Mythologist | Author | Speaker | Illustrator
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Articles
Power Politics
Electioneering is hotting up in several states and as Tamil Nadu politics reaches an anti-climax with the Supreme Court’s conviction of Sasikala in the disproportionate assets case, Devdutt draws parallels from the Mahabharata’s Udyoga Parva…
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Revenge as nobility
Before surrendering to the court, the general secretary of the AIADMK party, V K Sasikala visited the memorial of the former Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu and struck her palm three times on Jayalalitha’s grave, an act of slamming that observers interpreted as a ritual act, based on ancient Tamil lore of kings, indicating a…
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Articles
If not Valentine, then Kama?
Surely, a more powerful ‘nationalist’ act would have been to reclaim or reframe Valentine’s Day and call it Kama’s day…
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Question for the Alt-Fact world: Why can’t truth be plural?
When truth is singular, it becomes a territory and thus, a battlefield…
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Articles
What exactly is the Manusmriti?
Many assume Mansumriti to be the law book of Hindus. It is not…
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Articles
How to spot a lesbian in sacred Indian art
Is it our discomfort with homosexuality that makes us believe that it cannot be part of the sacred?…
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Do Hindus lose their caste when they travel abroad?
If you value caste, then this thought can be depressing, even terrifying. If you are indifferent, it will not matter…
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Dayanand & Vivekanand
Both had many critics — some sincere who disagreed with their interpretations; others simply envious of their success, or plain cynics…
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Articles
A Harappan Parvati?
She could very well be the bangle-seller’s daughter. Or a local princess. Or maybe an exasperated girl-child, because she did not like the food prepared. We really don’t know…
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What do Manusmriti and Dharmashastra have to say about homosexuality?
Tales, of God prohibiting certain sexual acts but allowing others, are not found in Hindu mythology…
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Use for Rudolf’s nose
This is the story of the person who does not fit in society’s clearly defined roles: the outsider, the queer. How is that misfit included in society, made useful, rendered valid?…
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Articles
A Lotus for a Temple
Built in 1986, an architectural marvel, this iconic shrine in Delhi attracts millions of tourists every year…
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Articles
Was Harappan civilisation Vedic, or Hindu?
This is an extremely tough question to answer as it depends on what you consider Harappan, Hindu and Vedic…
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Chausath Yogini Temple
Yoginis in a Circle : Our Parliament House, completed in 1927, has been patterned on the lines of the circular Chausath Yogini Temple, dating back to circa 1323AD…
