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Saving Sita: the Ramayana and Gender Narratives in Postcolonial

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Saving Sita: the Ramayana and Gender Narratives in Postcolonial Saving Sita: The Ramayana and Gender Narratives in Postcolonial Hindu Nationalism Suvarna Variyar A thesis submitted in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Masters of Philosophy School of Studies in Religion University of Sydney 2018 Statement of Originality: This is to certify that to the best of my knowledge, the content of this thesis is my own work. This thesis has not been submitted for any degree or other purposes. I certify that the intellectual content of this thesis is the product of my own work and that all the assistance received in preparing this thesis and sources have been acknowledged. Suvarna Variyar Abstract This thesis examines the role that the Hindu epic the Ramayana plays in shaping the relationship between conservative Hindu Indian nationalism and gender in post-colonial India. It demonstrates how the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has manipulated understandings of the Ramayana to best serve its political aims since 1980, and to further an inherently sexist and discriminatory agenda. Chapter One outlines the role of exclusionary narrative in constructing national identity along conservative and fundamentalist lines. Drawing from this, it goes on to present and expand upon the key research questions explored in this thesis. Chapter Two examines the various relevant fields of literature which are involved in this discussion. Chapter Three outlines the key methodological fields from which this thesis draws as an intersectional study. Chapter Four analyses Valmiki’s Ramayana in considering its depiction of gender constructs, and touches upon the significance of the 1987 Ramayan television serial by Ramanand Sagar. Chapter Five explores the role of gender in the Indian Independence movement and the development of Hindu nationalism. It then examines postcolonial secularism and nationalism, and women’s rights till the BJP’s founding in 1980. Chapter Six focuses on India, the rise of the BJP, and the shape of women’s issues over the past forty years. Chapter Seven focuses upon three separate endeavours to approach the Ramayana from unconventional perspectives, one of which is my experience writing and directing the 2014 production Fire to Earth with the UNSW Indian Society. Chapter Eight outlines the BJP’s attempts to moderate in recent years, summarises the current state of women’s affairs, and concludes by highlighting some of the lacunae that still need to be addressed in this field. This thesis situates itself at the intersection of Ramayana studies, Indian women’s studies, and postcolonial Indian politics. It takes a multifaceted methodological approach to answering its principal questions, incorporating narrative studies, politics, gender studies, and literature studies. I acknowledge the numerous perspectives in these fields and synthesise their various contributions to illustrate the deep-rooted connections between Hindu nationalism, gender exclusion and oppression, and the Ramayana. Contents 1. Introduction ........................................................................................................ 1 1.1. Intolerance in Nation Building and Narrative Interpretation: Gender, the Ramayana, and the Exclusionary .................................................................. 1 1.2. Background .................................................................................................... 3 1.3. Academic significance ................................................................................... 7 1.4. Key Terms and abbreviations ........................................................................ 9 1.5. Text edition .................................................................................................. 15 1.6. Structure ...................................................................................................... 16 2. Literature Review ............................................................................................. 18 2.1. Introduction and gaps in existing literature ................................................. 18 2.2. Narrative, language, and national-building ................................................. 19 2.3. The construction of Hinduism in India ........................................................ 23 2.4. Hindu nationalism ....................................................................................... 26 2.5. Indian secularism ......................................................................................... 30 2.6. The Ramayana ............................................................................................. 33 2.7. Gender in India ............................................................................................ 37 2.8. Hindu nationalism, the BJP and the Ramayana from the 1980s ................. 44 2.9. Conclusion ................................................................................................... 47 3. Methodological approach ................................................................................. 50 3.1. Summary of relevant methodological areas ................................................ 50 3.2. Narrative and community-building ............................................................. 50 3.3. Framing Indian secularism in opposition to Hindu nationalism ................. 55 3.4. Reading the Ramayana ................................................................................ 58 3.5. Gender ......................................................................................................... 60 3.6. Conclusion ................................................................................................... 63 4. A background and analysis of the Ramayana tradition ................................ 65 4.1. Introduction ................................................................................................. 65 4.2. The Ramayana: History and narrative ......................................................... 67 4.3. Power, Politics, and Patriarchy .................................................................... 72 4.4. Talking women and speaking men: silencing the active female voice........ 77 4.5. Bringing Sita and Rama to Television ......................................................... 84 4.6. Conclusion ................................................................................................... 87 5. Independence, Nationalism, and Women in the 20th century ....................... 89 5.1. Summary of argument ................................................................................. 89 5.2. Twentieth century pre-Independence .......................................................... 90 5.3. Gender and identity in the independence movement .................................. 93 5.4. Forging a Secular Nation ............................................................................. 97 5.5. The Hindutva movement and the origins of the BJP ................................. 100 5.6. Women in post-independence Indian politics and legislation ................... 104 5.7. Women in the ‘secular’ Hindu state .......................................................... 107 5.7.1. Archaic practices................................................................................... 107 5.7.2. Marriage and inheritance ..................................................................... 109 5.7.3. The value of a woman............................................................................ 112 5.8. Conclusion ................................................................................................. 113 6. Four Decades of the BJP: the Ramayana, Violence, Nationalism and Gender since 1980 ........................................................................................... 116 6.1. Introduction ............................................................................................... 116 6.2. Political and Cultural expansion of the BJP since 1985 ............................ 120 6.2.1. Shift in polls and voting patterns .......................................................... 120 6.2.2. Cultural shifts ........................................................................................ 121 6.3. The ‘Ayodhya Incident’: The Destruction of the Babri Masjid in 1992 ... 124 6.4. Godhra, Gujarat 2002 ................................................................................ 128 6.5. Women and men in the BJP – propaganda, policy, and social discourse.. 132 6.6. Education, employment, and social life in BJP India ................................ 139 6.7. Conclusion ................................................................................................. 148 7. Fighting and rewriting tradition in society and culture .............................. 151 7.1. Introduction and context ............................................................................ 151 7.2. Sita Sings the Blues (Nina Paley, 2008) .................................................... 154 7.3. “Three Hundred Ramayanas: Five Examples and Three Thoughts on Translation” (A.K. Ramanujan, 1987) ...................................................... 157 7.4. Fire to Earth: A Story of Rama and Sita (Suvarna Variyar, 2014) ........... 162 7.5. Conclusion ................................................................................................. 169 8. Conclusion ....................................................................................................... 171 8.1. Summation of Argument ..........................................................................
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