Browse by author: Ragini Tharoor Srinivasan
Rogue Hanuman on the Metro
Before the call center brought Indian voices into American homes; before high-profile, cross-over films like Lagaan (2001) and Slumdog Millionaire (2008); before the Pulitzer- and Booker- winning literary fictions of Jhumpa Lahiri, Arundhati Roy, Kiran Desai, and Aravind Adiga; before the Smithsonian Institution’s “Sculpture of South Asia” (1992), “Arts of the Indian Subcontinent” (2004) and “Beyond Bollywood: Indian Americans Shape the Nation” (2014) exhibits, the “Festival of India” (1985-1986) staged the introduction of India and Indians to audiences in the United States. From our contemporary vantage, the festival was risky and messy, but we have much to learn from its exhibition strategies and political aspirations.