The Boundary of Laughter: Popular Performances Across Borders in South Asia. By Aniket De

Abstract

Mahananda, the river that connects the two modern-day nation states of Bangladesh and India, also serves as the lifeline of the people living on either side of the eastern border. But there is more to it: Meandering through Malda, connecting it to Chapai Nawabganj, the river also nourishes the cultural landscape of the region. Aniket De’s book is a fascinating study of the creation of border ‘spaces’ that transcend the limits of national territoriality. As he notes at the outset, the work is a blend of archival and ethnographic research to understand and evaluate the past and present of a form of popular performance called Gambhira that straddles the two border regions mentioned previously. In doing so, De highlights that, while the border divides the people of the two nations, Gambhira performances on either side act as mediums to express dissatisfaction with people of upper caste or higher administrative officials as well as take up social causes to enlighten the spectators. For anyone interested in engaging with the idea of a fluid affective space as well as those particularly looking at popular performances and their sociocultural and political frameworks, this book will serve as a helpful methodological guide for interdisciplinary assessment.