ASTRAGALO, 27 (2020) Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike - CC BY-NC-SA ARTICLES, ISSN 2469-0503

THE MICROPOLITICS OF AN ‘ADDA’ FOR :

Pratishtha Singh Member of the Advisory council of Guarini, Department of Political Science for John Cabot University in Rome, and All India coordinator for the Congress Party https://dx.doi.org/10.12795/ astragalo.2020.i27.07

It was in 2004 that the concise Oxford dictio- capture its true essence. Nevertheless, with nary decided to include the word ‘adda’ among the changing socio-professional landscape of the pages of its 11th edition. It was another urban India, some women can often be spotted step for the ex-Colonial masters to appropriate invading all-male addas. This welcome change another Indian concept as their own. Adda has has gone somewhat unnoticed in the routine been associated with the Bengali identity for din of the metropolis. the longest time but the word never remained limited to the area of Bengal. It is presented The traditional“adda ” is essentially an as a noun meaning an “Informal conversation open space for strengthening the community. among a group of people”1. In Bengal, adda is Unlike parks and open-air theatres, the adda used more as a verb than as a noun. The Bengali does not offer any real cultural activity, even tradition of adda is an especially enriching ex- though it is a platform for vibrant social and perience since the conversations revolve around political exchanges. It is just a space which is intellectually and culturally stimulating topics. not pre-assigned this name but acquires it over But anyone in India who has witnessed a fully a period of time with related usage. Even in ur- functional adda will tell you that this definition ban centers where malls, pubs and restaurants is insufficient. Addas have been an almost ex- dominate the social scene, addas crop up in na- clusively male space and therefore, any defini- rrow lanes as a spot for social interaction. tion of the word without this detail won’t ever Another traditional virtue of an adda worth the name is that the discussions are 1 See https://www.lexico.com/definition/adda.

- 97 - THE MICROPOLITICS OF AN ‘ADDA’ FOR WOMEN IN INDIA: SHAHEEN BAGH either cultural, political, philosophical or in- I have always felt that addas are a great tellectual, basically fields where, it’s believed, place for understanding any community and women don’t have much to contribute. In ur- their issues. While traveling for social and ban parts of the country, women have mostly political pursuits, I have often found myself been limited to marking their presence in in rural areas invading male addas and trying restaurants, clubs, bars, discotheques, etc. An to become invisible, so that I can assist to an adda-like space for women is not exactly com- unhindered, colloquial, almost-offensive adda- monplace. The situation for rural women is conversation. But alas, I have mostly failed be- even more confined, especially from the pers- cause men change their mannerisms, tone and pective of adda participation. It’s not that ru- topics when being observed by an educated ral women don’t socialize, gossip or exchange urban woman. Consequently, addas became a ideas, it’s just that they don’t have any specific source of much intrigue and interest to me. space to do it. This might be the reason why their discussions while talking at the village Over the last two decades or so, a rich li- well are mostly about domestic issues, or at terature has emerged about the politics of public best about films. While women converse at space. This includes Kurt Iveson’s (2007, 2013, their undeclared addas, they usually have a job 2016 (together with Setha Low), etc.) work on at hand which needs attention. For example, I the appropriation of public spaces by active/ have seen women talking freely while getting activist citizens involved in ‘DIY urbanism, Je- water and other supplies for the household, or ffrey Hou’s (2010) work on guerrilla urbanism, while queueing up at the doctor’s clinic, or stan- James Holston’s (2008) research on practices ding at the threshold of their homes with one of everyday resistance and insurgent citizen- eye on the kitchen stove in the verandah. In all ship and Engin F. Isin’s (2008) and Douglas S. these situations, women don’t have the men- Massey and Mary J. Fischer’s (2000) interven- tal ease to linger around and digress beyond tions on claiming rights to the city. All of these a point. The discussions are usually short and works by urban theorists explore not just the ‘socially acceptable’. There are two reasons for idea of public space but also which effects does this: first, women usually talk to other women the sharing of such a space lead to on a socie- who are either their own relatives or very well tal level. The most interesting aspect of public known to their families. This creates a situation space studies, in my opinion, is that there is a where women don’t feel at ease about sharing very strong political undercurrent to them. The any great secrets or making any great query. activism which Ivenson talks about in his work In fact, this is one of the crucial points which and most of his interviews is especially relevant makes these women spaces non adda-like. The if undertaken by women in a country like India. second reason is that women have a lot more to get done in a day than men in the rural sphere. Women have increasingly been commit- Their endlessly long days have a million chores ted to reclaiming their own public spaces. This to be completed and hence they lack leisure. is mostly done to improve awareness for issues of women’s safety and, sometimes, also as an

