Memories of Marxism in a Post-Colonial City: Calcutta c. 1971 - 1993

8/12/2019 Memories of Marxism in a Post-Colonial City: Calcutta c. 1971 - 1993

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Memories of Marxism in a Post-colonial city: Calcutta, c. 1971-1993

Debraj Battacarya

!nstitute of "ocial "ciences

A fortnight after the defeat of Left Front in 2011 Assembly election in the Indian states of West

Bengal and Kerala, one of Indias foremost historians, Ramchandra !ha, "rote an article in a

maga#ine called The Caravan$ %e started the essay by saying& '(he recent defeat of the

)omm!nist *arty of India +ar-ist. in Kerala and West Bengal / "here it r!led for

!ninterr!ted years / calls for a detached, disassionate analysis of the artys lace in the

history of modern India$1 What str!c3 me "as !has !se of the "ords 'detached and

'disassionate and his desire to ascertain )*I4s 'lace in the history of modern India$

Reading !has sentence, ironically eno!gh, made it clear to me "hat I "as str!ggling to do

since 2005406 follo"ing !nfort!nate incidents at 7ing!r and 8andigram$ It "as aro!nd this time

that I started to as3 myself the 9!estion, '%o" did I become interested in ar-ism and "hat do I

still belie:e in; As3ing s!ch a 9!estion in a mood of introsection "as art of a general mood of

desair "ith the state of )*I4, and by e-tension ar-ism in West Bengal!ne 2011,htt&


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#arly $ays

I "as born in a ri:ate 8!rsing %ome in a lace called C!md!m in 8orth )alc!tta in the year

1@51, the year made famo!s by rinal 7en in his film Kolkata Ekattor2 +)alc!tta 51.$ (he

re:io!s fe" years had seen the most :iolent er!tion of comm!nist mo:ement in the history of

West Bengal / the 8a-alite o:ement, or the Nokshal Andolon$ By 1@51 ho"e:er the

mo:ement "as grad!ally beginning to s!bside and the state go:ernment !nder 7iddhartha 7an3ar

Ray "as gaining control o:er it$ (he rocess of gaining control "as anything b!t democratic and

h!ndreds of st!dents and follo"ers of the mo:ement "ere tort!red and 3illed in the name of la"

and order$ (here "ere :iolent incidents of retaliation as "ell from the side of the 8a-alites and it

became 9!ite common to find someone in the neighbo!rhood to be missing or dead$ (o ma3e

matters more comlicated, the 're:ol!tionary and the 'criminal became intert"ined and "ho

"as getting 3illed for olitical reasons and "ho "as getting 3illed for ersonal reasons "as

sometimes diffic!lt to determine$

y arents still feel aranoid abo!t those days$ y mother recalls that e:ery e:ening she !sed to

remain tense as to "hether her h!sband "o!ld ret!rn home safely or not$ y arents also

remember dead bodies being carried a"ay in a cart in front of them$ While my arents still see

the 8a-alite re:olt as a eriod of t!rmoil that sho!ld not come bac3, there "ere other shades of

o!lar oinion in the "orld I ha:e inhabited$ (he first "as that the 8a-alites "ere heroic

re:ol!tionaries "ho belong to the same tradition as the re:ol!tionary e-tremists of the colonial

era$ (he second "as that they "ere good idealistic yo!th "ho someho" "ent the "rong "ay

esecially "hen they chose the ath of :iolent re:ol!tion$ (he third "as that they "ere nothing

b!t DdalalsE +agents. of )hina and it "as good that 7iddhartha 7an3ar Ray dealt "ith them

forcef!lly$ (here is no scientific oinion oll to determine the ercentages for each s!ch osition,

b!t all these oinions co!ld be fo!nd as I gre" ! and erhas e-ist e:en today$ What is e9!ally

tr!e is that more than the historical facts abo!t the mo:ement "hat contin!es to e-ist in o!lar

2rinal 7en, Calcutta 71, *rod!ced by C7 *ict!res, 1@52$

3For a history of the 8a-alite o:ement see 7!manta Baner=ee, In the Wake of Naxalbari: A istor! of

the Naxalite "ove#ent in India, 7!barnare3ha, Kol3ata, 1@60 India$s %i##erin& 'evolution: The

Naxalite ()risin&* Ged Boo3s,London, 1@6+ Rabindra Ray, The Naxalites and their Ideolo&!* H-ford

ni:ersity *ress, 8e" Celhi,1@66$


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imagination is a certain stereotye / that of a thin, bearded yo!th in !nclean ,an-abi "ho

smo3es hea:ily and has a-hola+side bag., so m!ch so that if a yo!ng man decides to ha:e a

beard, he may +half4serio!sly. face the 9!estion, DAre yo! becoming a 8a-alite;E

I ha:e no direct memory of 8a-alite mo:ement$ (he mo:ement entered my conscio!sness

thro!gh films li3e )alc!tta51 and 7amaresh a=!mdars no:el, Kalbela*"hich "as later made

into a film by o!tam hosh$J y earliest memory starts from a rented ho!se in C!md!m,

north Kol3ata, "here my arents !sed to li:e in a =oint4family "ith my grandfather and

grandmother, t"o a!nts and t"o !ncles$ (here "ere others in the family, li3e my -!atha +my

fathers elder brother. and some of my fathers co!sins "ho also li:ed nearby$ It "as a large

ho!se in comarison to todays flat bari+aartments in m!lti4storied b!ildings. standards "ith a

largish bac3yard$ I remember :ery little of that ho!se d!ring the eriod "hen "e !sed to stay

there as "e shifted to a rented ho!se in 7o!th )alc!tta "hen I "as abo!t fo!r years old$ >oint4

families "ere brea3ing do"n into n!clear ones and o!r family "as no e-cetion$ (his ho"e:er

did not mean that that the ties "ere comletely lost and "e :ery often "ent to :isit o!r

grandarents$ ("o :is!als of this eriod stand o!t in my mind$ (he first "as that of my

grandmother "ho "as an intensely religio!s erson and !sed to ha:e her o"n rayer room

.thakur &hor/and "e !sed to en=oy the rit!als "here :ario!s s!gar candies .batasha and nokul

dana/"ere dished o!t to !s$ (he food that "as ser:ed after the )u-asat home "as also 9!ite

delicio!s$ (he second memory is that of my grandfather "ho "as a criminal la"yer and !sed to

ha:e his office +!s!ally called 'chamber. in the o!ter art of the ho!se$ (his room !sed to be

o!lated in the e:ening by all sorts of eole, some "ere I g!ess his clients and some "ere

eole "ho !sed to =!st dro by$ I 3ne" that this "as the sace for gro"n ! eole +boroder

-aa!&a. and I "as not s!osed to go there$

I first got to see some 'red boo3s at my maternal grandmothers lace, "hich robably my !ncle

had collected and read at some oint as a yo!ng man$ 7ometimes there "ere disc!ssions of

contemorary olitics at home$ It is at this stage erhas that !nconscio!sly the first fe" "ords

and ideas of ar-ism began to enter me$ ar-ism "as less clearly !nderstood by me at this

oint as a olitical hilosohy and more as the ideology of the olitical arty that my family

