Combining archival research with ethnographic fieldwork, The Boundary of Laughter explores how spaces of popular performance have changed with the emergence of national borders in modern South Asia. The author traces the making of the popular theater form called Gambhira by Hindu and Muslim peasants and laborers in colonial Bengal, and explores the fate of the tradition after the Partition of the region in 1947. Drawing on a rich and hitherto unexplored archive of Gambhira songs and plays, this book provides a new approach for studying popular performances as shared spaces-that can accommodate peoples across national and religious boundaries.

About the Author
ANIKET DE is a PhD Candidate in history at Harvard University, USA.

Reviews
The Boundary of Laughter: Popular Performances Across Borders in South Asia by Aniket De lays out an intriguing ethnographic and dramaturgical research into the Bengali tradition of Gambhira performance. * Reading Religion *



Book Information
ISBN 9780190131494
Author Aniket De
Format Hardback
Page Count 272
Imprint OUP India
Publisher OUP India
Weight(grams) 374g
Dimensions(mm) 221mm * 144mm * 18mm