- 98 - Pratishtha Singh act of defiance against the patriarchy which philosophical and just as casually from the tells them to remain behind closed doors, es- religious to the extraterrestrial. It is the non- pecially after dark. These are bold attempts conformed spirit of an adda which makes it to hold not just the government accountable the perfect avenue of endless possibilities. for their well-being but also the men at large. But if one were to analyze them further, it is Scholars Mokarram Abbas and Bas remarkable to note that the mere presence of a van Huer (2013) have talked at length about few women on the street, without any chanting everyday appropriations of public space. Be- of slogans or, for that matter, call for attention, yond the revolutionary images of people clai- could bring about such a conspicuous change… ming their rights during mass demonstrations or at least, act as the first step towards a bigger at Tahrir Square, Maidan, Gezi Park, and an change. Political expression in such cases is li- occupied Wall Street, we are interested in mited to the physical presence of women in a everyday appropriations of public space by mar- public space at a time which is not deemed ‘fit’ ginalized groups and the ways in which they for them. As revolutionary as these attempts claim spaces of intimacy, privacy and freedom, can be, they simply use public spaces that du- while seeking to shape the city to their needs. ring the day function as normal urban-scape. The spatiality of intimacy versus exposure, of In other words, there is no specific adda which visibility versus invisibility, and of recognition is used for the purpose. The being together of versus misrecognition, puts an emphasis on the those women at that time of the day itself be- different ways in which spaces are experienced comes an adda of sorts. by individuals and groups. This can be exten- ded to women in public spaces since most of In most of the metropolis across the the addas for women have to struggle with the world, there are some designated areas for dichotomies they mention. protests and public demonstrations. These are places either officially assigned by the Ivanson (2007) has famously claimed state for such purposes or just taken-over by that it is not easy to distinguish the private dissenting crowds for venting their emotions. from the public. This has been made evident by Either way, I don’t see these areas as addas. the recent events in leading up to a great For example, Jantar Mantar in Delhi is one public movement. With a population of 1.3 bi- such site of protest. Now, although there are llion people, India cannot claim to provide a men and women of all age and provenance spacious haven to its inhabitants. Space is such who fill up the space, they are not there for a a critical issue for us Indians that most times, casual, informal chat. They are there for the we completely ignore it, as we do with many explicit function of staging a protest against other critical issues I daresay. But last year, be- some occurrence. The beauty of a true adda fore Corona made its presence felt, a series of is that people get together for an informal events in Delhi made giant leaps for the cause chat which can float away in all directions. of female addas in the country. It can swing easily from the mundane to the

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Since December 2019, in Delhi, a silent etc. who do not fit the agenda of the NDA go- protest against government’s non-secular po- vernment of creating a Hindu India. There were licy gave rise to an impromptu adda for women a few newspapers talking about the CAA-NRC in Shaheen Bagh area. This movement slowly issue but it was largely seen by the majority became a huge phenomenon which would have Hindu population as a ‘great initiative’ to get still been going had it not been doused by rid of infiltrators from , a hogwash the pandemic. though spread by the government to get away The unique case of Shaheen Bagh with their plan of skimming the population. must be studied not just for understanding of people’s movements can make a huge influence, Men and women in Jamia Nagar area of but also for how women without any political Delhi were hearing about this CAA-NRC debate training or inclination can transform a bust- and they became restless. They knew that it may ling part of a metropolis into an efficient adda. not affect them directly but many others living in far flung areas of the country would find it As economic, gender and communal in- very difficult to prove their identity by means of equality increased in India after the right wing specific documents (as the Act stipulates). The NDA government came to power in 2014, it was women decided to sit outside their homes, by becoming clear that a people’s movement was the side of a big road and began talking to each on its way. More so because Delhi had witnes- other about it. It was started by ordinary Mus- sed another watershed moment when the Aam lim women but soon, it was joined by people Aadmi Party came to power in Delhi as a result from a cross-section of religions, gender, caste of a long hauled people’s movement. and social status. As their protest against the CAA and the proposed NRC grew louder, similar The NDA government’s tactics of se- movements, led by women and students, sprung gregation and control reached an apex with up in other parts of the country. From Park the passing of the Citizen’s Amendment Act Circus in to Lucknow’s Ghantaghar to (CAA) which dictates the creation of a Natio- Bengaluru’s Bilal Bagh, relatively less-known nal Citizen’s Register (NRC). Those who are neighborhoods in Indian cities began to fill up risking to be worst affected by such a register with people from all walks of life. are millions of people who don’t possess all their formal documents. While in the West, The beauty of Shaheen Bagh was that it it is unthinkable of a person with a national was the quintessential adda because you could security number and all documents of birth, spot women talking about their day, their chil- education and profession, India is a completely dren, life in general with the same enthusiasm, different reality. The country has seen enough as they did about the CAA-NRC. It was getting turmoil for there to be many people left without cold and the women just refused to go back to their documents of identity. This is especially their homes. They would walk up to their ho- worrisome for the minority communities like mes for fixing a meal for their family or for Muslims, Christians and tribal communities using the lavatory, but they never really left the