47amaresh a=!mdar,Kalbela, Ananda *!blishers,Kol3ata, 1@6$

5o!tam hoshe,Kalbela, rod!ced by Coordarshan, 200@$


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s!orted$ It "as, I !nderstood the most rogressi:e olitical arty of the co!ntry and to be

rogressi:e meant s!orting )*I4$ By the time I "as abo!t eight or nine I came to !nderstand

that the hammer and sic3le icon meant a arty of ordinary fol3s +sadharon #anush. li3e !s and

not of the rich +borolok.$ )omlicated concets li3e 'dialectical materialism, 'class

conscio!sness etc$ "ere still 9!ite far a"ay$ I had also come to 3no" of the 8a-alites b!t "as

not clear as to "hat the differences bet"een )*I4 and 8a-alites "ere$

By 1@60 )old War had cret into my conscio!sness$ 8ot thro!gh a so!nd reading of

international relations b!t thro!gh the disco!rse s!rro!nding the Hlymic ames "hich "as

sched!led to be held in the 77R b!t 7A had boycotted the ames$ We had ta3en the side of

the 7o:iet nion +in Bengali "e referred to say 'Raa4she4aa.$ We li3ed to belie:e that 'bad

7A "as afraid of losing to 'good 77R$

In 1@61 my arents "ere relie:ed "hen I finally managed to ass the entrance e-am of a "ell4

3no"n school in 7o!th )alc!tta, *atha Bha:an$ (he school "as created by a gro! of

ed!cationists affiliated to the )omm!nist *arty of India +)*I. and "as hea:ily infl!enced by the

ed!cational hilosohy of Rabindranath (agore$ (he most imortant contrib!tion of my

school in my !bringing "as that it made me a bibliohile$ I en=oyed reading boo3s by the

masters of Bengali literat!re s!ch as (agore and also the literat!re meant for teenagers +kishore0

sahit!a. by a!thors s!ch as 7atya=it Ray, Bimal Kar, *remendra itra, 7!nil ang!ly, 7irsend!

!3hoadhaya, 7a3tiada Ra=g!r! and others$ (here "as also the slightly more ad!lt detecti:e

fiction of 7aradind! Bandyoadhaya$ (here "ere also the Bengali translations of >!les erne by

Adrish Bardhan$ 7lo"ly I also began to read boo3s in nglish starting "ith nid Blyton and then

mo:ing on 7herloc3 %olmes and thriller "riters s!ch as Alistair cLean$ nid Blyton "as the

first steing stone to"ards nglish lang!age confidence$

y lo:e for boo3s slo"ly too3 me to"ards becoming a member of the childrens library at the

Rama3rishna ission Instit!te of )!lt!re in olar3 area of 7o!th )alc!tta$ %ere, in the libraryof a religio!s instit!tion, I disco:ered some of the most "onderf!l boo3s on modern art,

scientific disco:eries, and ill!strated histories of modern !roe that heled to form a modernist

mythology inside me$ (his "as a mythology of rogress and science as oosed to religion and

blind faith$


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Reading boo3s "as only one art of the story$ I also de:eloed a fascination for b!ying boo3s

and "riting my name on them$ (he rincial st!mbling bloc3 in this !rs!it "as of co!rse

money$ I !sed to roam aro!nd the second4hand boo34stalls near olar3 "hich !sed to ha:e a

"ide range of second hand boo3s / from ncycloedias to ornograhic maga#ines$ While I did

b!y some imortant boo3s from these stalls s!ch as )arl 7agans Cos#osand maga#ines s!ch

as National eo&ra)hic, Ti#e and Neseek, nothing co!ld match the delight of holding a

brand ne" boo3 in ones hand$ (he e-change rate :is4M4:is British *o!nd and 7 Collar at that

oint in time "as not as harsh as it is today b!t still b!ying a boo3 !blished by *eng!in, for

e-amle, "as not easy$ Fort!nately there "as a m!ch more attracti:e alternati:e$ (he boo3 stall

that I :isited the most d!ring this time, on the other side of the second4hand stalls of olar3, a

small sho o"ned by a certain Tiari0-i, !sed to ha:e a series of bea!tif!lly rod!ced b!t

ine-ensi:e hard bo!nd boo3s coming from 77R$ (he "or3s of masters s!ch as (olstoy,

or3y, Costoye:s3y, ogol and others "ere a:ailable in richly ill!strated hardbo!nd editions

that e:en I co!ld b!y$ It "as imossible not to get attracted to these boo3s and of co!rse the

"riting "as mesmeri#ing to say the least$ (he lo:e of these R!ssian boo3s also too3 me, li3e

many others, to"ards boo3s by ar- and ngels, Lenin and 7talin$ (he big fat :ol!mes of

Ca)ital"ere still a little too intimidating to b!y +and read. b!t the boo3 that acted as the bridge

bet"een me and ar-ism "as a no:el named D%o" the 7teel "as (emeredE5by a relati:ely

!n3no"n "riter named 8i3olai Hstro:s3y$ (he boo3 "as immensely o!lar at that oint in

time in )alc!tta and also had a Bengali :ersion named DIsatE or 7teel$ Its rotagonist, a yo!ng

man named *a:el Korchagin, left a dee imression not only on me b!t on many yo!ng hearts of

my age$

%ei&bouroo$

Hne of the earliest memories I ha:e of the hammer and sic3le "as the roaganda camaign that"as carried o!t by )*I4 "or3ers on the neighbo!rhood "alls$ Beca!se of my interest in :is!al

6)arl 7agan, Cos#os, Random %o!se, 8e" Nor3, 1@6J$ (he interest in the boo3 "as generated by the

tele:ision serial by the same name "hich )arl 7agan !sed to anchor$

78i3olai Hstoro:s3y,o the %teel as Te#)ered: A Novel in To ,arts, *rogress *!blishers, osco",

1@5@$


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arts as a child I !sed to be fascinated by the ama#ing de-terity "ith "hich the arty "or3ers of

)*I4 !sed to "rite their election camaign slogans on the "alls$ (he "alls of the

neighbo!rhood "ere first ta3en o:er for arty slogans and graffiti before the elections$ Firstly,

one gro! of =!nior artists "o!ld come a "hite4"ash the ortion of the "all and "rite DAll "all

)*I4E "ith a f!t!re date attached to it, thereby imlying that the "all belonged to the arty till

then$ (hen the senior artists came and in bea!tif!l calligrahy "rote slogans s!ch as D#arkin

s#ra-!obad ni)at -aakE +Co"n "ith 7 imerialism. and 3ba#front sorkar ke bi)ul bhote! -o!i

korun4+ote Left Front to :ictory. and in:ariably there "as a hammer and sic3le ne-t to the

slogan ainted in bold$

(he foc!s of the arty acti:ities in o!r neighbo!rhood "as a sl!m called obardan&a 5asti6

