“The State is the Biggest Goonda”: Civic Masculinity, Radical Victimhood, and Power in Bhim Army Discourse

Journal article

Shantanu Kulshreshth
South Asia Multidisciplinary Academic Journal (SAMAJ), Association pour la Recherche sur l’Asie du Sud, 2023

DOI: http://journals.openedition.org/samaj/8953

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APA Click to copy
Kulshreshth, S. (2023). “The State is the Biggest Goonda”: Civic Masculinity, Radical Victimhood, and Power in Bhim Army Discourse. South Asia Multidisciplinary Academic Journal (SAMAJ). https://doi.org/http://journals.openedition.org/samaj/8953

Chicago/Turabian Click to copy
Kulshreshth, Shantanu. “‘The State Is the Biggest Goonda’: Civic Masculinity, Radical Victimhood, and Power in Bhim Army Discourse.” South Asia Multidisciplinary Academic Journal (SAMAJ) (2023).

MLA Click to copy
Kulshreshth, Shantanu. “‘The State Is the Biggest Goonda’: Civic Masculinity, Radical Victimhood, and Power in Bhim Army Discourse.” South Asia Multidisciplinary Academic Journal (SAMAJ), Association pour la Recherche sur l’Asie du Sud, 2023, doi:http://journals.openedition.org/samaj/8953.

BibTeX Click to copy

@article{kulshreshth2023a,
  title = {“The State is the Biggest Goonda”: Civic Masculinity, Radical Victimhood, and Power in Bhim Army Discourse},
  year = {2023},
  journal = {South Asia Multidisciplinary Academic Journal (SAMAJ)},
  publisher = {Association pour la Recherche sur l’Asie du Sud},
  doi = {http://journals.openedition.org/samaj/8953},
  author = {Kulshreshth, Shantanu}
}

Abstract

This paper explores the emergence of the Bhim Army, a Dalit-led social movement in North India that has gained significant political influence in recent years. In doing so, it develops the idea of “boss power” as a cultural repertoire in North India through which marginalized actors negotiate and engage with the state and society. It shows how the organization creates new identities based on masculinity, civic duty, and radical victimhood to enact power in response to caste marginalization and state capture. However, despite its attempts to build a diverse base, the Bhim Army’s appeal remains limited in terms of gender and class.

“The State is the Biggest Goonda”: Civic Masculinity, Radical Victimhood, and Power in Bhim Army Discourse

Journal article

Cite

Abstract

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