Comics More Than Words: The Indian Emergency

Comics: The Indian Emergency
Date
Wed December 1st 2021, 12:00 - 1:00pm
Location
Zoom

Speakers: Preeti Singh (PhD Candidate in English, Ohio State University)

"Cartooning Crisis: Graphic Narratives from the Indian National Emergency (1975-1977)"

This talk will focus on political cartoons and graphic narratives about the national Emergency declared by Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi on June 25, 1975 until its withdrawal on March 21, 1977. With examples drawn from the 1970s and contemporary India, we will reflect on how graphic narratives mediate the experience and memories of postcolonial crises.

We will situate the genre of the political cartoon and long-form graphic narratives within the broader context of visual dissent during the Emergency to reflect on the following questions:  What is the relationship between comics and democracy? In what ways do political cartoons on the Emergency counter the censoring regimes of the time? Do they challenge popular discourses on the Emergency or reify them?