When the dadasbelonging to the )ongress *arty !sed to go to the sl!ms they !sed to beha:e li3e

fe!dal lords and refer to the eole of the sl!ms in the derogatory D tuiE mode$ Left Front on the

other hand la!nched a serio!s sl!m imro:ement rogramme$ 8ot that the sl!m "as radically

transformed b!t electricity and drin3ing "ater "ere ens!red$ What "as most imortant "as that

the sl!m d"ellers fo!nd a ne" sense of dignity :is4M4:is the middle4class babus of the

neighbo!rhood, a henomenon that "as obser:ed by $K Lieten 6in r!ral West Bengal as "ell$ It

"as no more ossible for middle4class babusto tal3 to them in an !ndignified manner$ (his ne"

fo!nd sense of dignity "as e-ressed by the sl!m d"ellers in a rather inno:ati:e manner$(here

"ere three different )u-as in the neighbo!rhood / the %arasati ,u-a +mainly organi#ed by

teenagers., the ur&a ,u-a +organi#ed by the middle4class dominated )l!b of the

neighbo!rhood. and t"oKali ,u-as/ one by the middle4class yo!th and the other by the sl!m

d"ellers$ (he sl!m d"ellers ne:er articiated in the C!rga *!=a as it "as considered to be a

!=a of the bab!s$ Kali "as on the other hand closer to the s!baltern sensibility of the sl!m

d"ellers and also a symbol of o"er$ What "as most stri3ing ho"e:er "as the difference in the

m!sic that "as layed in the t"o !=as$ (he middle4class yo!ths "ere hea:ily into Bolly"ood

m!sic at that oint in time and m!sic of the latest bloc3b!ster from Bolly"ood !sed to be layedo!t lo!dly in their )andals$ Hn the other hand the sl!m d"ellers made it a oint to lay only

%h!a#asan&eet, a form of Bengali de:otional m!sic e-cl!si:ely for goddess Kali$ (here "as a

c!lt!ral statement in this olitics of the m!sic / the sl!m d"ellers tried to sho" that they "ere

more c!lt!red than the middle4class babus of the neighbo!rhood altho!gh they "ere oorer$

8 K Lieten, Continuit! and Chan&e in 'ural West 5en&al, 7age, 8e" Celhi, 1@@2$


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y arents ne:er became radical comm!nists b!t they ta!ght !s to treat "or3ers "ith resect$

(his got reflected in the "ay "e addressed domestic ser:ants and other members of the "or3ing

class "ho :isited o!r ho!sehold$ For e-amle, "e "o!ld call o!r ho!semaid "ho "as older than

!s by the same s!ffi- as "e "o!ld call any other female older than !s / %anaka0di$ 7imilarly an

electrician !sed to come e:ery no" and then for :ario!s 3ind of reair "or3 and he !sed to call

my father "ith the s!ffi- DdaE instead of the more traditional DbabooE and "e !sed to address

him as D7idhyes"ar4daE =!st as "e "o!ld call any elderly erson in o!r class$ (hey "ere not

made to feel that they belonged to lo"er class and caste in the lang!age in "hich they "ere

tal3ed to$ I "as in fact 9!ite fond of 7idhyes"ar4da "ho "as a reg!lar arty member$ It "as he

"ho introd!ced )*I4s arty ne"saer anashaktito my father "ho became a s!bscriber$ It

"as initially a fo!r4age "ee3ly and later on became a daily$ It "as arty olicy that e:ery

member, and 7idhys"ar4da "as one of them, had to sell a certain n!mber of aers e:ery month$

%ence he aroached my father$

In my mental register another name slo"ly came to be ingrained as I "as gro"ing ! / )art!

office$ (his "as technically sea3ing the office of the local committee of )*I4$ I "as not

directly associated "ith it b!t the arty office "as an imortant landmar3 by 1@646J$ 7o for

e-amle "hile gi:ing directions to someone it "as 9!ite common to say / D"al3 straight, yo!

"ill see the arty office and then$$$E ore than any indi:id!al, )*I4 "as reresented by the

arty office or L), i$e$, Local )ommittee$

It is some"hat embarrassing for me to admit it, b!t the tr!th needs to be told, at this stage I had

no 3no"ledge of "hat is land reform and "hat is)ancha!ati ra-/ the t"o illars of Left Fronts

s!ccess in West Bengal after coming to o"er$ H!r o"n e-erience as city d"ellers "as of

rolonged o"er4c!ts$ (he "ord Dgo:ernmentE someho" did not become a resectable one e:en

tho!gh a re:ol!tionary arty had come to o"er and "e stoically coed "ith o"er c!ts

+o!larly 3no"n as Dloadsheddin&E. almost e:ery e:ening, esecially d!ring the s!mmer

months$ Left Front contin!ed to be s!orted in o!r family more beca!se the arty "as art of

o!r identity rather than beca!se of its erformance in !rban areas$ (here "as also endemic

:iolence in o!r neighbo!rhood bet"een the criminal elements of the t"o sl!ms on t"o sides of

o!r neighbo!rhood "hich "as bro!ght !nder control after m!ch effort by the olice$ (he

e-erience of riding in a !blic b!s "as also not leas!rable to say the least$ (he b!ses tended to


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be o:ercro"ded and getting a toe hold on the stes of the b!s !sed to re9!ire lot of s3ill$ B!t for

teenagers li3e me getting into a Dr!nning b!sE i$e$ "hile the b!s "as on the mo:e "as a so!rce of

masc!line ride$

Altho!gh it is tr!e that the Left Front had sec!red a strong osition d!ring this time and I "as

coming !nder :ario!s tyes of ar-ist infl!ences it "o!ld be a mista3e not to note an imortant

social transformation that "as ta3ing lace in middle4class society d!ring the eighties$ Among

my schoolmates there "as already a trend that became more and more rono!nced as years "ent

by / not to be interested in olitics or olitical ideology at all and concentrate solely on st!dies

and career b!ilding$ (imes had changed from the late si-ties and early se:enties$ *erhas

beca!se of the e-erience of the br!tal reression of the 8a-alite mo:ement in "hich many

bright st!dents had lost their li:es, arents in middle4class Bengal "ere more and more

becoming conser:ati:e and rigidly !shing their children li3e race horses into a clearly defined

career ath / ass adhyami3 +class ten le:el. "ith highest ossible scores, =oin D7cienceE

stream in %igher 7econdary and then aear for D>ointE and DII(E i$e$ entrance le:el tests for

medical and engineering streams$ (hat defined s!ccess$ (o be interested in olitics "as an

e-cetion rather than the r!le$

Before roceeding f!rther, it may be !sef!l to !t the time I am tal3ing abo!t in terms of the

standard historical narrati:e of West Bengal$@(he eriod 1@5455 "as a eriod of olitical

t!rmoil, incl!ding the 8a-alite mo:ement and the Bangladesh liberation "ar "hich led to

massi:e infl!- of ref!gees from across the border$ R!ral o:erty "as :ery high$ West Bengal

