Nowhere else in the world did Sub-Saharan Africans wield power over non-Africans for as long as they did on the Indian subcontinent. Migrant Africans rose to prominence in India as rulers, nobles, statesmen, soldiers, and merchants, or who came as servants, slaves, eunuchs, or concubines in the courts of Indian monarchs. They were known as Habshis and Siddis. Karnataka has the largest concentration of Indian Siddis, but African elites were found elsewhere in the Deccan, Gujarat, Hyderabad, Lucknow, Delhi and Bengal. ‘African Elites in India’ edited by Kenneth Robbins and John McLeod released by Mapin Publishing, is a profound study of the Siddi community, its origins and migration to the Indian subcontinent and its historical legacy. Here, Kenneth Robbins shares some of his reflections on the book.
Over a period of years, I became aware of the prominent role that Africans [known as Siddis or Habshis] played in Indian history, politics, and the arts. More and more evidence emerged as I studied items in my own collections and research archives, travelled in India and identified many Africans in Deccani, Mughal, and Rajput paintings in museums and private collections.
The Mughal Emperors were once the most powerful rulers in the entire subcontinent, but they were unable to defeat an African strongman, Malik Ambar of Ahmadnagar, who excelled in guerilla warfare. In his memoirs for the years 1612-1621, the Mughal Emperor Jahangir repeatedly bad mouths “the crafty” Malik Ambar as “black-faced” and “ill starred”, and calls Malik Ambar’s army “the rebels of black-fortune”. Jahangir’s obsession with this hated opponent is immortalised in a painting of the Emperor Jahangir standing on a globe and achieving his never-achieved fantasy of shooting an arrow through Malik Ambar’s head. The painting is graced with vituperative inscriptions condemning the African as a “night-coloured usurper” and the “owl which fled the light”. Naturally, this was not how Malik Ambar saw himself; an inscription that he erected at Antur credits him with resounding titles like “Benefactor of Humanity, Defender of the Devoted Servant of the Lord of Earth and Sea, and Pillar of the Kingdom”.
Esta historia es de la edición Volume 19 No.1, 2016, MIGRATION de International Gallerie.
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Esta historia es de la edición Volume 19 No.1, 2016, MIGRATION de International Gallerie.
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Perils Of Nuclear Energy
Addressing negative consequences of nuclear tests for the environment and human health in the areas around these sites, pointing the finger at the Soviet and current governments, “This is Silence” highlights one of the main points that the artist seeks to stress: the absence of public discussion about critical issues.
Greta Thunberg. It Is Time To Rebel!
Student, activist and initiater of ”The Greta Effect”
THEATRE UNDER PRESSURE.
The facts [some of it] about Climate Change are out there. With a few articles and videos, anyone can know that Climate Change is serious and needs immediate attention. Yet, we continue living our lives at the cost of the planet. With so much awareness, why are we not moving towards climate action and justice? How can our collective consciousness be pricked? Can we use the theatre to tell the story of the tree that I was looking at? Can we understand climate change from the aerial view of the parrot? Can we reflect on how much plastic waste we generate every day? With these questions, we set out to explore how theatre can talk about climate change.
WHERE TIGERS ARE HAPPY!
Initiated by the Sanctuary Nature Foundation, ‘Kids for Tigers’ is an inspiring project that educates schoolchildren about the welfare of wild animals. Spearheading this program, is Govardhan Meena, a sensitive village boy who grew up to be a saviour of tigers, of forest land and their inhabitants. Born in 1980 to a Meena tribal family living on the outskirts of Ranthambhore, Rajasthan, the unassuming young man is a virtual Pied Piper for children learning about the environment. He works 24x7 with a single-mindedness, building bridges between people and parks. No wonder, the awards and certificates in his prized possession, are more than deserving for a man whose life is dedicated to helping village children seed bonds with nature’s wilderness.
DANCE LIKE A MAN!
Dancer, choreographer and actor, Revanta Sarabhai, the third generation of a famed family of classical Indian dance, believes the arts have a way of reaching out to people in an entirely different way than scientific data or information does; that performance tends to have a greater emotional and empathetic impact on people’s senses rather than only their rational brain. Believing that the arts have a tremendous role to play in championing the cause of climate change [or any major challenge human beings face globally], he urges artists to harness the power of the arts to create change. With this conviction, Sarabhai shares with us his conceptual performance questioning climate change.
DANCE OF THE ACTION BRIGADE
When a dancer is concerned about climate change issues there is a strong potential to nudge the emotions of viewers in a way that can impact an audience sometimes more quickly than an entire thesis on the subject.
CELEBRATING THE WILDERNESS
“Humanity can no longer stand by in silence while our wildlife and nature are being used, abused, and exploited.
THEATRE SALUTES THE ENVIRONMENT
Theatres evolve to reconnect us to each other and the environment
FROM TRASH TO TREASURE
Veena Sahajwalla is a whirlwind of ideas and energy, determined to tackle the mountain of waste, especially -waste generated by Australians every year. Recycling waste into ‘green steel’ and ‘green ceramics’ is the result of years of experimentation at UNSW [University Of New South Wales, Sydney]. Director of the UNSW Sydney SMaRT Centre and a Eureka Prize winner [considered the pinnacle of scientific achievement in ustralia], Professor Sahajwalla was also awarded the PLuS Alliance prize for innovation in 2017.
BITTU SAHGALSEEKING SANCTUARY
In kinship with wildlife, with nature, with the air we breathe Bittu Sahgal shares his lifetime’s camaraderie with the environment
