Writing and Space: Writing the City by Stuti Khanna

Writing the City, a collection of essays edited by Stuti Khanna is a noteworthy publication as it includes 13 engaging essays by critically acclaimed contemporary mostly Indian writer. The book has an attractive cover with an infographic map of cities — the theme around which Khanna assembles this collection. This book with only 114 pages can be a treasure trove for researchers of the contemporary Indian writing as “it explores the symbiotic relationship between form and content” (Khanna, 2020, p. xi) as each of these 13 writers present in their introspective mood, “the relationship of their writing to place and space” (Khanna, 2020, p.xi) of their upbringing. Hence, the apt title, Writing the City. The book validates Tim Creswell and other Humanist Geographer’s reverberations that: “Place is the raw material for the creative production for identity” (Cresswell, 2004, p.39)

By Me Shall He Be Nursed! Queer Identity and Representation in The Mahabharata

The Mahabharata is a treasure-trove of the cultural memories of the Hindus. The grand Epic has entertained and edified our society through its numerous identity-relevant narratives since time immemorial. The longevity of The Mahabharata lies in its capacity to adapt, adopt and re-fashion the account, which grants endless opportunities of initiating open-ended debate. The grand Epic has shaped our values and shared a template by which a life guided by Dharma is to be lived. The dialogic text continues to contribute to the resolution of our emotional angst and existential dilemmas. Much ahead of its times, the Epic revels in the liminality that is apparent in the narratives of the gender-queer people who are an integral part of its culture-scape. This paper seeks to study two liminal figures in the Epic narrative – Shikhandi, the trans-gender Prince of Panchala, and Yuvanashwa, the pregnant King, who swayed between gendered identities and challenged the hegemonic heteronormative sexual framework, thereby opening avenues of conversation related to marginalization, resistance and empowerment. The paper also examines the queer cases of King Sudyumna and King Bhangashwan, who questioned the symbolic binaries of gender and delineated a horizon of possibilities. The aim here is to measure the resistance of the genderqueer against the prescriptive order of subjectivities and assess the impact and the outcome. Drawing from the deconstructivist and the queer theories, the study foregrounds the trauma and the resistance of the marginal. These narratives establish The Mahabharata as one of the earliest texts to have a meaningful discourse in the queer-space.

The Church on the Hill in Schäßburg/Sighişoara. A Jewel of Architecture and Art-History on a Marginal Spiritual-Liturgical Existence

The Evangelical Church C. A. in Romania has an impressive treasure trove of churches of cultural and art-historical value in Transylvania. One of the most important sacred buildings is the Church on the Hill in Schäßburg/Sighisoara. But although it is a liturgically important space, it has served other purposes over and over again in the course of history. The fact that the Evangelical community became very small after 1989 brought with it the challenge of using this place of worship adequately. In the last few decades – i with the inclusion of the old town of Schäßburg on the list of UNESCO as a World Heritage Site – the Church on the Hill has become a tourist magnet. Culture lovers can listen to contemplative organ concerts. Due to the epidemiological situation, it now serves more and more liturgical purposes.