@At resent there is no single :ol!me that traces the history of West Bengal d!ring the late se:enties and

early eighties altho!gh there are boo3s and articles on :ario!s iss!es related to the eriod$ A !sef!l

o:er:ie" is At!l Kohli,e#ocrac! and iscontent: India$s roin& Crisis of overnabilit!* )ambridge

ni:ersity *ress, )ambridge, 1@@0, chater 10$ 7ee also Ben Rogaly, Barbara %arriss4White and 7!gata

Bose, %onar 5an&la8: A&ricultural roth and A&rarian Chan&e in West 5en&al and 5an&ladesh* 7age,

8e" Celhi,1@@@ 7!nil 7eng!ta and %aris a#dar 'Agrarian *olitics and R!ral Ce:eloment in West

Bengal in >ean CrO#e and Amartya 7en +ed$. Indian evelo)#ent: %elected 'e&ional ,ers)ectives,

H-ford ni:ersity *ress, 8e" Celhi, 1@@ Ross allic3, evelo)#ent ,olicies of a Co##unist

overn#ent: West 5en&al %ince 1977, )ambridge ni:ersity *ress, )ambridge, 1@@ $K$ Lieten,

Continuit! and Chan&e in 'ural West 5en&al, 7age, 8e" Celhi, 1@@2, %arihar Bhattacharya,

"icro0foundations of 5en&al Co##unis#, A=anta, 8e" Celhi, 1@@6$


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"as ho"e:er still a leader in ind!strial rod!ction in India$ (he a#indarisystem "as abolished

b!t agric!lt!re and agrarian relations "ere yet to be moderni#ed$ )alc!tta "as the most

imortant city, indeed the only ma=or city of the state "hich had to coe "ith an enormo!s

o!lation ress!re beca!se of the infl!- of the ref!gees from across the border s!ch as my o"n

family$10In co!rse of the eighties r!ral West Bengal sa" a three4fold transformation for "hich a

certain amo!nt of credit goes to the Left Front$ (he first t"o "ere land reform and anchayati ra=

and the third "as the green re:ol!tion$ reen Re:ol!tion "as ho"e:er not necessarily the credit

of the Left Front$ (here is a debate among scholars as to "hether land reform and anchayati ra=

led to greater rod!cti:ity b!t there is no do!bt that beca!se of these three transformations !t

together r!ral o:erty "as 9!ite dramatically red!ced tho!gh not eliminated$ %o"e:er on the

other hand West Bengal began to "itness a steady decline in ind!strial rod!ction$ (he city "as

clearly less of a riority for the Left Front "hich e-lains "hy "e had to coe "ith o"er c!ts

and cro"ded b!ses$ *olitically this "as the time "hen )ongress began to decline and )*I4

grad!ally strengthened its arty machinery in both !rban and r!ral areas$ Bet"een 1@55 and

1@6J Left Front "as able to establish itself firmly as the hegemon in West Bengal$ (he 8a-alites

had become olitically insignificant and di:ided into inn!merable factions$ (he di:ision bet"een

the democratic left and the re:ol!tionary left, tho!gh, "as cast in stone and they sa" each other

as enemies rather than as comrades$

#n$ of te "o'iet Dream

In 1@6J "e came to 3no" that a certain i3hail orbache: has become the eneral 7ecretary of

the )omm!nist *arty of 7o:iet nion$ From :ario!s so!rces I co!ld gather that here "as a man

"ho "as trying to do something different, trying to rectify the ills of 7o:iet nion and "as

10y fathers family "as from (angail and my mothers family "as from 7ylhet$


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certainly as glamoro!s as Ronald Reagan, the 7 *resident$ (erms s!ch as &lastnost11 and

)erestroika12became familiar to !s$ (he festi:al of India in osco" and orbache:s :isit to

India "as "idely co:ered on tele:ision and "e admired the s!a:e charm of the man$ 7o:iet

leaders "ere !s!ally grim b!t here "as a man "ho "as smiling$ At the 1@66 Hlymics 7o:iet

nion "on 12 medals +JJ old, 1 7il:er and Bron#e., ast ermany "on 102 medals +5

old, J 7il:er, 0 Bron#e. and 7A came third "ith only @ medals + old, 1 7il:er, 25

Bron#e.$ (his "as again a th!ming :ictory for !s$ It may seem strange today b!t at that oint in

time the ne"s of the roblems of the 7 economy "as more in the air than something going

terribly "rong in the 7o:iet nion$ 7A "as ha:ing a trillion dollar national debt and a monthly

P1J billion deficit$ Hn 1@ Hctober 1@65, DBlac3 ondayE it "as called, 7 7toc3 ar3et

crashed$ Co" >ones "ent do"n by J06 oints in one day$ %alf a trillion 7 Collar "orth of

"ealth "as lost$ (his "as the biggest crisis of the 7 economy since 1@2@$ By the end of the

year more than 6,000 Americans "ere fo!nd to be s!ffering from a ne" inc!rable disease called

AIC7$ Hn >an!ary, 1@66 Ti#eaga#ine declared its an of the Near / i3hail orbache:$

(he same iss!e described 1@65 as Dthe ro!ghest yearE for 7A$

Amidst all these +"hat then loo3ed li3e. ositi:e asects and "ithin o:erall sense of ass!rance of

a modernist ar-ist ideology, there "ere a fe" minor crac3s in my belief system$ From 1@6465,

I had de:eloed a habit of b!ying old coies of Ti#e and Neseek from the second4hand

boo3shos in the olar3 area$ It may be noted here that there "as no internet at that oint of

time and there "as no scoe of "atching international tele:ision channels$ In this information

star:ed eriod the ne"s maga#ines "ere the only so!rce of serio!s =o!rnalistic reorts$ Hne of

the attractions "as of co!rse the brilliant hotograhs, b!t the detailed ne"s reorts on the

astern Bloc3 that "ere coming d!ring this time "ere raising a fe" do!bts$ I "as not able to

dismiss them as bo!rgeois roaganda$

11'lasnost, as is no" "idely 3no"n, literally means 'oenness$ It "as a olicy initiated by i3hail

orbache: that so!ght to increase transarency in go:ernance of 7o:iet nion$ 7ee 7tehen F )ohen and

Katrina anden %e!:el, ;oices of lasnost: Intervies ith orbachev


11/22

11

(hen came the first big shoc3$ I "as eighteen years old$ I "as shoc3ed by "hat haened at the

(iananmen 79!are in )hina$1y yo!ngest !ncle, "ho "as in his late t"enties, "as the only

member of my family "ho "as an acti:e member of )*I4 for some time$ In fact the coy of

)omm!nist anifesto that I inherited "as resented by him to my mother on her birthday in

1@5J$ Chhotka, as I !sed to call him +meaning the yo!ngest !ncle. "as 9!ite close to me$ We

shared a common anti4religio!s attit!de and a lo:e for literat!re$ I remember that after the

(iananmen assacre I had a h!ge 9!arrel "ith him$ %e agreed that the e:ent "as tragic b!t

contin!ed to arg!e that for the sa3e of the re:ol!tion this had to be done, there "as no other "ay$

