Culture

Explore the rich culture of South Asia with in-depth articles, stories, and analysis on art, heritage, and traditions at Himal Southasian

Pollution and purity

As millions bathe in the sacred rivers they themselves have polluted during the Kumbh Mela, where does the schism between Hindu notions of nature and actual nature conservation lie?

By Sarandha

/ 15 Mar 2013

Nationality, identity, and art

In conversation with Afghan-American artist Aman Mojadidi.

By Francesca Recchia

/ 14 Mar 2013

‘Perhaps some day I might end up as a poet after all’

The daughter of Faiz Ahmed Faiz, the Subcontinent's iconic bard, discovers letters exchanged by her mother and father.

By Salima Hashmi

/ 7 Mar 2013

Conditioned by war

In Sri Lanka, post-war trauma and a militarised peace have created a violent society, with children the worst affected.

By Tisaranee Gunasekara

/ 13 Feb 2013

Representations and juxtapositions

The war in Afghanistan as depicted in Germany.

By Gabriele Köhler

/ 6 Feb 2013

Gujarat after two years of ‘normalcy’

A 2004 critique of the Gujarat carnage remains disturbingly relevant to the reality of the state today

By Satish Deshpande

/ 15 Jan 2013

Delhi – Yangon – Delhi

A trip across borders geographical, political and cultural unravels the complex histories between India, Myanmar and their peoples

By Nandita Haksar

/ 15 Jan 2013

The Mongolian fringe

The exodus of Northeasterners from a number of major Indian cities underlines a reality that the Indian national elites would rather not talk about

By Sanjib Baruah

/ 14 Jan 2013

India (for Safdar Hashmi)

Mimicking Allen Ginsberg’s ‘America’, a poet’s scathing critique of the Indian nationalist project

By Amitava Kumar

/ 14 Jan 2013

Bridesourcing

One man's mission to save the Havyaka Brahmins from extinction.

By Deepa Bhasthi

/ 24 Dec 2012

Lost rulers of the Malabar Coast

Tales of love and loss from the heyday of Portuguese rule in Kochi.

By N P Chekkutty

/ 10 Dec 2012

Recovering Sylhet

The loss and recovery of the history of Sylhet, and a close look at Partition historiography in contemporary India.

By Binayak Dutta

/ 22 Nov 2012