Anxieties of Memory: Caste and the Ashraafiya in Iqbaal Majeed’s Namak
https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.11409221
Abstract:
The primary thrust of the argument would be to exhibit how discourses about the tawaif shifted substantially owing to oriental sociology in British India, and how these changes are echoed in the treatment meted out to Zohra by her son and grandson. Any historical associations with the tawaif have been shown to be shunned and obliterated from public memory by Zohra’s son and grandson, in order to forge and consolidate an ashraaf position for themselves and their family in Independent India, through the creation of a narrative identity. The paper will also explore the issue of caste among Indian Muslims through a discussion on the history of construction of ashraaf-ajlaaf-arzaal divide among South Asian Muslims. Thus, through an exploration of the intersection between caste, sexuality, and narrative identity, we shall reach a comprehensive understanding of how Majeed’s book allows readers to probe the long reaching implications of discursive formulations of colonial sexualities that were inherently biased and lopsided in their approach to Indian cultural and social milieu.
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