I "as not con:inced b!t remained in a state of conf!sion$

A fe" months later came the second big shoc3 / the Berlin Wall fell in 1@6@$1It "as diffic!lt to

ma3e sense of "hat "as going on$ B!t the images of yo!ths brea3ing the "all and mo:ing from

ast to West ermany "ere diffic!lt to absorb$ (here "as also a feeling that more "as in store$

B!t "hat "as abo!t to haen "as beyond anybodys "ildest imagination$

It "ill be "rong, ho"e:er, to ro=ect the years 1@6641@@0 only as years of internal olitical

crisis$ By middle of 1@66 my adhyami3 e-amination +7tandard 10 le:el. "as o:er and I "as

no" relie:ed that I had the freedom to st!dy only the social science s!b=ects$ (hese years "ere

also the years of aroaching ad!lthood / b!n3ing school, going on :acation "ith friends, tasting

alcohol, and "atching mo:ies only meant for ad!lts$ In 9!otidian terms life in fact became better

as "e shifted to an !er middle class locality of 7o!th )alc!tta called olf reen as my father

got a 9!arter there$ (he horrible days of o"er c!ts "ere also a thing of the ast$ (he locality

"as lanned and !n!s!ally for )alc!tta, had considerable amo!nt of greenery$ y academic

sit!ation also loo3ed bright for the first time in life as I did s!rrisingly "ell in the %igher

7econdary -amination in 1@@0 and e:en managed to ass the entrance e-amination of

*residency )ollege, "hich "as at that oint in time one of the best !ndergrad!ate colleges in

India$ y arents at last had something to feel ro!d of me$ (h!s ironically "hile my ideological

"orld "as in t!rmoil the ractical side of life "as indeed loo3ing good$

13Li! Binyan, R!an ing and Q! ang, Tell the World: What ha))ened in China and Wh!$

Random %o!se, 8e" Nor3, 1@6@$

14 William F B!c3ley >r$, The =all of the 5erlin Wall*>ohn Wiley and 7ons, 8e" Nor3, 200$


12/22

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Wal3ing in thro!gh the gates of *residency )ollege as a st!dent "as not =!st a matter of entering

into one of the finest colleges in India b!t entering into a Bengali mythological sace that "ent

bac3 to the so called Bengal Renaissance$1JIt "as not simly a matter of imro:ing ones career

rosects b!t also finding ones foothold in the imaginary sace of modern Indias meritocratic

elite$ (heoretically at least, only merit "as imortant, anybody "ho co!ld ay R!ees 7e:enteen

er month co!ld st!dy, and the sace "as oen to men and "omen irresecti:e of caste or

religion$ (he reality "as some"hat different from the myth, altho!gh that did not red!ce the

significance of the instit!tion as a moderni#ing sace$ (he eology deartment, for e-amle,

"as oen only to male st!dents and the hostel for male st!dents "as oen only to %ind!s$

7imilarly "hile the )ollege "as oen to st!dents from all bac3gro!nds o!r school ed!cation

system "as s!ch that the o:er"helming ma=ority of the st!dents "ere from )alc!tta rather than

the districts, from ri:ate rather than go:ernment schools, o:er"helmingly !er caste %ind!

and hardly e:er belonging to the oorer sections of the society$ I can recall only a fe" !slim

st!dents and cannot recall a single st!dent from 7ched!led (ribe bac3gro!nd$ %a:ing said this, it

m!st be admitted that *residency )ollege reresented one of the finest e-amles in the co!ntry

of liberal h!manities tradition / "here debate "as enco!raged and tho!ghts "ere not censored

and both male and female st!dents en=oyed a sace of relati:e gender e9!ality$

Loo3ing bac3, I thin3 I "as fort!nate to get some o!tstanding teachers recisely at a oint of

time "hen I had reached a stage of intellect!al and emotional conf!sion$ Coing my

!ndergrad!ate co!rse in %istory "as of co!rse abo!t trying to get the co:eted Dfirst classE in

order to imro:e my career rosects, b!t it "as a lot more than that$ (he D%istoryE that "e read

in school "as rather boring and "as almost all abo!t rote learning rather than ind!lgence in

debates$ (han3s to my teachers, %istory no" became more abo!t interretations by :ario!s

%istorians rather than a bland chronology of facts$ While ar-ism o!tside the class room "as

facing its greatest challenge e:er, inside the class room it "as almost imossible to deny the

15Ca:id Kof,5ritish >rientalis# and the 5en&al 'enaissance: The !na#ics of Indian "oderni?ation,

ni:ersity of )alifornia *ress, Ber3ley, 1@@ 7!sobhan 7ar3ar, >n the 5en&al 'enaissance**ayr!s,

Kol3ata, 1@5@ 7ibnarayan Ray& 5en&al 'enaissance: The =irst ,hase, iner:a Associates, Kol3ata,

2000, 7!brata Casg!ta, 5en&al 'enaissance: Identit! and Creativit! fro# 'a##ohun 'a! to

'abindranath Ta&ore, *ermanent Blac3, 8e" Celhi, 2005, 7!mit 7ar3ar,A Criti@ue of Colonial India,

*ayr!s, Kol3ata,1@6J$


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13

ar-ist %istorians their s!remacy$ (he "or3s of C$ C$ Kosambi 1 and Romila (haar15 in

Ancient Indian %istory, that of Irfan %abib16in edie:al Indian %istory, that of 7!mit 7ar3ar1@

in case of odern Indian %istory, ric %obsba"m, 20eorges Lefeb:re21and Albert 7obo!l22in

case of !roean %istory to name =!st a fe", had a o"erf!l imact on me and filled me "ith

great ride$

At the same time tho!gh, "e "ere introd!ced to some of the challenges that ar-ist

interretations "ere beginning to face$ Irfan %abib "as being challenged by 're:isionist

historians li3e !#affar Alam,2the ar-ist48ationalist interretation of colonialism and Indian

freedom str!ggle "as being challenged by the follo"ers of Le"is 8amier in )ambridge,

o!larly 3no"n as the )ambridge 7chool,2interretations of the French Re:ol!tion "ere being

16

C$C$ Kosambi,An Introduction to the %tud! of Indian istor!**o!lar *ra3ashan, Bombay, 1@5J$17 Romila (haar,Aoka and the ecline of the "aur!an E#)ire*H-ford ni:ersity *ress, 8e" Celhi,

1@1$

18 Irfan %abib, A&rarian %!ste# of "u&hal India, H-ford ni:ersity *ress, 8e" Celhi, 1@@@, +first

!blished 1@., (aan Raycha!dh!ri and Irfan %abib, Ca#brid&e Econo#ic istor! of India* vol61*

)ambridge ni:ersity *ress, )ambridge, 1@62$

197!mit 7ar3ar,"odern India:1BB019D7, acmillan, )hennai, 1@6@ %adeshi "ove#ent in 5en&al:

19F019B, *eoles *!blishing %o!se,Bombay, 1@5, A Criti@ue of Colonial India, *ayr!s,

Kol3ata,1@6J,,o)ular "ove#ents and "iddle Class Geadershi) in Gate Colonial India* K* Bagchi

)o$ for )entre for 7t!dies in 7ocial 7ciences, Kol3ata, 1@6$

20ric %obsba"m, The A&e of 'evolution: Euro)e* 17B901BDB, Wiedenfeld and 8icholson,London, 1@2

