FINAL MODERN INDIA
Bhadralok
Bengali elite; respectable people-merchants, clerks, government employees, rentiers, and upper caste who prospered under the British.
Can the subaltern speak?
Discussion of whether subalterns actually have a voice or if it is only the historian putting their voice over top of the subaltern
Shah Bano Case
In 1985, the Supreme Court ruled in favor of Shah Bano, a Muslim woman, against her husband, who was backed by the re- ligious community. Shah Bano's husband had used the Muslim concept of triple talak divorce in order to abandon her. When the court ruled that he must pay her recompense, the Mus- lim community felt that it was under attack. Caused controversy over whether muslims should follow Islamic Law or the law of the land.
Postnational cuisine
There is no true "national" cuisine for any country; seeks to give women back their agency in creating cuisine because they would experiment and then recipes were passed down
Liberalization (1990s)
India opened up to outside industries, foreign investment, lower tariff barriers, etc
Chipko
India's "tree-hugger" movement that protects forests through reforestation and by supporting limited timber production.
IITs
Indian Institutes of Technology; Nehru's vision for India with technology and science; after graduation, most students leave India
Veerapan
Indian bandit, poacher, and smuggler who carried out his activities in the forests of the southern Indian states of Karnataka, Kerala, and Tamil Nadu
Bollywood
Indian version of Hollywood (film industry), centered in Mumbai (formerly Bombay)
Rajiv Gandhi
Indira's son (nehru's grandson) and was prime minister of india 1985-1989. Came into power after mother was assassinated. Had some reform of eonomy and gov't but also faced rebellion and was assassinated by Tamil Tigers by a suicide bomber.
Indira Gandhi
daughter of Jawaharlal Nehru; was PM of India and got rid of much of the President's power
bikas/vikas
expanding, progress, or development
Amitabh Bachchan
famous Bollywood actor known as one of the greatest and most influential actors in the history of Indian cinema
Aryabhatta
famous mathematician-astronomer from India's classical age; wrote Aryabhatiya in 499 CE
Lata Mangeshkar
famous playback singer for many Bollywood movies; "Nightingale of India" over 25,000 recordings
Manmohan Singh
first Sikh to be a PM and first PM re-elected after a 5 year term since Nehru
Punnapara-Vayalar Uprising (1948)
first armed uprising by the Communist Party in 1948
Khadi and charkha
handspun fabric, charkha is a spinning wheel Gandhi used to make thread
Ranajit Guha
influential Subaltern Studies historian
Subaltern Studies
looks at a range of subjects dealing with history of the underprivileged and marginalized
Hadi
low caste group
Dalit
low caste groups; typically prefer Buddhism
Green Revolution
movement in the 1960s-1980s; the goal was to revolutionize agriculture and make India self-sufficient for food
Tali
necklace given at Christian Indian wedding
Khilafat
pan-Islamist, political protest campaign launched by Muslims of British India to influence the British government not to abolish the Ottoman Caliphate. The Ottoman Empire was the symbolic center of the Muslim world
Planning Commission
part of the Indian government that creates 5 year plans
Narmada Bachao Andolan (NBA)
political movement of people being against the creation of dams along the Narmada River
Toba Tek Singh
short story written by Saadat Hasan Manto. Focuses on patients in an insane asylum during the time of Partition. One man keeps asking where Toba Tek Singh is at and no one is able to answer him. During Partition, the patients are moved from Pakistan to India and Toba Tek Singh lays down between the two countries in the no-man's land.
Pokhran
site where India tested nuclear bombs
Baba Amte
social activist known for empowering people with leprosy
Turmeric (haldi)
spice used in Indian cooking
Ambassador car
the car created and produced by Hindustan Motors that had relatively no updates for decades because they were the only car manufacturers in India
Indian Administrative Service (IAS)
the most elite and prestigious all-India civil service, the IAS staffs virtually all the most senior positions in state and central governments, as well as many state enterprises. It is recruited mainly through a national and very competitive annual examination.
The Mahatma
the people's name for Gandhi; means a person regarded with reverence or loving respect; a holy person or sage.
Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha
the two legislative houses in the Indian government; Rajya Sabha- Council of States Lok Sabha- House of the people
L.B.Shastri/M. Desai/N. Rao/A.B.Vajpayee
various PM's of India
Bhagalpur (1989)
violence and riots between Hindus and Muslims in Bhagalpur
Nehruvian socialism
wanted a mixed economy with government control over many enterprises but still some private enterprise as well
Laurie Baker
was a British-born Indian architect, renowned for his initiatives in cost-effective energy-efficient architecture and designs that maximized space, ventilation and light and maintained an uncluttered yet striking aesthetic sensibility. Influenced by Mahatma Gandhi and his own experiences in the remote Himalayas, he promoted the revival of regional building practices and use of local materials; and combined this with a design philosophy that emphasized a responsible and prudent use of resources and energy.
