Episode Details

Dr Madhavi Menon comes on the podcast to discuss how the Anglo-American conception of identity does not apply to South Asia.

On this deep dive podcast, we discuss how British prudish laws went against how Indians saw identity, gender and sexual fluidity, we discuss gender fluidity in Sufi culture, specifically Sufi poetry, we also get into discussions of consent, the agent of consent, gender performativity, desire, judgment, and our love for the Masala culture of Bollywood.  Madhavi Menon is Professor of English at Ashoka University. She earned her Bachelors and Masters in English from St. Stephen’s College, Delhi University, where she stood first in College in her BA, and was a University gold-medalist in her M.A.

She completed her PhD from Tufts University. Prior to joining Ashoka, she taught at Ithaca College and American University.

Her current book project is titled The Law of Desire (forthcoming with Speaking Tiger, 2021).

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Chapters: 0:00 Introduction

1:30 Fluidity of Identity

8:50 Gender Fluidity vs Sexuality Fluidity

12:30 The Bathroom debate and the state categorizing you

20:30 Fluidity in Sufi Culture

28:30 Section 377: Inclusion, Exclusion and Fighting for the narrative

34:00 Identity Politics: Cis and Trans terminology

44:50 Victimhood and racial identities

53:45 Consent

1:00:30 The Age of Consent

1:10:00 Performing Gender in South Asia on stage

1:14:00 Obviously I will bring up Psychedelics

1:21:00 Desire and Judgment: Pedophilia and Incest

1:29:00 The Hadiya case: Love Jihad and infantilizing women

1:31:00 The British categorization of 'Hindus' and 'Muslims'

1:36:30 Misuse of our history for their ideology and weaponizing victimhood

1:41:20 The masala culture of Bollywood

1:51:30 Pratap's resignation

1:54:30 Violence against women in South Asia