Articles by Sudhanva Deshpande

Art Attacks: Violence and Offence-Taking in India by Malvika Maheshwari, New Delhi: Oxford University Press, 2018; pp x+372, ₹964, hardcover. 

A poet of protest like no one else, Dhasal's verses and political activism were a ferocious challenge to all canons of literature, language, politics, even religion. While his political and personal life was often controversial, to say the least, his poems will keep unsettling us for a long time to come.

Was Rammanohar Lohia a Hindi chauvinist after all? Sudhanva Deshpande's response to Yogendra Yadav goes in search of Lohia's writings on language and finds them supporting Hindi parochialism. Yogendra Yadav responds that opposition to English was the core of Lohia's stand on language and he asked questions which may still be relevant.

Copying, imitation and reproducibility are central to the fine arts and therefore the concept of copyright sits uneasy. Experience suggests that copyright is designed to protect corporate profits rather than artists' creativity. It is imperative for artists and theatre persons to work out alternatives to copyright which recognise the creator's work without obstructing wider dissemination and adaption.

Habib Tanvir and his band of rural actors have been under vicious attack from the Sangh parivar for the last fortnight or so. The main thrust of the two plays which have been attacked is social amity and harmony. Habib Tanvir has vowed to carry on with the performance of the plays. For any artist this would be a remarkable act of courage. For a man of 80, it is nothing less than heroic.