January 2022 As the first light of dawn caressed the tranquil waters of the Ajay River, the world seemed to hold its breath in anticipation. A soft, golden glow spread across the horizon, gently nudging awake the sleepy village of Jaydev Kenduli (hereafter, Jaydev) nestled on its banks. The sky, a canvas of soft pastels, … Continue reading ‘It does not matter who you are. Everyone here is the same’: Fieldnotes from the Jaydev Kenduli Baul Mela—Debayan Das
Category: Society
Neoliberalism and the Politics of Mental Health—Yanis Iqbal
Illustration courtesy: Olivia Newland In its neoliberal phase, capitalism no longer exists as a historical force with capabilities to play a progressive role. On the contrary, it keeps nakedly “asserting its power all the way to the historical limit of its viability”, as Istvan Meszaros puts it. Breaching these limits, neoliberalism, becomes a ‘counter-historical’ force. … Continue reading Neoliberalism and the Politics of Mental Health—Yanis Iqbal
Ahmed Chhafa’s ‘The Village Poor and Rural Class-Struggle’—Translated by Pritha Banerjee
Ahmed Chhafa [Sofa] (1943-2001) with his teacher, Professor Abdur Razzaq (left). Let us take a village. Assume that it contains a total population of 2000, which includes its men and women, infants and adolescents, young and the old. It is known to all that none of us lives alone in this society. Kith and kin, … Continue reading Ahmed Chhafa’s ‘The Village Poor and Rural Class-Struggle’—Translated by Pritha Banerjee
Lokayata 