- 100 - Pratishtha Singh adda. They decided to bring their blankets and of the protest but they were not the pivot of the pillows on the streets and just made the adda space. The place hinged on the women and their their home. Visitors would frequent the place, sit-in. It was remarkable to see Muslim women, talk to them, hear from them, laugh, cry, offer who usually follow the custom of purdah, were help, offer food, clothing etc., but these women, out in the open battling cheeringly for the they behaved as if they had forgotten what rights of the whole country. normal life was. The adda became their life. I spoke to many women in Shaheen Bagh and The stories of fortitude and valor at they said they liked this idea of being close to Shaheen Bagh have often been told and will one another, not only was it great to talk freely continue to be told for a long time to come but about things, it also gave them a sense of secu- the stories of lighthearted conversations and rity. They were not alone anymore. And every togetherness also need to be highlighted. These time I went to Shaheen Bagh, I felt this sense of women had no political goal, even though they safety was not just limited to the CAA-NRC. The were encouraged by support from Left wing women felt safe because they were talking about activists and politicians. These normal women, themselves and their idea of India, they felt safe with basic understanding of issues and a hu- in their self-realization through that historical man desire to save their fellow citizens from protest. For weeks, speeches were made, poems the wrath of CAA-NRC, managed to bring the recited, songs sung. The Preamble to the Consti- issue to the fore even on an international level. tution was read aloud in chorus. Political parties Their protest was not just relentless, it was crea- made attempts in between to oust the protes- tive and had almost a pedagogic element to it, ters; a man called Kapil Gurjar fired bullets even for their own selves (along with the rest at the gathering in Delhi; communal violence of the citizenry which had to take note of these broke out. But the protesters stuck to the rule- ‘half-educated’ women struggling for human book definition of non-violent agitation. rights). The protest was not an overt attempt to reclaim a space or an idea but their wish to Until 15 December, when women came just stick together made them reclaim the very out of their homes for the protest, not many soul of democracy in India. were aware of the existence of a neighborhood Early visits to the protest made it clear like Shaheen Bagh. But within days, the name to me that the government would do all in its came to signify much more than a geographi- power to trivialize and infantilize it, after all, cal site: Shaheen Bagh became a trope for the it was just a group of women sitting together, democratic ideals of the Indian nation. It was smiling, chatting, eating, singing lullabies to invoked to remember the constitutional princi- their children, singing and, most importantly, ples that bind the citizenry together: fraternity, refusing to quit. In my view, it is this very na- compassion, kindness, unity. Although for me, ture of Shaheen Bagh protest which made it it became that one space which I had been loo- effective and special. king for –a women-centric adda. It was not that the men were not included. They too were a part

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I find myself in complete agreement ded because this specific is a case of a women’s with Himada and Manning (2009) in this re- adda based on micropolitics of a certain kind. gard –‘Politics’ with a capital ‘P’ is much less the They were not in it for any political gain and ‘real deal’ than it presents itself. While ‘Politics’ hence, their actions (at least to begin with) were operates in the sphere of representation, whe- far from political. re precomposed bodies are already circulating, “the micropolitical is that which subverts this But the government did not let it go so tendency in the political to present itself as easily. The police was regularly sent to the site already formed” (p. 5). The fact which must be to instill fear in the hearts of the protesters. In acknowledged and underlined is that Shaheen fact, the entire state apparatus and the corpo- Bagh’s women are a part of this micropolitical rate media was being used to attack peaceful cosmos. This shift from the ‘Political’ to the protestors, their cause, action and ideology. micropolitical can be considered an important But the women stayed. These women were well achievement of the current times. This cause aware of dangers of being arrested, of facing has also been heavily aided by the social media lathis, tear gas shells, pellets or guns, of being which have acted as invaluable promoters of hit by goons, of being labelled as anti-national, such movements. In fact, the presence of chil- terrorists and jihadis but they relentlessly pro- dren at the protest site brought the micropoli- tested facing chilly winters and rains of Delhi. tics of Shaheen Bagh to another level. Children They dealt bravely with the violent tactics and not only dissipated any extremism from their threats of forceful eviction deployed by police protest, they gave the female adda validity and and state to remove protestors as they claimed fodder. While yawning away in the middle of to have block the roads. chilly-rainy winter nights, women would ex- change thoughts about their children’s futu- It took a global pandemic and a court or- res. Thus, I would like to argue that such addas, der to displace the women of Shaheen Bagh but especially those involving women can become they have come out stronger and more firm in great vectors to the concept of micropolitics their resolve to oppose CAA-NRC. and liberate protests from their sharply poli- It can be said that Shaheen Bagh pro- tical edge. This method of disobeying norms test will go down herstory as a landmark move by women in a patriarchal set-up can appeal to by women for citizenship rights in India. And people across political beliefs. It can also be said its greatest strength will always reside in it that viewing the protests are people who ‘poli- being a leaderless, fearless micropolitical adda ticized’ the CAA-NRC issue is entirely unfoun- for women.

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