17.07.2026 | FRIDAY | 5:30 PM TO 7:00 PM

 

Lalbhai Dalpatbhai Museum in collaboration with INTACH - Ahmedabad presents

Sites of Faith, Voices of Equality: Tracing Maharashtra’s Living Traditions

 

Lecture by Suchetana Banerjee (Comparatist, Educator & Theatre Director)

Living traditions of devotion in India are a product of extensive cultural contacts and confluences, which allows for several “tellings” of religious narratives making room for renewed expressions in artistic creativity, philosophical formulations, and social egalitarianism. Spanning over a millennium, religious reformations in the sub-continent were wrought in regional languages—the natural and intimate vehicle of expression of the devotee. This research project documents the living traditions of religious representation in Maharashtra, tracing their linguistic resonances, and historical continuities. Some of the key sites embodying social egalitarianism have already been recorded, while others remain under study. The project also engages with the social composition, inter-religious exchanges, and contemporary interpretations that shape these faith systems, alongside collecting narratives, songs, community histories, and performances that continue to sustain them.

 

About the Speaker

Suchetana Banerjee is a comparatist, a teacher, and a theatre director who has been engaging with performance practices for over two decades. She holds her PhD and MPhil from Jadavpur University, Kolkata. Currently she teaches literature and theatre at the Symbiosis School for Liberal Arts, Pune. Prior to joining SSLA, she taught Liberal Arts at IIT (Bhilai) and was instrumental in development of Sahapedia, an open online resource on the arts, cultures and heritage of India. Her doctoral research lies at an interdisciplinary juncture of theatre, literature, history and economics. Among her published works in the last few years she has focused on the expansion and consolidation of vocabulary of the disciplines of Comparative Literature, Cultural Studies and Performance Studies. She is currently heading the project titled "Traditions of Devotion: Narratives and Lived Experiences" in collaboration with INTACH (Indian National Trust for Art and Cultural Heritage), Pune Chapter and translating Girish Manas (a commentary on 19th century Bangla actor Girish chandra Ghosh by Utpal Dutt) from Bangla to English for Leftword Books, New Delhi.

 

 

Venue: Lecture Hall, L D Museum

For registration, please contact: Call: +91-7863040584 | WhatsApp: +91-9408536883

 

 

 

 

 

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