Zulfikr Ali Bhutto
was a President and Prime Minister of Pakistan and created the Pakistan People's Party
Pandita Ramabai
was a social reformer and fought for the rights of women; was a delegate to the Congress of 1889
Begum Rokeya Sakhawat Hossain
wrote a book called Sultana's Dream where the roles of men and women were switched
A.P.J. Abdul Kalam Azad
scientist who became the 11th President of India
Knanaya Christians
"Southist" group of the St. Thomas Christians
M. A. Jinnah
Founded the Muslim League, worked for more Muslim autonomy in British India (Pakistan Resolution), and was also known as, Quaid-i-Azam or Great Leader, would ultimately become the sole spokesman for the Muslim community in India.
M. F. Husain
Indian painter who helped found the Bombay Progressive Artists' Group
Operation Bluestar (1984)
Military operation to remove militant religious leader Jarnail Singh Bhindranwale and his armed followers from the buildings of the Harmandir Sahib complex in Amritsar, Punjab.
The Emergency (1975)
Period of time when PM Indira Gandhi declared India was in a state of Emergency and suspended many civil liberties and censored the press.
Muhammad Iqbal
became the national poet of Pakistan after Partition. Also considered one of the most important figures in Urdu literature.
B.R. Ambedkar
championed the cause of the Dalits and also supported women and labor
SAARC (South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation)
was created in 1985 and it promotes economic and regional integration and created the South Asian Free Trade Area
Arundhati Roy
writer & social activist, supporter of Kashmir's independence
Salman Rushdie
wrote Midnight's Children which talks about India and Pakistan
Roop Kanwar
1987, widow burning victim. glorified culturally to the horror of feminists. shrine erected where she burned. catapulted the issue of sati to public debate over whether sati is murder or suicide, agent of her own actions vs. culturally compelled.
Panchsheel
Agreement between China and India stating: 1-Mutual respect for each other's territorial integrity and sovereignty. 2-Mutual non-aggression. 3-Mutual non-interference in each other's internal affairs. 4-Equality and cooperation for mutual benefit. 5-Peaceful co-existence.
Amartya Sen
Economist who has made contributions to welfare economics, social choice theory, economic and social justice, and economic theories of famines
Diwali
Hindu festival of lights
Shiv Sena
Hindu right party centered in Maharashtra, founded by Bal Thackeray.
Question of Kashmir
Kashmir tried to remain neutral in the fight between which territories went to Pakistan and which territories went to India. They ended up being a highly debated territory anyways when Pakistan had an unofficial military force come in that tried to take over and India sent a force in to retaliate
Jayaprakash Narayan
Leader of movement who called for "total revolution" against Indira Gandhi, including her resignation after 1971 election corruption.
Dowry Deaths in India
Murders or suicides of brides (often by burning) when a dispute arises over dowry.
Pervez Musharraf
Pakistani general; he overthrew the elected government of Pakistan in 1999 and became president from 2001-2008
Naxalite
Person associated with the Communist Party of India; originally began in West Bengal.
Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
Political party currently in power in India under PM Modi. Right-wing nationalist tendencies. A conservative Hindu-based political party in India which often has been reluctant to compromise with Muslim and Sikh interests. This has slowed efforts by some to seek common approaches to development challenges.
Hindutva
Right-wing Hindu nationalist politics
The Partition
Separation of India and Pakistan into two separate nations
Tamil Question
Sri Lanka (ethnic group of Tamils in Sri Lanka - liberation Tigers/Tamil Tigers) led to decades of violence (there are no Tamil Tigers left)
Babri Masjid and Ram Janmabhoomi
Was a Muslim place of worship that many Hindus claimed was also the birthplace of Ram; Hindus also claimed that the Mughals destroyed a Hindu temple that had been there so in 1992 they demolished the Babri Masjid which led to much Muslim-Hindu conflict
Mahashweta Devi
Wrote short story "The Witch Hunt." She worked for the rights and empowerment of tribal people.
Bapsi Sidhwa
a Pakistani novelist who resides in the U.S.
Non-Alignment Movement
a group of states that are not formally aligned with or against any major power bloc; created by Jawaharlal Nehru and Yugoslav president Josip Broz Tito
Sangh Parivar
a right-wing Hindu who created the RSS (a volunteer service corp.), VHP (world Hindu association), and Bajrang Dal (a militant organization)
Vindaloo
a type of curry popular in Goa; has Portuguese influences
Mandal Commission
also known as the Socially and Educationally Backward Classes Commission (SEBC) and was created by PM Desai to identify the socially or educationally backward classes of India
Mithai
an Indian dessert, sweets
Thali
an Indian meal made up of a selection of various dishes which are served on a platter
Santhal
an ethnic group and the largest indigenous tribe in Jharkhand in terms of population