Reimagine Marriage: Partnership, Companionship and Family with Samar Halarnkar, Jacinta Kerketta and Prof. Suparna Bhaskaran
In this episode, we speak to three guests who have written about marriage in very different ways, and develop a more capacious view of what marriages are and can be. In the first segment, the three exchange reflections about the institution of marriage and its significance in cultural, political and social dynamics as well as debates. In the next segment, Jacinta elaborates on the unconventional partnership systems in Adivasi communities, the glorification of such practices by non-adivasi scholars, and goes on to focus on the subjugated role of women under the patriarchal notion of marriage. Similarly, Suparna expands on this subjugation and push for heteronormativity, and their ties with economic growth. She also comments on the debates around same-sex marriage and argues against viewing sexuality as mere luxury. Samar elaborates on the historical roots of the marriage system in India, and shares his experience with India Love Project and ground reporting to comment on the on-going legal debates around inter-community marriages in India. The episode ends with a treat for the listeners, as the three guests list books and cinema where they have encountered positive portrayals of relationships.
Guests:
We have with us acclaimed poet, journalist and writer Jacinta Kerketta who writes in Hindi. In her poems, Jacinta highlights the injustices and struggles of the Adivasi communities in India. She is the author of two bi-lingual (Hindi and English) full-length collections of poems – Angor and Jadon Ki Zameen. Our next guest is journalist Samar Halarnkar, who was previously the editor of Indiaspend.org, a data-driven non-profit. He is the co-founder of India Love Project, an Instagram page aimed at documenting inter-community marriages. Our other guest is Prof. Suparna Bhaskaran, an anthropologist and Assistant Professor of Women's studies. She has essays published in Queering India and Our Feet Walk in the Sky, and is the author of Made in India: Decolonizations, Queer Sexualities, Trans/National Projects.
This podcast episode was moderated by Yoshita Srivastava, literature collective associate at Belongg.
This is the fifth of the six episodes of the Reimaginings series. Keep a lookout for more episodes in the coming months.