Preview

Islamology

Advanced search

Can the Other Speak? Mediated Counter-Narratives of Tatars and Mappilas

https://doi.org/10.24848/islmlg.10.2.07

Abstract

Tatars in Russia and Mappilas in India, two imagined communities of different socio-cultural, ethno-national and geo-political identities, have more contrasts than commonalities. Their similarity lies in the constructed otherness of Tatars and Mappilas regarding the origin,                                       spread, and survival of these two communities. Orientalist historiography, literary imageries, and ideological intrusions have constructed a common ‘other’ whose stereotyped media images and biased narratives are now part of everyday discursive practice. Rejecting these age-old intellectual narratives and media images, a new wave of intelligentsia among the Tatar and Mappila communities brings counter-narratives on the history, tradition, and everyday life of these communities. Media, especially cinema, have become a major tool for reinterpreting Tatar and Mappila identity and culture and challenging the distorted images of these subaltern communities. 

About the Author

Kizhakkathu Parambil Abdullakkutty
SMSTM College, University of Calicut
Russian Federation

Assistant Professor



References

1. Abdullakkutty, K.P. (2018).Media representations of Islam in Russia and India: A comparative study of othering, enemy imaging and gender stereotyping. (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). New Delhi: Jawaharlal Nehru University.

2. Abu-Lughod, L. (1991). Writing against culture. In R. G. Fox (Ed.), Recapturing anthropology:Working in the present. Santa Fe: School of American Research Press.

3. Abu-Lughod, L. (2006). Local contexts of Islamism in Popular Media. Amsterdam: Amsterdam University Press.

4. Ahmad, S. N. (2004). Origins of Muslim Consciousness in India: A World System Perspective. New York: Greenwood Press.

5. Ahmad, S. (Director & Producer). (2011). Adaminte Makan Abu (Abu son of Adam). India; Allens Media

6. Akmetshin, M. (Producer) Fazliyev, R. &Galiaskarov, A. (Directors) (2018). Mullah. Russia; Atna Theatre.

7. Alikberov, A. (2017, April 12). Personal interview.

8. Almond, I. (2007).The New Orientalists: Postmodern Representations of Islam from Foucault to Baudrillard. London: I.B.Tauris.

9. Ashraf, K.M. (1975). A political history of Indian Muslims (1857–1947). In I. Zafar (Ed.), Muslims in India. New Delhi: Orient Logman

10. Bukharaev, R. (1996). Islam in Russia: Crisis of Leadership. Religion, State &Society, 24(2/3): 167–182.

11. Campbell, E.I. (2015). The Muslim Question and Russian Imperial Governance. Indiana: Indiana University Press.

12. Chelnakova, A. (2017, April 19). Personal interview.

13. Chatterjee, P. (1992). History and nationalization of Hinduism. Social Research,59(1):111–149. Dale, S.F. (1980). The Mappilas of Malabar, 1498–1922: Islamic Society on the South Asian Frontier. Oxford: Clarendon.

14. Dimitry, A. (2017, April 21). Personal interview. Dinara, S. (2017, April 7). Personal interview.

15. Eaton, R. M. (2000). Essays on Islam and Indian history. New Delhi: Oxford University Press. Engineer, A. A. (1985). Indian Muslims: A Study of the Minority Problem in India. New Delhi: Ajanta Publications.

16. Engineer, A. A. (1999). Media and minorities: Exclusions, distortions and stereotypes. Economic and Political Weekly(31): 2132–33.

17. Esposito, J. L. (2011). Introduction. In J. L. Esposito & K. Ibrahim (Eds.), Islamphobia: The Challenge of Pluralism in the 21stCentury. New York: Oxford University Press.

18. Faller, H.M. (2011). Nation, Language, Islam: Tatarstan’s Sovereignty Movement. Budapest: Central European University Press. Retrieved fromhttp://books.openedition. org/ceup/1776

19. Galimzyanova, A.T (2016). Documentary Film in the Tatar Autonomous Soviet Socialist Republic Kazan Newsreel Studio’s Launching. Journal of Organizational Culture, Communications and Conflict, 20: 159–164.

