Is the story of MS Subbulakshmi from the Devadasi tradition into institution of the arts one of emancipation or cultural appropriation?

One of the most talked about images from India’s Mars Orbiter Mission (MOM) was that of women scientists in ISRO celebrating the success of the mission. The image of sari-clad, flower-adorned, lady-next-door scientists gave most of us that immensely warm, fuzzy feeling.

India is home to over 105 million tribal people, belonging to 31 different tribes. Tribal populations enter the realm of mainstream attention only when crisis – from land displacement to gender violence – manage to hit newspaper headlines. But how much do we really know about them as people – their lives, their traditional wisdom, cultures and struggles?