A&e of Ca)ital: Euro)e* 1BDB H 1B7* intage, London, 1@@ A&e of E#)ire: Euro)e* 1B7 H 191D,

*antheon Boo3s, London, 1@65 Industr! and E#)ire: fro# 17 to the )resent da!, *eng!in,

London,1@@$

21eorges Lefeb:re, The Co#in& of the =rench 'evolution 17B9 , intage Boo3s,London, 1@J5 The

=rench 'evolution fro# 179F H 1799, )ol!mbia ni:ersity *ress, 8e" Nor3, 1@ The reat =ear:

'ural ,anic in 'evolutionar! =rance, *antheon Boo3s, 8e" Nor3,1@5$

22Albert 7obo!l, The =rench 'evolution* 17B7 to 1799: =ro# the stor#in& of the 5astille to Na)oleon ,

intage Boo3s, 8e" Nor3, 1@5$

23!#affar Alam, The Crisis of E#)ire in "u&hal North India: Aadh and the ,un-ab: 177 H 17DB ,

H-ford ni:ersity *ress, 8e" Celhi,1@6$

24Anil 7eal,E#er&ence of Indian Nationalis#: Co#)etition and Collaboration in the Gater Nineteenth

Centur!, )ambridge ni:ersity *ress, )ambridge, 1@6 >!dith Bro"n, andhi$s 'ise to ,oer*

191: 1922, )ambridge ni:ersity *ress, )ambridge, 1@52 >ohn allagher, ordon >ohnson, Anil 7eal,


14/22

14

challenged by historians li3e 7imon 7chama2J"ho ref!sed to see any dee economic str!ct!ral

reason behind the re:ol!tion, and a ne" radical school of historiograhy had emerged

searheaded by Rana=it !ha 3no"n as the 7!balterns,2"ho mo:ed a"ay from class analysis to

a broad di:ision of the society into 'elite and 's!baltern$ In case of !roean %istory, Allan

B!lloc3 had "ritten a boo3 that so!ght to sho" %itler and 7talin as t"o sides of the same coin 25

/ an interretation that inf!riated o!r teacher of !roean %istory "ho "as of ar-ist

disosition$ Francis F!3!yamasEnd of istor!,26in "hich he redicted that the battle bet"een

ideologies has come to an end "ith the fall of the 7o:iet nion, "as in circ!lation$ Hlder anti4

ar-ist boo3s s!ch as Karl *oers The >)en %ociet! and its Ene#ies2@ also had made a

re:i:al$ (he "or3s of Annales 7chool0 of "riting %istory, "ho offered an alternati:e

methodology to ar-ist class analysis to !nderstand long term changes in society, "as also

disc!ssed in the classroom, esecially arc Blochs masteriece on !roean Fe!dalism, The

=eudal %ociet!$1%ence altho!gh ar-ist historians "ere re4eminent there "ere also some

ma=or challenges to their ersecti:es$ Hne may here note that "hile I came to 3no" of certain

Gocalit!* ,rovince and Nation: Essa!s on Indian ,olitics 1B7019D, )ambridge ni:ersity *ress,

)ambridge,1@5 )$ A$ Bayly, Gocal 'oots of Indian ,olitics* 1BB: 192, H-ford ni:ersity *ress,

H-ford, 1@6 Francis Robinson, %e)aratis# a#on& Indian "usli#s: the )olitics of (nited ,rovinces$

"usli#s 1B H 192F, )ambridge ni:ersity *ress, )ambridge, 1@5$

257imon 7chama, Citi?ens: A Chronicle of the =rench 'evolution, intage, London, 1@@0$

26 Rana=it !ha +ed$. %ubaltern %tudies* vol6 1, H-ford ni:ersity *ress, 8e" Celhi, 1@62$ In all 11:ol!mes of the series "ere !blished$ (he first si- "ere edited by Rana=it !ha$ (he historians belonging

to the 7!baltern 7t!dies )ollecti:e s!ch as Rana=it !ha, Ciesh )ha3rabarty, *artha )hatter=ee, Ca:id

Arnold, 7hahid Amin and Ca:id %ardiman indi:id!ally !blished se:eral imortant essays and boo3s$

For a critical analysis of the 7!baltern 7chool see Ca:id L!dden +ed$.'eadin& %ubaltern %tudies: Critical

istor!* Contested "eanin& and the lobalisation of %outh Asia, *ermanent Blac3, 8e" Celhi, 2001$ 7ee

also *artha )hatter=ee, 'After 7!baltern 7t!dies in Econo#ic and ,olitical Weekl!, ol QLII, 8o J,

7etember 1, 2012, $ 4@$

27Alan B!lloc3,itler and %talin: ,arallel Gives, Alfred A Knof, 8e" Nor3, 1@@2$

28Francis F!3!yama, The End of istor! and the Gast "an, Free *ress, 8e" Nor3, 1@@2

29Karl *oer, >)en %ociet! and its Ene#ies* vol6 2: e&el and "arx, Ro!tledge Kegan *a!l, London,

1@J$

30For a re:ie" of the Annales 7chool see *eter B!r3e, The =rench istorical 'evolution: The Annales

%chool* 1929 H 19B9* 7tanford ni:ersity *ress, *alo Alto, 1@@0$

31arc Bloch,=eudal %ociet!* vol 1J2, Ro!tledge Kegan *a!l, London, 1@6@$


15/22

15

alternati:e ersecti:es to the ar-ist "ay of loo3ing at the ast, I "as not as yet a"are of the

ideas associated "ith Fo!ca!lt or Cerrida or ostmodernism$ (hat came to me a little later,

d!ring my A days, b!t by early nineties s!ch ideas "ere :ery m!ch in :og!e in )alc!tta

academic circles$ (he age of certit!de and sec!rity of ideas li3e 'base4s!erstr!ct!re,

'contradiction and 'mode of rod!ction "as clearly o:er$ 8e" terms li3e 'disco!rse, 'binary,

'o"er


16/22

16

In the o!tside "orld ho"e:er 7o:iet nion, to o!r astonishment, "as falling aart$ Hn Cecember

2J, 1@@1 the red flag "as lo"ered for the last time and the ne-t day 7o:iet nion "as formally

dissol:ed$It "as ironic that recisely at the oint of time "hen the 7o:iet nion "as cr!mbling

and ar- "as going o!t of fashion that I managed to ac9!ire my first !nderstanding of the basic

rinciles of ar-ism$ In fact, as I "as b!ying the three :ol!mes of Ca)ital, one of the ersons

at the store said* 3ni!e -aan ekhon* er )or aar )aben na4+ta3e them no", soon they "o!ld be

!na:ailable. hinting at the stoage of rod!ction and s!ly of s!ch boo3s from 7o:iet nion$

Aart from the class room and the )ollege 7treet the third imortant sace "as the )anteen and

the 7t!dent nion room$ (he 7t!dent nion of *residency )ollege "as dominated by the

8a-alites d!ring the late si-ties and early se:enties$ :en in 1@@0, the year I =oined, the nion