20. Gibatdinov, M. (2007). The Image of Islam in Tatar and Russian History Textbooks. InternationaleSchulbuchforschung, Europa–PeripherieOst/Südost/Europe–The Eastern/South-Eastern Periphery, 29(3): 273–287.

21. Gleb, S. V. (2017, April 19). Personal interview. Gopinath, S. (2017, May 29). Personal interview.

22. Hall, S., (Ed.). (1997). Representation: Cultural Representations and Signifying Practices. London: Thousand Oaks.

23. Haripiry, A.M. (2019). Brahmadattan Nambudiri: An Unsung Hero of Malabar Rebellion. Research Journal of Kisan Veer Mahavidyalaya, 3(1): 1–3.

24. Hasan, M. (1994). Minority identity and its discontents: Response and representation. Economiand Political Weekly, 29(8): 441–451.

25. Hunter, S. (2004). Islam in Russia. New York: M.E. Sharpe/CSIS. Hikmathullah, V. (2017). Mappila sahithyavummalayala. Chemmad: Book Plus.

26. Ilias, M.H. (2007) Mappila Muslims and the Cultural Content of Trading Arab Diaspora on the Malabar Coast. Asian Journal of Social Science,35(4/5): 434–456.

27. Imam, Z. (Ed.). Muslims in India. (1975). New Delhi: Orient Logman.

28. Islam, M. (2012). Rethinking the Muslim Question in Post-Colonial India. Social Scientist, 40 (7/8): 61–84.

29. Joseph, J.K. (2017). ‘Mappila’: Identity and Semantic Narrowing, IOSR Journal of Humanities and Social Science, 22(6): 8–13. DOI: 10.9790/0837-2201060813.

30. Karinkurayil, M.S. (2019). The Islamic Subject of Home Cinema of Kerala. BioScope, 10(1): 30–51. DOI: 10.1177/0974927619855451.

31. Karim, K.H. (1996). Constructions of the Islamic peril in English-language Canadian print media: Discourses on power and violence. (Unpublished doctoral dissertation). McGill University, Montreal.

32. Karim, K.H. (2006). American Media’s Coverage of Muslims: The Historical Roots of Contemporary Portrayals. In E. Poole & J. E. Richardson (Eds.), Muslims and the News Media. London: I.B Tauris.

33. Kasim, M.P. (2018). Mappila Muslim Masculinities: A History of Contemporary Abjectification, Men and Masculinities, 23(3/4): 542–557.

34. Kellner, D. (2004). 9/11, Spectacles of Terror, and Media Manipulation: A Critique of Jihadist and Bush Media Politics. Critical Discourse Studies, 1(1): 41–64.

35. Kerboua, S. (2016). From Orientalism to neo-Orientalism: Early and Contemporary Constructions of Islam and the Muslim World. Intellectual Discourse, 24(1): 7–34.

36. Kerimov, G. (1996).Islam and Muslims in Russia Since the Collapse of the Soviet Union. Religion, State &Society, 24(2/3): 183–192.

37. Khalid, A. (2000).Russian history and the Debate over Orientalism.Kritika: Explorations in Russian and Eurasian History, 1(4): 691–699.

38. Kolomiets, V. (2017, April 17). Personal interview.

39. Kocak, M. (2017). The Roots of Security Narratives on Islam in Russia: Tatar Yoke, O2cial Religious Institutions and the Western Influence. Insight Turkey,19(4): 137–154, DOI: 10.25253/99.2017194.09

40. Kooria, M. (2018, May 20). Personal communication. Kuznetovn, V. (2017, April 10). Personal interview.

41. Lankala, S. (2006). Mediated Nationalisms and ‘Islamic terror’: The Articulation of Religious and Postcolonial Secular Nationalisms in India. Westminster Papers in Communication and Culture, 3(2): 86–102.

