Caricaturing culture in India : cartoons and history in the modern world

370 Pages·2014·5.307 MB·English

by  Khanduri, Ritu Gairola

Caricaturing Culture in India
Caricaturing Culturein India isa highlyoriginal history ofpolitical car-
toonsinIndia.Drawingontheanalysisofnewspapercartoonssincethe
1870s,archivalresearch,andinterviewswithprominentIndiancartoon-
ists,thisambitiousstudycombineshistoricalnarrativewithethnographic
testimony to give a pioneering account of the role that cartoons have
playedovertimeinpoliticalcommunication,publicdiscourse,andthe
refractionofidealscentraltothecreationoftheIndianpostcolonialstate.
Maintaining thatcartoonsaremorethan illustrative representations of
news,RituGairolaKhanduriuncoversthetruepotentialofcartoonsas
avisualmediumwherememoriesjostle,historyisimagined,andlinesof
empathyaredemarcated.Placingtheargumentwithinawidercontext,
this thought-provoking book highlights the history and power of print
media indebates on free speechand democratic processes around the
world,revealingwhycartoonsstillmattertoday.
RituGairolaKhanduriisaculturalanthropologistandhistorianofIndia.
SheisAssistantProfessorofCulturalAnthropologyattheUniversityof
TexasatArlington.Inadditiontoherresearchonmedia,sheiscurrently
completingabookonGandhiandmaterialculture.