"as controlled by a ro48a-alite organi#ation named *)7A$ By 1@@1 this sace had beg!n to

see an imortant transformation$ B!t to !nderstand this transformation one m!st first recogni#e

that by 1@@0, i$e$ after 1 years in o"er, )*I4 had established an iron4gri on the st!dent

!nions of the state thro!gh its st!dent "ing 7t!dent Federation of India or 7FI$ It "as not

!ncommonfor it to aly intimidating tactics and "in "itho!t any contest$ (here "ere :ery fe"

st!dent !nions in colleges "hich "ere not in the control of 7FI$ What "as ho"e:er most

fr!strating "as the fact that st!dent !nions, e:en "hen they "ere not r!n by 7FI "ere in:ariably

controlled from o!tside by some olitical arty or the other and the st!dent !nions became

agents of the olitical interests of these olitical arties rather than the reflection of the ideas,

dreams and interests of the st!dents themsel:es$ It is in this conte-t that a loose, ideologically

some"hat conf!sed b!t !nited in its oosition to arty control, olitical o!tfit named

Indeendent )onsolidation +I). came to o"er in 1@@1 in the *residency )ollege 7t!dent nion$

(heir :ictory "as 9!ite remar3able as the organi#ation "as formed only a year or so earlier$

I) 3et its door oen to ideas coming from all sides, ar-ist or other"ise$ It attracted

st!dents "ho "ere against o!tside domination of the !nion b!t "ho belonged to :ario!s

olitical beliefs$ It is fair to say that "hat I) "as able to introd!ce "as not any clearly

definable olitical


17/22

17

being remote4controlled by *arty leaders from o!tside$ Hrgani#ationally I) "as a loose

formation and not a strict cadre based arty "ith a definite hierarchy$ :erything "as

ho"e:er not la!dable abo!t it$ It sho"ed at least t"o fla"s of democratic olitics as "e

ha:e e-erienced it$ (he first "as o!lism, "hich got reflected in the fact that the Ann!al

)!lt!ral Festi:al +'Fest. "as the most imortant e:ent in the calendar of the nion$ (his

heled I) to attract st!dents e:en if they "ere not interested in oliticalidS3?J51, Accessed 0$ 0@$12$
http://www.mha.nic.in/uniquepage.asp?id_pk=571http://www.mha.nic.in/uniquepage.asp?id_pk=571http://www.mha.nic.in/uniquepage.asp?id_pk=571http://www.mha.nic.in/uniquepage.asp?id_pk=571


18/22

18

it "as o!r an-iety that too3 !s to the street to ma3e the symbolic march$ A fe" st!dents "ere

also beginning to tal3 in %ind! right ersecti:e and intense debates in the )anteen "ere

common$ Academic 9!estions s!ch as the religio!s olicy of A3bar no more remained a strictly

academic iss!e$ Altho!gh the %ind! Right "as olitically "ea3 in West Bengal and almost

insignificant in terms of n!mbers "ithin the college, yet they had an imact in the sense that it

became imortant to ref!te their claims$ In some cases s!ch as their claim regarding destr!ction

of %ind! temles by !slim r!lers "as diffic!lt to deny$ (hese ideas ne:er ac9!ired in the

"orld aro!nd me a hegemonic osition b!t nonetheless it did thro" a challenge to sec!lar4

rationalist self that I had de:eloed as a teenager$

7imilarly, from 1@@0 on"ards, st!dent comm!nity across India "as di:ided by the aro:al of

caste4based reser:ation as er recommendations of the andal )ommission that * 7ingh

introd!ced$ A Celhi ni:ersity st!dent named Ra=i: os"ami tried to immolate himself in

rotest of the decision by the o:ernment$ West Bengal "as ho"e:er not one of the ner:e

centres of the anti4reser:ation mo:ement$ (here "ere heated arg!ments and debates in the

college canteen, altho!gh the iss!e "as less imortant than %ind!t:a$ For me, and erhas for

many others, "ho did not accet caste, it "as a artic!larly diffic!lt moment$ Reser:ation stood

against a :ision of caste4less India that I had and it stood in contradiction to the belief that merit

sho!ld be the sole basis of selection in ni:ersities and =obs$ (here "ere cr!de anti4reser:ation

=o3es li3e "hether yo! "o!ld li3e to ha:e an oeration "hen the s!rgeon is from a reser:ed

seat, b!t the larger iss!e of caste based India :ers!s caste4less India remained$ I "as at this stage

against reser:ation beca!se I belie:ed that reser:ation does not lead to emanciation$ I "as

erhas not e:ol:ed eno!gh to as3 myself "hy there are so fe" st!dents from 7ched!led )astes

or 7ched!led (ribes in my college$

Along "ith '>ai 7hri Ram and '9!ota, terms s!ch as TliberalisationT, TglobalisationT,

Tmar3et economyT and T8) "ere also gaining c!rrency d!ring this time$ 6 (he

8ehr!:ian model of mi-ed economy "as beginning to be considered o!tdated$ )ongress

o:ernment !nder 8arasimha Rao and anmohan 7ingh "ere beginning to integrate the

Indian economy "ith the "orld economy and !lti 8ational )omanies +8). began to

38 Francine R Fran3nel, India$s ,olitical Econo#!* 19D7 H 2D: The radual 'evolution, H-ford

ni:ersity *ress, 8e" Celhi, 200J >Uan Cre#e and Amartya 7en,India: evelo)#ent and ,artici)ation,

H-ford ni:ersity *ress, 8e" Celhi, 1@@$


19/22

19

find their "ay into India in greater n!mber and "ith a ne" legitimacy$ 7t!dents in o!r

college started to thin3 abo!t )A( e-am and getting into management instit!tions "hich

"ere assorts to !nbelie:able salaries in 8)s$ (he b!## "as in the air 4 there is no

alternati:e to caitalism and the 9!estion "as "hether India can =oin the cl!b or not$ All this

"as haening "hile 7A !nder eorge B!sh +7enior. had !nleashed, in the name of

democracy, an imerialist "ar in the !lf$@

For me, li3e many others, the "orld had th!s changed fore:er, a change that "as diffic!lt to

come to terms "ith$ It "as simly not ossible to accet that the )old War "as o:er and the

7 had "on it and it "as the only s!ero"er in the "orld no"$ A boo3 that someho" came

as a solace "as *a!l Kennedys bestselling boo3, 'ise and =all of reat ,oers $0I sent a

large ch!n3 of my oc3et money to b!y a coy of the boo3 in "hich Kennedy redicted that

the 7 "o!ld not be able to remain a s!ero"er for long and "o!ld ha:e to accet itself as

one the layers in a m!lti4olar "orld$ After reading the reass!ring last chater I "rote an

article in o!r college maga#ine on this$

(here "as no =olt to me in my family life "hich contin!ed its middle4class e-istence, in fact

imro:ing some"hat in terms of 9!ality of life$ I had my share of yo!thf!l f!n and romance

as "ell$ B!t at an ideological le:el the e:ents of 1@6641@@2 destroyed something dee

inside$ (he belief system that "as created "ithin me bet"een 1@5@ and 1@6J no" lay in

shambles$ (he sec!rity of a rationalist4ar-ist "orld4:ie" "as beginning to fall aart b!t there