42. Lau, L. (2009). Re-Orientalism: The Perpetration and Development of Orientalism by Orientals.Modern Asian Studies, 43(2): 571–590.

43. Lau, L., & Mendes, A.C., (Eds.) (2011). Re-Orientalism and South Asian Identity Politics: The Oriental Other Within. London: Routledge.

44. Lokshina, T. (2006). ‘Hate Speech’ in the Media: Monitoring Prejudice in the Russian Press. In E. Timms, S. Rock,& J. H. Brinks (Eds.), Nationalist Myths and Modern Media. London: I.B Tauris.

45. Malashenko, A.V. (2006) Islam, The Way We See It. Russia in Global AJairs, 4(1): 28–41. Retrieved from http://eng.globala1airs.ru/number/n_7325.

46. Malashenko, A.V., &Nuritova, A. (2009) Islam in Russia. Social Research, Russia Today, 76(1): 321–358.

47. Mamdani, M. (2002) Good Muslim, Bad Muslim: A Political Perspective on Culture and Terrorism. American Anthropologist, 104(3): 766–775.

48. March, A.(2010) Islamic Identities in Post-Soviet Russia: Realities and Representations. EInternational Relations. Retrieved from https://www.e-ir.info/2010/11/25/islamic-identitiesin-post-soviet-russia-realities-and-representations/

49. Mecklai, N. (2010). Myth– The National Form: Mission Istanbul and Muslim Representation in Hindi Popular Cinema. In S. Banarji(Ed.), South Asian Media Cultures: Audiences, Representations, Contexts.London: Anthem Press.

50. Merati, S.E. (2017). Muslims in Putin’s Russia: Discourse on Identity, Politics, and Security. London: Palgrave Macmillan.

51. Mishra, S. (2008). Islam and Democracy: Comparing post-9/11 Representations in the U.S. Prestige Press in the Turkish, Iraqi, and Iranian Contexts. Journal of Communication Inquiry,32(2): 155–178.

52. Mohanty, A. (2016). Russian Civilisation and Islam. New Delhi: KW Publishers. Muhsin, M. (2019, April 2). Personal communication.

53. Mukhia, H. (1983). Communalism and the Writing of Medieval Indian History: A Reappraisal. Social Scientist, 11(8): 58–65.

54. Nanda, B.R. (2012). Gandhi: pan-Islamism, Imperialism and Nationalism in India. Oxford Scholarship Online.DOI:10.1093/acprof:oso/9780195658279.003.0016.

55. Natasha, F.; Renat. S (2017, April 18). Personal interview. Narayana, U.,&Kapur, P. (2011). Indian Media Framing of the Image of Muslims: An Analysis of News Coverage of Muslims in English Newspapers of India. Media Asia, 38(3): 153–162.

56. Panikkar, K.M. (1960). A history of Kerala, 1498–1963. Annamalainagar: Annamalai University.Panikkar, K.N. (1989). Against Lord and State: Religion and Peasant Uprisings in Malabar, 1836–1921. New Delhi: Oxford University Press.

57. Pillai, M.S. (2019). The Courtesan, the Mahatma and the Italian Brahmin: Tales from Indian History. Packington, UK: Context.

58. Punathil, S. (2013). Kerala Muslims and Shifting Notions of Religion in the Public Sphere. South Asia Research.DOI: 10.1177/0262728013475540.

59. Poole, E. (2002) Reporting Islam: Media Representations of British Muslims. London: I.B. Tauris.

60. Poole, E. (2011). Change and Continuity in the Representation of British Muslims Before and After 9/11: The UK Context. Global Media Journal,4(2): 49–62.

61. Rajagopal, A. (2001). Politics After Television: Hindu Nationalism and the Reshaping of the Public in India. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

62. Rajagopal, A.(Ed.). (2009).The Indian Public Sphere: Readings in Media History. New DelhiOxford University Press.

63. Ram, N. (2011, December 13). The Changing Role of the News Media in Contemporary India, The Hindu. Retrieved from http://www.thehindu.com/migration_catalog/article13408537. ece/BINARY/Contemporary%20India%20section%20of%20the%2072nd%20Session%20 of%20the%20Indian%20History%20Congress.