Caricaturing Culture in India
Cartoons and History in the
Modern World
Ritu Gairola Khanduri
UniversityPrintingHouse,CambridgeCB28BS,UnitedKingdom
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©RituGairolaKhanduri2014
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Firstpublished2014
PrintedintheUnitedKingdombyClays,StIvesplc
AcatalogrecordforthispublicationisavailablefromtheBritishLibrary
LibraryofCongressCataloginginPublicationdata
Khanduri,RituGairola,1969–
CaricaturingcultureinIndia:cartoonsandhistoryinthemodernworld/Ritu
GairolaKhanduri.
pages cm
ISBN978-1-107-04332-9(hardback)
1. Indicwitandhumor,Pictorial. 2. India–Politics
andgovernment–Caricaturesandcartoons. 3. India–Sociallife
andcustoms–Caricaturesandcartoons. I. Title.
NC1710.K46 2014
954.03–dc23
2014001811
ISBN978-1-107-04332-9Hardback
CambridgeUniversityPresshasnoresponsibilityforthepersistenceoraccuracyof
URLsforexternalorthird-partyinternetwebsitesreferredtointhispublication,
anddoesnotguaranteethatanycontentonsuchwebsitesis,orwillremain,
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Contents
Listofillustrations pagevii
Acknowledgments x
Introduction:theempireofcartoons 1
PartI Colonialtimes 43
1 UpstartPunches:Whyisimpertinencealways
inthevernacular? 45
2 Gandhiandthesatyagrahaofcartoons:cultivating
ataste 68
3 “DearShankar...yourridiculeshouldneverbite” 93
PartII Nationaltimes 119
4 Becomingacartoonist:Mr.KuttyandBireshwarji 121
5 VirtualgurusandtheIndianpsyche:R.K.Laxman 146
6 Uncommonwomenandcommonmen:pocket
cartoonsand“situatedknowledges” 174
7 Artoonsandourtoons:theproseofanIndianart 208
PartIII Globaltimes 239
8 Craftypetitionsandstreethumor 241
9 “Allourgodsandgoddessesarecartoons” 271
v
vi Contents
Conclusions:timelessmythsandtimelyknowledge 294
Notestothetext 306
Bibliography 327
Index 348
Illustrations
I.1 JohnTenniel,“TheBritishLion’sVengeanceonthe
BengalTiger.”Punch.1857. page5
I.2 M.Verma,“UncleTom-TouchyandUntouchable
Child.”SvangChitravali:CaricatureAlbum.n.d.
(c.1929).Kanpur. 9
I.3 M.Verma.SvangChitravali.(c.1929).Kanpur. 11
I.4 “Pativrata(thechastewife)and‘theselfishmale
community.’”VyangChitravali.1930.Calcutta. 32
I.5 “BroaderMeaningsofDemocracy.”National
CouncilofEducationalResearchandTraining
(NCERT).2012(2006).NewDelhi. 36
1.1 CartoonistChandiLahiriathishomeinKolkata.
2003. 46
1.2 PopularHindicartoonistKaakSahibathomein
Ghaziabad.2003. 47
1.3 “HappyNewYear.”HindiPunch.1904.Bombay. 53
2.1 “TheMarchofCivilisation.”IndianOpinion.1910.
Natal,SouthAfrica. 78
2.2 “TheSteam-RollerandtheElephant.”Indian
Opinion.1908.Natal,SouthAfrica. 81
2.3 ArthurWynellLloyd’scartoonontheBritishEmpire
andIndiansinSouthAfrica.Punch.1913. 84
2.4 LeonardRaven-Hill,“TheElusiveMahatma.”Punch.
1931. 89
2.5 ShivNarayanMishra,“IndiaandBureaucracy.”
SvangChitravali:CaricatureAlbum.n.d.(c.1929).
Kanpur. 91
3.1 FamousIndianpoliticalcartoonistK.ShankarPillai,
workinginhisstudio,December31,1942. 95
3.2 Shankar,“Lords’Prayer.”HindustanTimes.1937.
NewDelhi. 96
vii
viii Listofillustrations
3.3 Shankar,“ReaptheWhirlwind!”Shankar’sWeekly.
1948.NewDelhi. 99
3.4 Shankar,“BridgingtheGulf.”Shankar’sWeekly.
1949.NewDelhi. 100
3.5 Shankar,“IWillBeDrowned.”HindustanTimes.
1939.NewDelhi. 103
3.6 Ahmed,“Separation,NotLiquidation.”Hindustan
Times.1947.NewDelhi. 109
3.7 JawaharlalNehrureceivingsomebooksandbadges
fromtheDeanofMoscowUniversity,USSR.1955.
CartoonistShankarwithPrimeMinisterNehru’sentourage
andNehru’sdaughter,IndiraGandhi,inMoscow. 112
4.1 CartoonistKuttyathishome.2002.Madison,
Wisconsin.USA. 125
4.2 Kutty,“ChineseDentist.”AnandaBazarPatrika.
1966.Calcutta. 131
4.3 CartoonistBireshwar.2004.Lucknow. 136
4.4 Bireshwar,“BlackUnrest.”NationalHerald.n.d.
(c.1978–9).Lucknow. 141
5.1 R.K.LaxmanwithhisMagsaysaymedalathishome
inPune,2009. 147
5.2 SaiBabacaricaturefortheYuvaMahotsavcartoon
competition,2003.NewDelhi. 152
5.3 Marmikcover.1986. 155
5.4 CartoonistSanjayMistrycaricaturingSoniaGandhi.
2009.Mumbai. 158
5.5 R.K.Laxman,“OntheRunway.”TimesofIndia.
1960.Mumbai. 166
5.6 Laxman’spocketcartoononthebeautyofstatistics.
TimesofIndia.n.d.Mumbai. 170
6.1 CartoonistMayaKamath.n.d. 175
6.2 ManjulaPadmanabhan,Suki.n.d.MumbaiandNew
Delhi. 183
6.3 MitaRoy,“Sahiba.”n.d.NewDelhi. 184
6.4 MayaKamath,“Now,Now,YouCan’tExpectMeto
QuarrelwithDaddy.”AsianAge.1999.NewDelhi. 187
6.5 MayaKamath.DeccanHerald.1993.Bangalore. 188
6.6 Life-sizecastofLaxman’sCommonMansculpture
onMumbai’sWorliseafront.2009.Mumbai. 191
6.7 Kutty,“SmilePlease.”AnandaBazarPatrika.1965.
Calcutta. 193