A Valiant Journey Through the Silk Route

Author: Sheetala Bhat

This book explores the shifting identity of the female performer in India, starting from the late 19th century to the early years of independence, through the study of autobiographies and memoirs. It attempts to make visible the actress figure by entering the history of performance, guided by the voice of the female performer. The discussion on performing woman in this book spans across the performing traditions of the tawaif, actresses in public theatre, early Indian film actresses, and actresses in the Indian People?s Theatre and the Prithvi Theatre. Sheetala Bhat is an actress and a writer from Sirsi, a small town in the Western Ghats of Karnataka. She holds an MA in English Literature from Manipal Centre for Philosophy and Humanities, Manipal University, Manipal. She worked with Chintana repertory, exploring the possibilities of theatre in education in government schools in Karnataka. She writes short stories and poetry in Kannada. Being a reclusive reader and an enthusiastic actress, she often finds herself rummaging and weaving in between the fields of theatre and Indian literature, with an emphasis on the gender concerns in these areas. Performing Self, Performing Gender: Reading the Lives of Women Performers in Colonial India is her first book.

Interested readers may write to us at mup@manipal.edu about purchasing the book.

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Editors: Beate Illg, Beatrice Dernbach

Free and fair media are at the heart of any democratic set up. A thriving field of journalism and zealous and ethical journalists in that sense become torch bearers of a brighter and promising tomorrow. In this light, the status of journalists, the most important actors in the field becomes increasingly important as a matter of study. They act as gatekeepers of information that is flooding in the era of new media, a wave that is not so new anymore. Their roles remain intact and even becomes prominent in the chaos of many-to-many communication.
Not concentrating on specific countries, selected contributions in the book reflect on the developments of media and journalism education across different countries. Introducing the book with an overview about the state-of-the-art of journalism education and the research on a meta level, the book moves on to talk about media studies in the Asian countries and in Arab world, the African States and Brazil.
The recent economic and social developments present both opportunities and risks for journalism. Freedom of expression and freedom of press, even in democratic countries, are under pressure. This book provides an international perspective on the different aspects of journalism – the situation in which journalists work, their working conditions, educational backgrounds, struggles and successes. It is aimed at an international public interested in the field of journalism and freedom of speech. It addresses journalists, trainers and academics. Furthermore, institutions in the field of development cooperation, education or cultural policy and cultural education are the focus of this work. Though the book is focused on journalism and journalism education in developing countries, contributions are from across the globe. This book is an interesting read for all those who care about a vital media landscape and an open democratic society.

Interested readers may write to us at mup@manipal.edu about purchasing the book.

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