64. Ramakrishnan, A.K (2017, May 10). Personal interview. Randathani, H. (2005) Mappila Malabar. Calicut: IPB.

65. Sabirova, G. (2011). Young Muslim-Tatar Girls of the Big City: Narrative Identities and Discourses on Islam in Post-Soviet Russia. Religion, State and Society, 39(2–3): 327–345.

66. Sabirova, G. (2017, April 19.) Personal interview. Said, E. W. (1978). Orientalism. London: Penguin.

67. Said, E. W. (1997).Covering Islam: How the Media and the Experts Determine how we See the Rest of the World. London: Vintage.

68. Santheep, D. (2020, January 10). Personal interview.

69. Salam,Z. (2016, April 8). A View From the ‘Other’ Side. The Hindu. Retrieved from http://www.thehindu.com/opinion/columns/Ziya_Us_Salam/a-view-from-the-other-side/ article8452085.ece

70. Salim, A.K.,&Lokeswari, K. (2018). Trends in the Portrayal of Muslim Women in Malayalam Films. Paripex-Indian Journal of Research,7(11). Retrieved from www.worldwidejournals.com

71. Sardar, Z. (1999). Orientalism, UK: Open University Press.

72. Sardar, Z.,& Davies, M. (2010). Freeze Framing Muslims. Interventions: International Journal of Postcolonial Studies, 12(2): 239–250.

73. Schimmel, A. (1980). Islam in the Indian subcontinent. Leiden: Brill. Shameel, A. (2017, April 7). Personal interview.

74. Shereena, N. (2017, June 14). Personal interview Shykhitdinov, T. (2017, April 21). Personal interview.

75. Spivak, G.C. (1988). Can the Subaltern Speak. In C. Nelson &G. H. Lawrence (Eds.), Marxism and the Interpretation of Culture.London: Macmillan Education Ltd.

76. Suleimanov, A. (2017, April 23). Personal interview.

77. Thapar, R.,Mukhia, H., & Chandra, B. (1970). Communalism and the Writing of Indian History. Economic and Political Weekly,5(19): 770 774.

78. Timms, E., Rock, S., &Brinks, J.H. (Eds.). (2006).Nationalist Myths and Modern Media: Contested Identities in the Age of Globalization. London: I.B. Tauris.

79. Usha, K.B. (2019, Aug 23). Personal interview. Venina, U. (2017, April 10). Personal interview.

80. Wertheim, S. (2005). Islam and the Construction of Tatar Sociolinguistic Identity. Retrieved from https://www.researchgate.net/publication/293811983.

81. Wheeler, G. (1997). Islam and the Soviet Union, Middle Eastern Studies, 13(1): 40–49. Yemelianova, G. (2003). Islam in Russia: A Historical Perspective. In H. Pilkington &G.

82. Yemelianova (Eds.), Islam in Post-Soviet Russia: Public and Private Perspective. London: Routledge. Yılmaz, Y. (2013). Muslims in Contemporary Russia: Russia’s Domestic Muslim Policy. European Journal of Economic and Political Studies,6(2): 101–120.

83. Zassorin, S. (2006). Modern Russian Nationalism on Television and Radio as a Reflection of Political Discourse. In E. Timms, S. Rock, &J. H. Brinks (Eds.), Nationalist Myths and Modern Media: Contested Identities in the Age of Globalization. London: I.B. Tauris.


Review

For citations:


Abdullakkutty K.P. Can the Other Speak? Mediated Counter-Narratives of Tatars and Mappilas. Islamology. 2020;10(2):100-116. https://doi.org/10.24848/islmlg.10.2.07

Views: 5


Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.


ISSN 0000-0000 (Print)
ISSN 0000-0000 (Online)