers of Amar Chitra Katha is in political structures. Contemporary The rakshasas are depicted that they too think of it as the Hindutva nationalism has frequently differently: They are dark-skinned, “original” version of the Ramayana. interpreted the rakshasas as stocky, and grotesque. The men have That the original source of this representing the Muslim community, potbellies and pointy moustaches.

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