"as no clear alternati:e ath to !rs!e either$ It "as a time for chaos and conf!sion for a large

section of yo!th of my generation$ As I comleted my grad!ation in 1@@ I remained symathetic

to ar-ism b!t did not see any artic!lar olitical arty or mo:ement that I co!ld s!ort$ I

contin!ed to belie:e in ar-ism b!t !nderstood that there are many 9!estions that the ideology

co!ld not ans"er$ I had to accet the br!talities of 7o:iet nion esecially !nder 7talin and ost4

(iananmen )hina "as not a so!rce of insiration either$ In all robability the reason "hy many in

39 ad Bar#ilai, Aharon Klieman and il 7hidlo, +ed$. The ulf Crisis and Its lobal After#ath6

Ro!tledge, London, 1@@ icah L 7ifry and )hristoher )erf, The ulf War 'eader: istor!*

ocu#ents* >)inions, (ime Boo3s, 8e" Nor3, 1@@1 *ierre 7alinger, ric La!rent, %o"ard )!rtis,

%ecret ossier: The idden A&enda 5ehind the ulf War, *eng!in Boo3s, London, 1@@1$

40*a!l Kennedy,'ise and =all of reat ,oers: Econo#ic Chan&e and "ilitar! Conflict fro# 1 to

2* intage Boo3s, 8e" Nor3, 1@6@$


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my generation felt attracted to"ard the songs of 7!man )hattoadhyay +later Kabir 7!man.

d!ring this time "as recisely the fact that he reflected this mood / anti4caitalist, against the

conser:atism of )*I4 b!t not a 8a-alite either, fiercely anti4establishment and some"here

maintaining the !toian dream of a better "orld$ (his "as :ery different from the songs of an

earlier generation s!ch as the ones comosed by 7alil )ho"dh!ry for e-amle, that "ere directly

related to mobili#ation by the )omm!nist *arty thro!gh the Indian *eoles Little (heatre$

Class(Caste(!$entity

Let me a!se here and as3 ho" did class, caste and ling!istic identity inform my mo:e to"ards

ar-ism; Loo3ing bac3 I thin3 there "as something middle4class and something Bengali abo!t

my road to ar-ism$ It "as middle4class in the sense that it "as not the e-erience of "or3ing

class str!ggles that too3 me to ar-ism$ Indeed at this stage of life I "as far remo:ed from any

3ind of e:en moderate acti:ism$ It "as rimarily thro!gh family infl!ences and thro!gh boo3s

that I became interested in ar-ism$ Net it "o!ld be simlistic to see my social osition as

similar to that of the bhadralokelite$ H!r family, and I thin3 most families that "ere dra"n

to"ards ar-ism, "ere not from the erst"hile landed bhadralo3 society, b!t rather from a

middle4class families the li3es of "hich ha:e been ortrayed by 7atya=it Ray in films li3e

ahanagar or >ana Aranya$ Li3e the families ortrayed in these films o!rs "as a middle4class

family and not really the elite of the society$ Net there "ere similarities "ith the Bhadralo3 elite

of the society in terms of choice of c!lt!ral icons, a shared sace of Bengali ride o:er great

Bengali c!lt!ral rod!cts, and certain "ay of sea3ing in Bengali and nglish$

%o" did )aste lay a role; 7ince my father "as a ref!gee from Bangladesh he "as not able to

!se his !er4caste stat!s for any economic gain$ %e did not ha:e any land to fall bac3 !on$ %e

had to find his "ay thro!gh school and college and find his so!rce of li:elihood thro!gh merit

rather than by !sing his caste stat!s$ )aste also did not lay any role in the rocess of my

!bringing e-cet d!ring the occasion "hen I "as !nder ress!re to adot the sacred thread"hich I declined$ What mattered for social standing, in the absence of serio!s "ealth, "as

academic erformance and c!lt!re rather than the caste stat!s$ (h!s 3no"ing (agore or ar-

"as an imortant c!lt!ral caital$ By the time I "as a teenager, caste had ceased to be a so!rce of

ride and ri:ilege in the "orld aro!nd me$ What mattered "as not so m!ch caste b!t "hich

school or college I "as in and ho" I "as erforming in the school e-ams and "hether I 3ne"


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(agore or Cic3ens or not$ It "as imortant "hether I 3ne" Bengali and nglish, belonged to a

good schoolayra3ash 8arain2ne:er fig!red in the intellect!al sace that I

belonged to e:en tho!gh they "ere imortant socialist intellect!als$ We ne:er read a!thors "ho

"rote in %indi and hardly 3ne" anything abo!t them$ (h!s I +and many others. asired to read

Alth!sser or *erry Anderson b!t not Lohia or >*$ (hose names "ere simly not se-y and not in

circ!lation in the intellect!al sace of my school and college days$ Among other imortant

ar-ist


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(his "as erhas a cr!cial limitation of the ar-ism that I, along "ith many others, imbibed in

Bengal$ (he ar-ist mo:ement in Bengal failed to de:elo dialog!es "ith :ario!s socialist

forces in the %indi heartland and other arts of India$ We read R!ssian boo3s in nglish and

boo3s coming from K and the 7, boo3s from !roe translated into nglish b!t did not care

to learn the lang!age, c!lt!re and intellect!al c!rrents of other states$ (herefore o!r ar-ism

failed to gro" and ac9!ire an all4India ersecti:e$ (he ar-ism that de:eloed in West Bengal

did not e-and to other neighbo!ring states in the 60s and @0s$ When a mo:ement fails to gro" it

becomes firstly stagnant and then atrohies and this is "hat haened to ar-ism in Bengal$

If lac3 of dialog!e "ith the other states and their c!lt!res "as an imortant asect of the time I

ha:e disc!ssed then the other !##ling silence "as regarding ideas associated "ith social

democracy$ After liberali#ation and fall of 7o:iet nion it became clear that West Bengal cannot

a:oid ri:ate caital$ And for a arty "hich "as significantly resent only in three states of India

it loo3ed a rather long shot to be able to dismantle the global caitalist economy$ At this stage

erhas an arg!ment in fa:o!r of social democracy co!ld ha:e retained a strong commitment

to"ards o:erty alle:iation, healthcare and basic ed!cation "hile at the same time achie:ing

economic gro"th thro!gh ri:ate caital$ Instead )*I4 s"!ng from anti4imerialist rhetoric to

neo4liberal caitalism$ ar- "as 3et in the boo3shel:es and for brigade arade gro!nd rallies

b!t in reality it "as time for 7ecial conomic Gones to be set !$ (h!s by mid4nineties,

ar-ism as an idea had become more or less irrele:ant in Bengal$ What "as left "as )*I4 as a

arty

Memories of Marxism in a Post-Colonial City: Calcutta c. 1971 - 1993

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Transcript of Memories of Marxism in a Post-Colonial City: Calcutta c. 1971 - 1993